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If you are interested in volunteering for eye research, please email Dr Ben Thompson.
Please specify if you would like to volunteer for research pertaining to a specific
eye condition and Dr Thompson will forward your details to the appropriate investigators
who will contact you in due course.
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There are fourteen distinct but inter-related research teams under the NZ-NEC umbrella
and many collaborations currently exist with national and international groups.
It is anticipated that research linkages will rapidly increase as NZ-NEC becomes
fully established, is successful in obtaining program grants, and further develops
and expands national and international partnerships with: academic and clinical
institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and the optical and surgical device industry.
The need for research into the causes and treatment of eye disease in New Zealand/Aotearoa
has never been more important with a number of eye diseases specific to the ageing
population, the increased incidence of diabetes, and the genetic basis of many eye
diseases providing a focus and ongoing challenge for the research teams within NZ-NEC.
The foundation members of NZ-NEC are conducting research in all of the preceding
areas, either collaboratively or specifically in their respective departments and/or
clinical environments.
1. Cornea and External Eye Diseases
This research area includes diseases of the lid margin, conjunctiva, tear film and
the cornea i.e. the front and external portion of the eye. In clinical terms it
often overlaps with disease of the iris and the lens (see section 2) and a number
of corneal diseases have a genetic basis (see section 7). Certain corneal diseases
such as keratoconus (a progressive thinning and bowing forward of the cornea) are
more common in New Zealand than elsewhere and in severe cases may lead to corneal
transplantation. The New Zealand National Eye Bank, that provides the tissue for
approximately 240 corneal transplantations in New Zealand each year, is based in
the Department of Ophthalmology.
Research in this area is both clinical and laboratory based with a bias toward translational
research i.e. research emanating from the laboratory that will eventually be used
in the treatment of eye disease.
The Cornea and Anterior Segment Research Group (Department of Ophthalmology) is
a large collaborative research group of 15-20 clinicians, scientists and research
fellows that cross boundaries with several NZ-NEC research groups. Professor Charles
McGhee leads the group in conjunction with Dr Dipika Patel, Dr Sue Ormonde, Dr Trevor
Sherwin and Professor Colin Green. Current research fellows include: Dr Rasha al
Taie, Dr Jennifer Fan, Ms Charlotte Jordan and Dr James McKelvie.
The group attracts a large number of international clinical and research fellows
from as far afield as Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Germany, Great Britain, Iraq,
Taiwan and the USA. Research projects have resulted in a large number of successful
MD and PhD thesis completions. Successful grant funding has enabled the acquisition
of a number of items of expensive, state-of-the-art, clinical research equipment
unavailable elsewhere in New Zealand. This equipment and the associated clinical
expertise of the team are also made available to patients being treated in the public
or private health sector.
The interests of this research group are particularly wide-ranging and include a)
studies on the pathogenesis and treatment of keratoconus, b) analyses of inherited
corneal dystrophies (with Dr Andrea Vincent), c) surgical and laboratory components
of corneal transplantation and graft rejection, d) cataract and corneal refractive
surgery, e) several aspects of computerized corneal topography, f) in-vivo confocal
microscopy of the corneal microstructure, g) ocular trauma, ocular healing and anterior
segment reconstruction, h) ocular infections and ocular pharmacology including novel
therapeutics (with Professor Colin Green) and i) medical education and aspects of
publication and citation in scientific journals (with Dr Jennifer Fan and Ms Vicky
Cartwright). These interests have led to three textbooks and more than one hundred
peer-reviewed research papers in the last ten years. (Selected
publications 1,2,3).
The Ocular Surface Investigation Laboratory (Department of Optometry and
Vision Science) is led by Dr Jennifer Craig and primarily focuses on diseases associated
with the ocular surface and is the only laboratory facility of its kind in New Zealand,
equipped with highly specialised equipment for the evaluation of the tear film and
ocular surface.
