Updated VDI News
Dr. Yutao Liu
Dr. Liu's research group has received a Supplemental Award ($103,000) to our glaucoma R01 from NEI to purchase a customized ocular iPerfusion system with multiple functions for small ex vivo eyes and in vivo and postmortem in situ mouse eyes from Imperial Consultants. This new customized mouse eye perfusion system will enable the Liu lab to measure mouse aqueous outflow facility in mouse eyeballs ex vivo following enucleation and in vivo without sacrificing the mice. This will provide a much-needed resource for the current NEI-funded glaucoma project and future translational glaucoma research. We will be happy to collaborate and share this system with others in VDI at MCG.
Briah Bailey in Dr. Menaka Thounaojam's laboratory
I want to share with you that CBA graduate student Briah Bailey in Dr. Menaka Thounaojam's laboratory has been awarded the prestigious SREB-State Doctoral Scholars Program (DSP) Award. SREB helps states and institutions identify promising doctoral candidates who are admitted to programs of study on their own merits. Then, because they may be the first-generation college graduates or the only person of color in their program, the SREB-State Doctoral Scholars Program provides these doctoral students with financial support, leadership opportunities, networking events, and intensive professional development to help them finish their degrees and consider a career in academia. The ultimate goal of DSP is to increase the number of historically underrepresented students who earn doctorates and choose to become faculty at colleges and universities. The Doctoral Award provides three years of direct program support and two years of institutional support while recipients are also awarded up to five years of university-covered tuition and fees. There are also opportunities for professional development and networking for students who are interested in pursuing academia, specifically with attendance of the annual conference, The Institute on Teaching and Mentoring which takes place in New Orleans, Louisiana this year.
Congratulations to Briah and her mentor for receiving the SREB-State DSP Award!
Drs. Fan, Sharma, & Zhang
We are glad to share some great news with several of our VDI Faculty Members’ Promotion and Tenure:
Dr. Xingjun Fan, Associate Professor in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, has been promoted from Associate Professor to Professor.
Dr. Shruti Sharma, Associate Professor in the Center for Biotechnology and Genomic Medicine, has received her Tenure appointment.
Dr. Ming Zhang, Associate Professor in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, has received his Tenure appointment.
Congratulations to Drs. Fan, Sharma, and Zhang for their Promotions and Tenure in MCG.
Drs. Ashok and Shruti Sharma, Amy Estes and Tae Jin Lee
We are very happy to share that Drs. Ashok and Shruti Sharma (multi-PI) have received a new award to their multi-PI NIH/NEI R01 application “Sex-specific Influences on Tear microRNAs in Dry Eye Disease”. This four-year R01 grant aims to analyze a large sample set to discover sex- and race-specific differences in tear miRNAs and proteins and their relationship to dry eye disease severity and subtypes. Ashok and Shruti will collaborate with other Co-Investigators including Drs. Amy Estes and Tae Jin Lee at AU/MCG, Dr. Cintia De Paiva at Baylor College of Medicine, and Dr. Danielle Robertson at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
Congratulations to Ashok and Shruti on their second NEI R01 this month!
Drs. Shruti Sharma, Pamela Martin, Ashok Sharma, and Wenbo Zhi.
We are very happy to share that Dr. Shruti Sharma, the Co-Director of the NEI P30 Module 2, has received an award to her NIH/NEI R01 application “ Targeting Interleukin-6 cis-trans Balance in Muller Cell Dysfunction ”. This four-year R01 grant focuses on identifying the intracellular signaling mechanisms that lead to the differential effects of IL-6 cis- and trans-signaling in Muller glial cells and its role in VEGF dysregulation. Dr. S. Sharma will collaborate with other Co-Investigators at MCG/VDI/CBGM including Drs. Pamela Martin, Ashok Sharma, and Wenbo Zhi.
Congratulations to Dr. S. Sharma and her team on this wonderful achievement!
Dr. Katie Bollinger
We are very happy to share that our Clinician Scientist Dr. Katie Bollinger has successfully renewed her NIH/NEI R01 application “The Mechanism of Sigma 1 Receptor Mediated Neuroprotection in Glaucoma”. This R01 renewal will be funded for the next five years until 2029. The goal of this renewed R01 is to develop successful neuroprotective treatments for glaucoma by targeting Sigma 1 receptor signaling pathway. Dr. Bollinger will collaborate with other faculty members including Drs. Lin Gan, Graydon Gonsalvez, Xingjun Fan, and Yutao Liu. Congratulations to Dr. Bollinger and her team on this wonderful achievement!
