While a great deal is known about how neurons of the early visual system respond to simple stimuli, our understanding of how they process natural stimuli is still limited. Machine learning models have been invaluable to predict how these neurons respond to natural stimuli. However, the increasing complexity of these models make them difficult to interpret, and their ability to generalize to...
Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is a group of genetically heterogeneous retinal diseases characterized by the progressive loss of rod and cone photoreceptors, leading to irreversible blindness. While genetic mutations in RP primarily affect rods, secondary cone degeneration inevitably follows.
This phenomenon is linked to the loss of rod-derived cone viability factor (RdCVF), a rod-secreted...
Rod and cone photoreceptors are among the most metabolically active cells in the human body, relying on tightly regulated redox homeostasis to maintain function. In retinal degeneration resulting from chronic blue light exposure or inherited degenerative conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP), the progressive loss of photoreceptors disrupts this balance, leading to an accumulation of...
The buildup of toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a significant contributor to retinal degeneration and cellular dysfunction. It has been shown that the glutathione (GSH) antioxidant system and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) play an important role in the detoxification of ROS. Existing models describe these dynamics with system of ordinary differential-algebraic...
Wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) causes vision loss when vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) stimulates blood vessel growth into the light-sensitive retina. Anti-VEGF treatments such as ranibizumab are currently administered to treat wet AMD via intravitreal injections, which are unpleasant, expensive and risk complications. We explored the efficacy of topically administered...
Photoreceptors (PR) are responsible for absorbing and converting light into electrical signals necessary to create vision. To accomplish that, they are in an intimate relationship and attached to the underlying retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Separation of the PR from the underlying RPE is seen in many retina disorders and leads to PR cell death and subsequent vision loss. Separation of PR...
Optogenetic gene therapy enabled partial functional vision restoration in patients with retinal degeneration, but the achieved visual acuity remains below the threshold of legal blindness. Various modifications to these therapies have been proposed to improve acuity. However, existing reports typically quantify the light sensitivity of reactivated retinas, but rarely provide corresponding...
The retina is a complex neural network that transforms incoming light into neural signals that are transmitted to the brain. Understanding retinal function in normal and pathological conditions provides insights for intervening in degenerative processes and restoring vision. In recent years, mathematical approaches have come to play an increasingly prominent part in efforts to understand how...
