The ACORN Lab would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Eye Institute (NEI) as well as all of the philanthropic donors, individuals, foundations, and industry organizations who have supported our research throughout the years. We are tremendously grateful for your ongoing support and commitment to advancing our work.
PEER REVIEWED FUNDING
NIH R01-EY013178
Title: Novel Glaucoma Diagnostics for Structure and Function
PI: Joel S. Schuman
Aim: To investigate the clinical problems associated with the detection and monitoring of glaucomatous changes in retinal structure and function, and to investigate new diagnostics for glaucoma including optical coherence tomography (OCT), multifocal electroretinography, and optic nerve head assessment.
NIH R01-EY030770
Title: Biomarkers of Early Experimental Glaucoma
PI: Gadi Wollstein
Aim: To determine the structural and functional ocular changes that occur during the development of glaucoma. This will provide pertinent information on the most sensitive indicators for diagnosis, and new treatment targets.
NIH R01-EY035174
Title: Longitudinal Ocular Changes in Naturally Occurring Glaucoma Animal Model
PI: Gadi Wollstein
Aim: To deepen our understanding of glaucoma's natural progression by studying a unique animal model with naturally occurring glaucoma, bypassing the limitations of human studies and other commonly used animal models. By examining longitudinal changes in optic nerve and retinal structures, as well as intraocular and intracranial pressures, this study seeks to uncover how these factors influence glaucoma progression, providing invaluable insights for future diagnostics, treatments, and comprehensive glaucoma research.
NIH U01-EY033001
Title: Clinical glaucoma management enabled by visible-light OCT
MPI: Hao F. Zhang, Joel S. Schuman
Aim: To revolutionize glaucoma clinical management by developing and validating a visible-light optical coherence tomography (vis-OCT) system. This study focuses on enabling precise measurement of retinal sublayer structures and local retinal hemoglobin oxygen saturation, offering potential for earlier and more sensitive glaucoma detection and monitoring than current methods.
COLLABORATORS
NIH R01-EY030929
Title: Deep Learning Approaches for Personalized Modeling and Forecasting of Glaucomatous Changes
PI: Hiroshi Ishikawa
Aim: To develop and refineme innovative analytical methods and cutting-edge technologies using agnostic deep learning approaches that will substantially improve detection of glaucoma and its progression forecasting and monitoring in order to prevent blindness.
NIH R44-EY030812
Title: Comprehensive Imaging and Qualification of Blood Flow for Investigating Ocular Diseases Without Additional Contrast Agent
PI: Mircea Mujat
Aim: Developing a novel ophthalmic imaging platform for characterizing retinal morphology and monitoring ocular blood flow abnormalities.
NIH R44-EY035203
Title: Clustered home assessment of visual fields in patients with glaucoma
PI: Benjamin Backus
Aim: To test Vivid Vision Perimetry (VVP-10), a user-friendly, virtual reality-based visual field test designed for home use by glaucoma patients, aiming to increase the frequency and accuracy of monitoring for disease progression. By making the test more engaging and less taxing, it seeks to enhance data quality and reduce the time needed to detect significant changes in vision, thus potentially transforming glaucoma management and patient experience.
COMPLETED RESEARCH SUPPORT
NIH R01-EY025011
Title: Interplay between intraocular and cerebrospinal fluid pressure effects on the optic nerve head in vivo
PI: Gadi Wollstein
Aim: To determine the effect exerted on the living optic nerve head by the pressures in the brain and within the eyeball. This will provide information critical to understanding the wide range of clinical expression of glaucoma.
NIH R21-EY019092
Title: Nanoparticle Contrast Enhancement for Optical Coherence Tomography Pilot Study
PI: Gadi Wollstein
Aim: To design particles that could attach to specific layers in the retina, and through changes in optical properties enhance the appearance and contrast of retinal layers as seen with optical coherence tomography (OCT) in vivo.
UL1 RR024153-RAND - UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH HEALTH INSTITUTE, NCRR, NIH
Title: Evaluating Glaucoma Diagnostic Skills of Non-Glaucoma Experts Using Optic Disc Photographs, Visual Fields and Optic Imaging Devices
PI: Gadi Wollstein
Aim: To test the influence of training and knowledge of visual fields and glaucoma imaging device data on the glaucoma diagnostic ability of non-glaucoma expert eye care professionals (optometrists, trainees in ophthalmology, and general ophthalmologists) in comparison with glaucoma experts.
RESEARCH TO PREVENT BLINDNESS (NEW YORK, NY)
Medical Student Fellowship (Awardee: Zachary Dong; Mentor: Gadi Wollstein)
LIGHT HOUSE GUILD - VISION REHABILITATION NETWORK
R01-EY013178-21S1
Title: Novel Glaucoma Diagnostics for Structure and Function – Supplement NCE
PI: Joel Schuman
Aim: This research proposal is focusing on the development and refinement of innovative analytical methods and cutting-edge technologies that will substantially improve detection of glaucoma and its progression monitoring in order to prevent blindness.