Dr. Ming Zhang
We are excited to share with you that Dr. Ming Zhang, our VDI faculty member in CBA, has received his new R01 grant titled “Ocular MCMV Latency and AMD-like Pathology”. This new NEI R01 grant is funded for the next four years with the requested budget. This project is innovative to determine the contribution of CMV latency to AMD-relevant ocular pathology and to identify potential therapeutic targets to treat age-related macular degeneration and its symptoms. Our NEI P30 Center Core grant is proud to provide continuous support to Dr. Zhang and his research team. Congratulations, Dr. Zhang and your research team, on this wonderful achievement!
Drs. Ruth Caldwell & Modesto Rojas
Our VDI faculty members’ Research Support from NIH/NEI.
Drs. Ruth Caldwell and Modesto Rojas in the Vascular Biology Center (VBC) have just received a Notice of Award that their multi-PI NEI grant will be funded for four years. The title of the new grant is “Myeloid ACAT1 in Ischemic Retinopathy”.
Congratulations to Drs. Caldwell, Rojas, and their research team on this outstanding news in the new year!
Dr. Xingjun Fan & Team
Our VDI faculty members’ Research Support from NIH/NEI
Dr. Xingjun Fan in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy (CBA) has just received a Notice of Award from NIH that his NEI R01 grant has been successfully renewed for another five years until 2029. The title of the renewal grant is “Mechanism and Consequences of Impaired Glutathione Homeostasis in the Ageing Lens”. Dr. Ashok Sharma in the Center for Biotechnology and Genomic Medicine is a Co-Investigator.
Congratulations to Dr. Fan and his research team on this outstanding news!
Dr. Mitch Watsky
Dr. Mitch Watsky has just received a Notice of Grant Award from NIH that his NEI R01 grant will be funded. The title of the grant is “Soluble epoxide hydrolase and epoxide fatty acid involvement in corneal injury after ammonia exposure: Mechanisms of injury and potential therapeutics using sEH inhibitors and biostable EpFA mimics.” Dr. Bruce Hammock (UC Davis) is also a co-investigator.
Congratulations Dr. Watsky on this outstanding news!
Dr. Mitch Watsky
We are delighted to share with you great news that Dr. Mitch Watsky has received a Notice of Grant Award from NIH. His NEI-funded R01 entitled “Temporary plasma membrane disruptions in corneal epithelium and keratocytes” will be funded for the next four years. Bone biologist Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence (CBA) is a Co-Investigator on this project.
This is great news and a fantastic example of the power of collaboration! Congratulations to Mitch and the team. Best wishes for a very successful project!
Dr. Yutao Liu
We are very pleased to share with you the news that Dr. Yutao Liu has received a Notice of Grant Award from NIH that his NEI R01 grant will be funded for the next 5 years!
The title of the grant is “Estrogen and its receptor in intraocular pressure regulation.” Other colleagues at Augusta University who are co-investigators on the award are Drs. Bollinger, Xu, Bosomtwi and Smith.
Congratulations Dr. Liu and your team!
Dr. Ming Zhang
Dr. Ming Zhang has renewed his grant with the Retina Research Foundation. The grant studies the role of RIP kinase 3 in the development of AMD-like pathologies during cytomegalovirus latency.
Congratulations Dr. Zhang!
Dr. Yutao Liu
Dr. Yutao Liu has been notified that his R21 grant entitled “MIR182 and Ocular Hypertension” has been approved for funding by the National Eye Institute! The R21 funding mechanism supports high-risk, high-impact research projects. Dr. Liu and co-investigator Dr. Xingjun Fan are working together on this project and we wish them great success as they pursue this new line of work!
Congratulations Dr. Liu!
Dr. Yutao Liu
I am delighted to announce that Dr. Yutao Liu has received a notice of grant award from NIH for his role as a consultant on an NEI funded R01 entitled “Role of Cellular Memory in Glaucoma”! The truly special part of this award is that the PI on the grant is none other than our own former graduate student Dr. Samuel Herbert, (State University of New York) which makes this collaboration particularly special.