The team includes Miss Nisha Jeyaseelan and Mr Grant Watters (Visiting Lecturers)
and collaborates with Dr Raid Alany (School of Pharmacy), Professor Charles McGhee
(Dept. of Ophthalmology), Dr Paul Murphy, Dr Christine Purslow (Cardiff, UK), Professor
James Wolffsohn (Birmingham, UK), Dr Rob Fuller (Plymouth, UK) and Dr Ian Pearce
(Glasgow, UK).
Key clinical and research interests include a) study of the tear film and ocular
surface in the normal eye and in various ocular surface diseases, including dry
eye and keratoconus, b) evaluation of the effect of novel drug delivery systems,
including liposomal sprays, on normal, dry eye and contact lens wearing eyes and
c) evaluating a novel therapy for meibomian gland dysfunction and tear film lipid
deficiency. (Selected publications 4,5,6)
The CORnEa Laboratory Group (Department of Ophthalmology)
is led by Dr Trevor Sherwin, an internationally recognized cell biologist, and aims
to understand disease processes in the cornea and works towards therapeutic treatments
for corneal repair. The work in the laboratory focuses on 3 main aspects of corneal
research: a) elucidating the pathogenesis of corneal dystrophies, b) modeling the
human cornea and c) the role of stem cells in corneal wound healing.
Recent collaborations between Professor Charles McGhee, Dr Trevor Sherwin and Dr
Dipika Patel have led to the submission of an international research patent in relation
to transplantation of individual corneal cells (keratocytes) into recipient corneas
as a potential treatment for blinding corneal diseases.
The principal research team includes Jane McGhee (Senior Research Technician), Nigel
Brookes (Senior Technical Officer), Judy Loh (Research Technician), Dr Rachael Niederer,
Ally Chang and Tarn Donald (PhD students) and Dr Jennifer Fan (MD student). The
work is performed in collaboration with Professor Charles McGhee and Professor Colin
Green. (Selected publications 7,8,9)
2. Cataract and Cataract Surgery
A cataract is opacity or loss of transparency in the lens of the eye resulting in
reduced vision and is probably the most well-known age related eye disease. Currently
the only treatment option to rehabilitate vision is surgical intervention. Indeed
cataract surgery is the most common cause of blindness worldwide, and is also the
most common surgical procedure performed on New Zealanders over the age of 65 years.
Although cataract surgery is highly effective in eyes that are otherwise healthy,
it is anticipated that the demand for cataract surgery will increase by 60% over
the next 10 years placing an overwhelming demand on the public health system that
is unlikely to be met. Therefore making improvements in the surgical approach, or
finding alternatives to surgery, have the potential to make an enormous impact not
only for the individual but also for global health systems. Within NZ-NEC a large
number of researchers are working both on the laboratory and clinical aspects of
cataract development and treatment.
The Molecular Vision Laboratory (Department of Optometry and Vision Science), led
by Professor Paul Donaldson and Dr Julie Lim, has been conducting groundbreaking
research on the human lens and cataract for a number of years. Professor Donaldson
has recently been appointed as Professor of Optometry and Vision Science and he
will relocate and integrate his Molecular Vision Laboratory team into an expanded
Department of Optometry and Vision Science in 2008.
This team is investigating several aspects of the lens including: a) development
of a computer model that encapsulates experimental data into an integrative model
of lens function, b) targeting in-situ proteomic approaches to investigate the changes
in lens membrane proteins involved in the initiation of lens cataract and c) development
of an experimental model of age related nuclear cataract.
