Dr. Supraja G. Varadarajan from Stanford University School of Medicine awarded $70,000 Knights Templar Eye Foundation Grant for Retinal Regeneration Research

Dr. Supraja G. Varadarajan from Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA was awarded a grant for $70,000 for the research project entitled: Role of post-synaptic cells in promoting retinal regeneration

Vision is the most important sense for humans to navigate the world and survive. In neurodegenerative diseases such as Optic Atrophy I and Congenital Glaucoma, the optic nerve - the bundle of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axons that connect the eye to the brain - is vulnerable to damage and can cause vision loss in children. As the retina and optic nerve are part of the central nervous system, RGC axons cannot repair themselves without intervention. Previous studies have shown that “reapplying” mechanisms that are critical for normal development to an injured or diseased environment can promote regeneration of RGC axons; these studies use strategies that work on the front-end, in the eye. However, during development, electrical activity in both ends of the circuit, cells in the eye and cells they connect with in the brain, is essential for accurate wiring. Hence, another promising strategy is to manipulate the electrical activity of target cells in the brain to provide regenerative cues.

The overall goal of this research is to investigate whether the target cells RGC axons connect with in the brain can be leveraged to restore vision. Using chemogenetic approaches to increase the electrical activity of cells that RGCs connect to and examine the anatomical and behavioral changes that take place after a distal-injury. The results from this work will provide fundamental insights for restoring functional visual circuits and thus treating blinding disorders such as Optic Atrophy I and Congenital Glaucoma.