Congratulations Dr. Liu and thanks for your work with our former trainee!
Dr. Pamela Martin
NEI STTR award for promising therapy for diabetic retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness in the US. Dr. Pamela Martin and Dr. Ravirahsinh Jadeja have been awarded a grant from the National Eye Institute to investigate HBI-002, a novel oral carbon monoxide compound, as a treatment for diabetic retinopathy. Drs. Martin and Jadeja are working collaboratively with Dr. Edward Gomperts of Hillhurst Biopharmaceuticals to study the potential benefit of low dosage carbon monoxide in models of diabetic retinopathy, which is a key step toward clinical trials. She and her colleagues have shown that low dosage carbon monoxide has cytoprotective properties. Their proposal overcomes some of the barriers associated with carbon monoxide delivery as a therapeutic strategy. It also seeks to determine whether the novel compound can reduce oxidative stress and inflammation associated with diabetic retinopathy. Congratulations Dr. Martin and colleagues!
Dr. Steven Brooks
Steven Brooks has joined the Medical College of Georgia as the new chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and holds the William S. Hagler endowed chair in Ophthalmology. Dr. Brooks will serve as the clinical co-director of the VDI. Dr. Brooks joins MCG from Columbia University where he held the Anne S. Cohen Professorship of Pediatric Ophthalmology and also served as the medical director of Jonas Children’s Vision Care, an integrated effort between Columbia University Medical Center and Jonas Philanthropies to prevent and treat blindness and other serious eye disorders in children. Dr. Brooks is an expert in strabismus and has a robust research program in retinopathy of prematurity, pediatric glaucoma and ocular surgical therapies for strabismus. Dr. Brooks is a member of the Research Committee of the American Academy of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus and serves on the academy’s journal. He is a member of the American Board of Ophthalmology’s Exam Development Committee and is part of the Scientific Review Committee for Fight for Sight, Inc. Dr. Brooks is an honored educator and is an associate examiner for the American Board of Ophthalmology. We are delighted to welcome Dr. Brooks as the clinical co-director of the VDI!
(from left) Drs. Xingjun Fan, Sylvia Smith and Yutao Liu
$3 million National Eye Institute grant supports growth of vision research at MCG, AU
A $3 million National Eye Institute grant is enabling the critical infrastructure necessary to grow research initiatives in major vision-robbing conditions at the Medical College of Georgia and Augusta University.
The NEI center core grant, or P30 grant, comes at a time of critical development for the James and Jean Culver Vision Discovery Institute at Augusta University, and is key to the sustainability of future growth, says Dr. Sylvia Smith, chair of the MCG Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and director of the Culver VDI. Smith, a NEI-funded retinal cell biologist, is principal investigator on the new P30 grant.
NEI Center Core Grant for Vision Research (P30) Module 1: Visual function assessment
Module 2: Histology and Imaging Module 3: Gene Expression and Proteomics
Dr. Pamela Martin
Dr. Pamela Martin’s laboratory has great news of a clinically-translational study that is underway. She has received an award from Novartis to sponsor a study: "Therapeutic potential of anti-P-selectin antibody in improving sickle cell retinopathy in mice".
Novartis, a pharmaceutical company, has developed and obtained FDA approval for a new drug therapy crizanlizumab (Adakveo) to treat vaso-occlusive (pain) crises in patients with sickle cell disease. They are now interested in determining whether the drug can prevent or reduce the frequency of other sickle cell-related complications. Dr. Martin’s lab has been selected to evaluate complications associated with retina. Congrats Dr. Martin!!
Dr. Jing Wang
Dr. Jing Wang, Assistant Research Scientist in the laboratory of Dr. Sylvia Smith, has been notified by Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. of their intent to support her research proposal: “Sigma 1 Receptor: a novel therapy for Retinopathy of Prematurity.” ROP is a blinding disease of early childhood that damages the vasculature and neurons of the retina. Thanks to collaboration and guidance from Dr. Ruth Caldwell, Dr. Wang established a model of ROP in the lab. For her grant proposal Dr. Wang will be testing whether activation of a unique protein, Sigma 1 Receptor, can rescue the vascular disruption and loss of retinal neurons that characterize this devastating disease. Her preliminary data are quite promising and with this new grant support she will be able to continue these important studies.