Significant research funding has been received from several sources, the major ones
are: USA National Institutes of Health subcontract, a New Zealand Health Research
Council International Investment Opportunity Fund and the Marsden Fund. The research
from this team has been internationally recognized and has resulted in many high
profile scientific publications in the last ten years. (Selected
publications 10,11,12)
The Anterior Segment Clinical Research Team in the Department of Ophthalmology continues
to have extensive research interests in cornea, cataract and cataract surgery. Professor
Charles McGhee, Dr Andrew Riley, and Dr Jennifer Craig led the large multidiscipline
team including Dr Christina Grupcheva and Dr Tahira Malik, that conducted the Auckland
Cataract Study which analysed 500 consecutive patients and their outcomes over two
years before and following surgery. The group has also worked closely with Professor
Donaldson’s Molecular Vision Laboratory team with joint research funding and
supervision of PhD students including Dr Nisha Sachdev. (Selected
publications 13,14,15)
3. Glaucoma and Optic Nerve
The optic nerve is the ‘nerve of sight’ and responsible for carrying
the images of sight from the eye to the brain. Diseases of the optic nerve encompass
the glaucoma and neuro-ophthalmic disorders such as tumours of the brain that compress
the pathways of vision and “strokes” of the optic nerve that can result
in blindness, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
Glaucoma is the leading cause of preventable blindness in New Zealand. It is sometimes
called ‘the sneak thief of sight’ because it is a disease of the eye
that can be present without symptoms for a number of years while vision loss is
slowly occurring. It is a disease of the optic nerve that affects all ages, however,
it is more prevalent in adults occurring in at least 2% of the population over 40
years of age - increasing to 1 in 10 adults over 70 years of age.
The Optic Nerve and Glaucoma Team (Department of Ophthalmology) has a clinical and
basic science arm. The clinical arm is led by Associate Professor Helen Danesh-Meyer
and has extensive collaborations with the world’s leading ophthalmology units
including Wills Eye Hospital (Philadelphia), Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore),
University of Montreal, and the University of Melbourne. Research is also performed
across clinical departments at the University of Auckland in conjunction with Neuro-
surgery and Older People’s Health. The clinical Optic Nerve Research Unit
has acquired state-of-the art technology for both clinical and research use, which
has resulted in more than fifty major publications. The research team currently
comprises Helen Danesh-Meyer and her three doctoral research fellows, Dr Taras Papchenko,
Dr Shenton Chew and Dr Nathan Kerr.
The clinical focus of this group has been to develop new strategies for providing
better healthcare as well as investigating the underlying causes of optic nerve
diseases. Recent research in the area of brain tumours that cause blindness has
been hailed as a ‘revolutionary’ breakthrough by international researchers
and has significantly influenced clinical practice. Other areas of research by this
group have led to the identification of biomarkers that correlate with disease severity
or that allow the early recognition of impending diseases.
The basic science arm of the team, led by Associate Professor Helen Danesh-Meyer
in close conjunction with Professor Colin Green, is focused on translational ophthalmic
research. The team includes the three doctoral fellows and a research assistant,
Miss Elizabeth Eady. This team’s main areas of interest are: a) optic nerve
ischaemia: the involvement of connexin knockdown in ischaemic optic neuropathy and
investigation of the role of the inflammatory response in strokes of the optic nerve
and b) glaucoma filtration surgery: investigating the use of a gel to regulate direct
cell-to-cell communication during glaucoma surgery to decrease inflammation and
scar formation and improve surgical results. (Selected
publications 16,17,18)
4. Connexin Biology (cell to cell communication)
The Connexin Biology Group based in the Department of Ophthalmology is
led by Professor Colin Green and has wide-ranging research collaborations within
the University of Auckland (Pharmacy, Anatomy, Physiology) and with international
wound healing groups. Professor Colin Green’s research interest is connexins
(cell to cell communicating junctions) primarily focused on corneal wound healing.
The connexin biology group also conducts research on spinal nerve and optic nerve
repair, glaucoma filtration surgery research and brain epilepsy studies.
The main areas of research include: a) corneal healing following refractive laser
surgery or severe trauma, b) optic nerve repair and glaucoma filtration surgery
research (with Associate Professor Helen Danesh-Meyer), c) Pharmacy - the delivery
of the wound-healing product in the ocular environment (with Dr Raid Alany) and
d) spinal cord injuries investigating nerve regeneration post injury with and without
treatment with connexin knockdown agents and investigating if there can be neuronal
recovery after epilepsy (with Associate Professor Louise Nicholson, Anatomy).
