Creating a new laboratory macular model

Professor Rachael Pearson, KCL Centre for Gene Therapy & Regenerative Medicine - £24,912

The macula, located in the retina at the back of the eye, is responsible for central vision, color perception, and fine detail.

What is the problem?

Despite the macula’s importance, we still know very little about the genes that need to be switched on early in pregnancy for it to form. Understanding how the macula is made is key for identifying what can go wrong and gives us clues about designing effective treatment strategies.

What are they doing?

This project will investigate some of these potentially important genes in more detail, to look at precisely when and in which cells they are switched on.

How will this help?

The data from this project will generate a refined list of key molecular pathways important for macular development. It’s hoped that will ultimately lead to the generation of better more accurate models of the human macula, created from stem cells, for disease modelling. This in turn will guide research into the best pathways to target for effective cures for vision loss.