Dr. Eduardo C. Alfonso
On March 5th, 2020 the Culver VDI held its 12th annual retreat at the Ballroom on the Summerville Campus of Augusta University. Members of senior leadership, including Dr. Gretchen Caughman, Provost; Dr. David Hess, Dean of the Medical College of Georgia and Dr. Michael Diamond, Senior VP for research, delivered remarks and offered great praise to the VDI members for their accomplishments. Our Keith Green Lecture was presented by Dr. Eduardo C. Alfonso, MD, Chair of Ophthalmology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Dr. Alfonso is the Director of the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and the Kathleen and Stanley Glaser Chair in Ophthalmology. His lecture was entitled “Fungal Keratitis Update.” The event was attended by more than 75 researchers, clinicians, trainees and staff members. Dr. Jingwen Cai was the leader of this year’s retreat.
DR. YUTAO LIU
CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. YUTAO LIU!
Dr. David Hess acknowledged Dr. Yutao Liu's fantastic accomplishment in the Medical College of Georgia Deans Diary on June 14, 2019. Dr. Liu brings a $2.1 million dollar NIH grant to fight keratoconus.
Dr. Liu, vision scientist and human geneticist in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, just received a $2.1 million grant from the National Eye Institute to better understand what the disease and the gene mutations associated with it do to the cornea, which lets most of the light into our eyes so we can ultimately see. Like most of you, his long-term goals include finding better ways to treat or even prevent keratoconus and avoid results like extreme nearsightedness and double vision. He has even developed the first keratoconus mouse model to enable these studies that will also examine human corneal tissue. Like Steph Curry, Dr. Liu has great teammates like cornea specialist Dr. Amy Estes and collaborators at Duke University. Congratulations and thanks Dr. Liu and team – David Hess.
Jingwen Cai & Dr. Yutao Liu
ARVO ANNUAL MEETING
Every year for the past eight years, the Richards family has provided awards to Augusta University trainees to present their research at the world’s preeminent eye conference, the ARVO annual meeting.
The 2019 award recipients were: • Shannon Barwick (pre-doctoral) • Dr. Luke Chang (post-doctoral) • Dr. Zhong Chen (post-doctoral). Congratulations to these individuals. As ARVO 2020 was cancelled owing to COVID-19, we did not have travel awards for this year.
Drs. Mitchell Watsky & Wendy Bollag
Dr. Abdelrahman Fouda
Dr. Abdelrahman Fouda was notified that his K99 award entitled “Role of Arginase 1 in Retinal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury” will be supported by the NIH/NEI effective Sept. 1, 2019.
Dr. Kevin Halenda
Dr. Jonathan Shader
AURI Research Awards
It is our distinct honor to announce that two of our Culver VDI members were recognized at the AURI research awards ceremony held October 18, 2019! Dr. Ruth B. Caldwell and Dr. William Caldwell were presented the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of their outstanding contributions to research at our university for more than 30 years. They were commended for their sustained contributions to the fields of arginase biology as well as retinal vascular biology.
This, in itself is notable, but perhaps their greatest legacy lies in their outstanding mentorship of so many scientists! These individuals have gone on to establish their own successful laboratories.
Dr. Barbara Mysona
Dr. Wendy Bollag
American Heart Association
Dr. Luke Chang
Dr. Ming Zhang
Dr. Mohamed Al-Shabrawey
Dr. Mohamed Al-Shabrawey, Professor of oral biology and diagnostic sciences, received the 2019 Dental College of Georgia Outstanding Faculty Award at the Augusta University Spring Faculty Assembly, along with faculty honorees from the other colleges. He was elected by his peers in a competitive voting process, with 80% of faculty participating.
Mariam Lofty Khaled
PhD Candidate
Soumya Navneet
PhD Candidate
Congratulations also go to Ph.D. candidate Soumya Navneet, from the laboratory of Dr. Sylvia Smith, for successfully defending her thesis, “Neuron-glia interaction and role of NRF2 in hyperhomocysteinemic retina.” These two students graduated in May 2019.