Professor Green and colleagues’ work led him to found the drug discovery companies
CoDaTherapeutics (NZ) Ltd. and CoDa Therapeutics Inc. USA. to commercialise their
patents in the field of connexin biology. CoDaTherapeutics has raised US$20 million
to develop potential therapies based on connexin technology. Recently phase I/II
international trials of Nexagon, a single dose drug to improve corneal healing following
surgery, commenced in Auckland in 2008 in conjunction with Dr Sue Ormonde and Professor
Charles McGhee. (Selected publications
19,20,21)
5. Retinal Disease
Retinal disease related to ageing, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and inherited
conditions is a common cause of serious visual impairment and blindness. NZ-NEC
members, the Department of Optometry and Vision Science and the Department of Ophthalmology
are conducting research individually and collaboratively on several fronts from
basic retinal development and the neurochemical and biochemical changes in the retina
after metabolic stress in the laboratory environment to studies of disease progress
and administration of innovative treatments in the clinical environment.
The Retinal Networks Laboratory (Department of Optometry and Vision Science)
is led by Professor Michael Kalloniatis and the study of the neurochemistry of the
vertebrate retina is its central theme. Major research projects include: a) exploring
the neurochemical localisation and quantification of the amino acid neurotransmitters
in different vertebrate retinas, b) retinal development and functional ion channel
characterization and c) the neurochemical and biochemical changes in the retina
after metabolic stress.
Collaborations include: Professor Charles McGhee, Dr Clairton de Souza (PhD student),
Professor Paul Donaldson, Associate Professor David Christie (School of Biological
Sciences), Professor Robert Marc (University of Utah), Professor Seong-Seng Tan
(Howard Florey Institute), Professor Algis Vingrys and Dr Fletcher (University
of Melbourne). (Selected publications 22,23,24)
The Retinal Diseases Synergy Group (Department of Ophthalmology) is a collaborative
team of clinicians and scientists (Professor Colin Green and Dr Kaa-Sandra Chee)
working on aspects of retinal disease – both medical and surgical – and
innovative treatment options. Associate Professor Philip Polkinghorne, Dr Mark Donaldson
and Dr Tahira Malik undertake the clinical lead. Areas of interest are diverse and
cross-departmental. Significant interest by international pharmaceutical companies
has led to the funding of a number of major clinical research trials.
Research interests include: a) thermotherapy in the treatment of macular disease
(Dr Mark Donaldson), b) analyses of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (Assoc. Professor
Philip Polkinghorne), c) retinal and vitreous metabolism in the presence of retinal
detachment (Assoc. Professor Philip Polkinghorne and Professor Michael Kalloniatis),
d) novel therapeutics in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (Dr Mark
Donaldson, Professor Colin Green, Dr Kaa-Sandra Chee), e) novel therapeutics in
the treatment of diabetic retinopathy (Dr Tahira Malik and Dr Mark Donaldson) and
f) study of intra-ocular tumours (Dr Peter Hadden). (Selected
publications 25,26,27)
The Retinal Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory (Department of Optometry and Vision
Science) centres on understanding biochemical and molecular functions of the central
nervous system, particularly the retina. The team includes Dr Monica Acosta,
Alex Petty, Chee Seang Loh and Professor Michael Kalloniatis.
Research interests of this group include: a) investigating the molecular mechanisms
of neurological and metabolic disorders using in vitro studies, b) identifying the
metabolic and neurochemical changes associated with fetal brain damage, c) immunohistochemical
analysis of the kiwi retina and d) analysis of the neuro-protective effect of drugs
in in vitro and in vivo models of ischaemic retinas. (Selected
publications 28,29,30)
6. Visual Perception Group
This group incorporates colour vision, clinical research and the myopia laboratory.