PAST COLLABORATIONS
NIH R01-EY028125
Title: Glaucoma Neuroimaging in Humans and Experimental Animal Models
PI: Kevin Chan
Aim: To develop novel structural and physiological magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques for whole-brain, non-invasive, and longitudinal measurements of damage and disease progression along the visual pathway in glaucoma patients in order to combine neuroimaging and neuroprotective approaches to guide vision preservation and restoration in humans and experimental animal models.
R01-EY030575
Title: Personalizing Glaucoma Diagnosis by Disease Specific Patterns and Individual Eye Anatomy
PI: Elze, Tobias
Aim: Development of novel diagnostic methods for detecting the onset of glaucoma and its progression based on individual eye anatomy and functional subtypes.
THE DONAGHUE FOUNDATION
PI: Thiel, Cassandra
Aim: This study seeks to test value-improvement interventions in cataract surgery, analyzing the clinical, financial, and environmental impacts of various interventions. Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, we will track the reception towards and impact of various value improvement interventions to establish best practices to control expenses and decrease waste.
R44EY026466
Title: Visible-Light Optical Coherence Tomography for Clinical Glaucoma Management
PI: Roman Kuranov
Aim: Development, characterization, and validation of visible-light optical coherence tomography (vis-OCT) as a tool for the assessment of glaucoma.
G2019103 - BRIGHTFOCUS FOUNDATION
R01EY028125-05S1
Title: Glaucoma Neuroimaging in Humans and Experimental Animal Models
PI: Kevin C Chan
Aim: Our goal is to develop a non-invasive imaging model system to determine the structural- metabolic-functional brain relationships and eye-brain-behavior relationships in both humans and experimental rat models for identifying glaucoma mechanisms and monitoring glaucoma progression in the visual system with and without citicoline neurotherapeutic treatments, in order to guide more effective strategies for visual preservation and restoration.
NIH R01-EY011289
Title: Novel Diagnostics with Optical Coherence Tomography
MPI: James G. Fujimoto, Jay Duker, Joel S. Schuman
Aim: To develop new high-speed ultrahigh resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology for imaging retinal structure and to perform clinical studies of retinal disease and glaucoma.
GLAUCOMA RESEARCH FOUNDATION
Title: Measuring the In-vivo Effects on the Optic Nerve Head of Acute Variations in Cerebrospinal Fluid Pressure.
PI: Matthew Smith
Aim: To identify the effect of cerebral spinal fluid pressure modulation on optic nerve head morphology.
NMSS RG-4649A5
Title: Mechanisms of Retinal Neurodegeneration and Visual Pathway Axonal Loss in MS
PI: Laura Balcer
Aim: To define the structure-function relationships in the anterior visual pathway of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) with respect to the timing of neuronal vs. axonal loss in vivo by spectral domain OCT, and to determine the relative importance of each process to vision loss, neurologic function, and quality of life.
CDRMP-MR130411
Title: Improving Viability and Functional Outcome after Whole Eye Transplantation
PI: Kia Washington
Aim: To establish the baseline anatomical considerations necessary to perform whole eye transplantation in the swine model, and to evaluate the transplant’s viability and structural integrity.
NIH R01-EY013516
Title: Advanced Imaging for Glaucoma Diagnosis
PI: David Huang
Aim: The goal of this partnership was to develop advanced imaging technologies to improve the detection and management of glaucoma. The advanced imaging technologies included optical coherence tomography (OCT), scanning laser polarimetry (SLP), and scanning laser tomography (SLT), which were evaluated in a longitudinal 5-year clinical trial composed of glaucoma suspects, glaucoma patients, and normal subjects.
NIH R44-EY018986
Title: High Performance Multimodal Adaptive Optics Retinal Imaging
PI: R. Daniel Ferguson
Aim: The assessment of the clinical utility of high performance multimodal adaptive optics optical coherence tomography (AO-OCT) and scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (SLO).
NIH R01-EY026641
Title: Personalized Forecasting of Disease Trajectory for Patients with Open Angle Glaucoma
PI: Joshua D. Stein
Aim: To identify and predict glaucomatous disease progression using advanced analysis tools.
NIH R01-EY022305
Title: NEIGHBOORHOOD Consortium for POAG Genomics
PI: Janey L. Wiggs
Aim: To identify genes associated with the development of glaucoma.
NIH R01-EY021641
Title: Microsurgical In-Situ Image Guidance with Optical Coherence Tomography
PI: George Stetten
Aim: To develop a new device to display optical coherence tomography (OCT) images under a stereo surgical microscope for guidance in microsurgical procedures by means of an in-situ virtual image that floats within the target tissue at its actual location.