Complement-Targeted Therapy to Restrict Glaucoma Progression

Glaucoma is a disease that degrades vision over time. In the retina, neurons decline and die, despite the immune responses of supporting glial cells. We have developed a new potential treatment that rebalances immune responses and controls glaucoma in old mice, and will define if it may cure patients by treating several experimental models. Also, we will study how dying or surviving neurons interact with glia in the retina.

This project will determine whether rebalancing immune activation of complement proteins and microglia via ocular gene therapy is neuroprotective in diverse experimental models of adult-onset glaucoma. Progressive vision loss in glaucoma is the result of gradual neuron decline and death in the retina, which is accompanied by dysregulated glial immune responses. My research focuses on understanding the role and function of microglia in glaucoma, and on developing translatable therapeutic strategies by modulating the actions of microglia.