The theme of the Clinical Research Group (Department of Optometry and Vision Science)
is clinical research in ocular function, ocular disorders and refractive error.
Within the study of corneal function, areas of research include computer modelling
of the contact lens correction of keratoconus. Other research activities have explored
the relationship between intra-ocular pressure and age. More recently, working with
Nicola Anstice (Visiting Lecturer), the prevalence of refractive error in central
Auckland school children has been studied. This continuing work, for the first time,
offers a quantitative analysis of the visual function of New Zealand school children.
Additionally, educational and interesting cases seen in the Optometry Clinic are
written up for publication. The team includes: Geraint Phillips (Senior Lecturer),
Nicola Anstice (Visiting Lecturer), Grant Watters (Visiting Lecturer), Richard Johnson
(Visiting Lecturer), Melinda Calderwood (Visiting Lecturer), Nisha Jeyaseelan (Visiting
Lecturer), and Associate Professor Rob Jacobs. (Selected publications 31,32,33)
The main theme of the Ecology of Colour Vision Laboratory (ECVL) (Department of
Optometry and Berlin). Psychophysical methods are utilised to study colour vision
of human beings and animals. To understand the ecological significance of diversity
of photoreceptor designs in animal kingdom, the group use computational optics.
The team comprises Dr. Misha Vrobyev and Associate Professor Robert Jacobs. (Selected
publications 34,35,36)
Research in the Myopia Laboratory (Department of Optometry and Vision Science)
addresses the underlying causes of myopia (genetic and environmental influences),
why myopia inevitably progresses with time and how myopia development might be inhibited
in children. There are three separate research threads within the group: a) a guinea
pig model in which eye enlargement and myopia is studied in animals by manipulating
the visual environment – the aims are to understand the changes in biomechanical
properties and cellular populations of the sclera and the retino-scleral signal
pathways involved in myopia, b) a canine model of myopia - dogs are the only non-human
species with naturally occurring myopia, our studies have shown that the myopia
is inherited and are further studying the genetics of myopia now that the dog genome
is available, c) clinical studies of children with myopia. The aim is to investigate
optical manipulations aimed at inhibiting the progression of myopia in children
– including a clinical trial of a new soft contact lens designed by this team,
aimed at inhibiting the progression of myopia in schoolchildren. Commercially funded
clinical trials of the lens will commence in 2008. The team consists of Dr John
Phillips, Mr Andrew Collins, Simon Backhouse (PhD student), Nicola Anstice (PhD
student), and Joanna Black (PhD student). (Selected
publications 37,38,39)
7. Genetic Eye Disease
Recognising the genetic basis for eye disease aids in our understanding of the control
of eye function and structure, in both health and disease. With the sequencing of
the human genome, and the advent of newer technologies for clinical and molecular
characterisation, it is now apparent that many ocular diseases are, at least in
part, genetically determined. Some of these genetically related eye diseases appear
more common in New Zealand/Aotearoa and are the subject of a number of interdisciplinary
studies.
The Genetic Eye Disease Investigation Unit (Department of Ophthalmology), is led
by Dr Andrea Vincent, a paediatric ophthalmologist who previously studied at the
Toronto Hospital for Sick Children, Canada. This research unit aims to perform and
provide quality research into genetic eye diseases and is in the process of establishing
a New Zealand registry for inherited retinal disease.
A broad portfolio of clinical and laboratory based eye genetic research is underway
into: a) molecular characterisation of the corneal dystrophies and keratoconus,
b) blepharophimosis syndrome, c) glaucoma, d) inherited eye movement disorders and
e) juvenile Pagets disease. The team includes Dr Andrea Vincent, Dr Monika Pradhan
(Research Fellow) and a research technician. This group also works closely with
the anterior segment group including Professor Charles McGhee and Dr Trevor
Sherwin. (Selected publications 40,41,42).
