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NEI Research News

Thanks to the work of NEI scientists and grantees, we’re constantly learning new information about the causes and treatment of vision disorders. Get the latest updates about their work — along with other news about NEI.

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Young boy gets eye exam.

Statement by NEI Director Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D., on National Academies’ report outlining public health strategies to promote and protect healthy vision for all Americans

Today, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies) released “Making Eye Health A Population Health Imperative: Vision for Tomorrow.
Artist’s rendering of neural activity in the retina. Light that enters the eye activates rod and cone photoreceptors, which then activates retinal ganglion cells. A signal travels to the brain via the retinal ganglion cell axons. Photo credit: National Eye Institute

Six teams seek to identify biological factors that influence neural regeneration

The National Institutes of Health will fund six projects to identify biological factors that affect neural regeneration in the retina.
Retinal degeneration in mice

Drugs already on market prevent light-induced retinal degeneration in mice

Combinations of Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs protect against the loss of cells required for vision in a mouse model of blinding retinal diseases.
Regenerating mouse retinal ganglion cell axons (magenta and green) extending from site of optic nerve injury (left). Photo courtesy of Andrew D. Huberman.

Use it or Lose it: Visual Activity Regenerates Neural Connections Between Eye and Brain

A study in mice funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows for the first time that high-contrast visual stimulation can help damaged retinal neurons regrow optic nerve fibers, otherwise known as retinal ganglion cell axons.
James W. Gollady, Jr., Right Eminent Department Commander (right), presents Hotaling with a check from the Knights Templar Eye Foundation. “I think this award is extremely important to pave a pathway for me in medical research,” said Hotaling.  (Joe Balintfy, NEI)

NEI Scientist Receives Research Grant from Knights Templar Eye Foundation

NEI research fellow Nathan Hotaling, PhD, has been awarded a $65,000 grant from the Knights Templar Eye Foundation to develop a stem cell-based system to study Best disease, a genetic disorder that can cause progressive vision loss.
Rods and Cones image

NIH Vision Scientists Test Theory of How Rods in our Retina Originated

Retinas from our earliest vertebrate ancestors had cone-like photoreceptors, presumably allowing them to see in daylight, but little ability to see at night.
NAEC Group member photo

NEI Welcomes Four New Members to National Advisory Eye Council

Today four new members join the National Advisory Eye Council, an advisory body for the National Eye Institute (NEI) at NIH.
Dr. Emily Chew of the National Eye Institute examines a patient’s eyes. Photo credit: National Eye Institute.

Eye Study Underscores the Long-lasting Benefits of Controlling Diabetes

People with type 2 diabetes who intensively controlled their blood sugar level were found to have cut their risk of diabetic retinopathy in half.
African American male patient gets eye exam from doctor

Visual impairment, blindness cases in U.S. expected to double by 2050

The number of people with visual impairment or blindness in the United States is expected to double to more than 8 million by 2050, according to projections.
Patient undergoes and eye exam. Courtesy National Eye Institute.

Age-related macular degeneration before and after the era of anti-VEGF drugs

In a study of nearly 650 people with the eye disease age-related macular degeneration (AMD), half still had vision 20/40 or better after five years of treatment with anti-VEGF drugs that are injected into the eye.