Science News

To celebrate the February 11 United Nations’ International Day of Women and Girls in Science, BrightFocus hosted a discussion featuring the three women leading its scientific grants program.

Working to save sight, BrightFocus’ National Glaucoma Research program is supporting Kathryn Burdon, PhD, of Australia’s University of Tazmania and Girum Gessesse, MD, of Ethiopia’s St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College to expand our scientific understanding of glaucoma in Africa.

Sarah Doyle, PhD, and Matthew Campbell, PhD, have spent much of their married life doing research together. In this interview (reposted from 2016), they talk about how their partnership began, what continues to drive them, and surprising turns their work has taken on the path to curing diseases of mind and sight.

For a long time we’ve known that hypertension in midlife increases the risk of Alzheimer’s. Now BrightFocus-funded research is exploring that connection – with some surprising results that are relevant to COVID-19.

Longtime friend and ARVO President Dan Stamer, PhD, tells us about his EyeFind initiative, alternative plans for this year’s annual meeting, how research is a team sport, and why he and other scientists are desperate to get back to the lab.

University of Denver Alzheimer’s researcher Lotta Granholm-Bentley, PhD, DDS, is playing a key role in her community’s medical response to the coronavirus, and working with Colorado seniors to help combat the sense of isolation many are feeling during these difficult times. 

As the global coronavirus pandemic began to hit our nation, University of Kentucky Alzheimer’s researcher Donna M. Wilcock, PhD and her team wanted to do something to help their community address the shortage of medical supplies hindering the local response.

Gains in life expectancy have been accompanied by a rise in age-related diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Geroscience, as a field, wants to reduce age-related diseases, and BrightFocus is excited about partnering with this interdisciplinary field. .