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Findings from a National Eye Institute-supported study show for the first time that when babies look at photos of unfamiliar everyday scenes, such as an office or a lab, they tend to fixate on the same regions where adults find meaning. This inclination to home in on what’s interesting or meaningful grows more pronounced as babies age. The findings, published in Infancy, provide a more nuanced understanding of visual development, which may lead to earlier detection of brain-based causes of vision problems, such as cerebral/cortical visual impairment.

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National Eye Institute researchers studying human retinas discovered 87 target genes where a mix of environmental factors likely influence one’s risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of vision loss in people ages 65 and older.

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The drug minocycline, an antibiotic that also decreases inflammation, failed to slow vision loss or expansion of geographic atrophy in people with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to a phase II clinical study at the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

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Researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI) have improved a crucial step in the production of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a tissue they grow in the lab from patient blood cells and are testing in a clinical trial as treatment for age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

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Glaucoma remains one of the most common causes of vision loss and blindness in the U.S. and much of the world, disproportionately affecting older people, African Americans, and Hispanics and Latinos.

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The Noelin family of secreted proteins bind to the external portion of AMPA glutamate receptors and stabilize them on the neuronal cellular membrane, a process necessary for transmission of full-strength signals between neurons, according to a study in mice from the National Eye Institute (NEI) and the University of Freiberg, Germany.

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Repeat treatment with corticosteroid injections improved vision in people with persistent or recurrent uveitis-related macular edema better than two other therapies, according to results from a clinical trial funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI).

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Researchers at NIH’s National Eye Institute have published a detailed protocol for making three cell types that are key components to form blood vessels and capillaries.

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A study from the National Eye Institute (NEI) identified rare genetic variants that could point to one of the general mechanisms driving age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a common cause of vision loss in older adults.

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A National Eye Institute-led team has identified a compound already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that keeps light-sensitive photoreceptors alive in three models of Leber congenital amaurosis type 10 (LCA 10), an inherited retinal ciliopathy disease that often results in severe visual impairment or blindness in early childhood.

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Using vision to efficiently move through an area by foot uses a unique region of the brain’s cortex, according to a small study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI).

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Researchers supported by the National Eye Institute are developing artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML)-based systems that not only screen for AMD but also predict which patients will likely progress to late within two years. The systems also evaluate separately one’s risk for developing late wet (neovascular) AMD from one’s risk for late dry (geographic atrophy) AMD.

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Questions remain about artificial tears linked to an outbreak of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections involving 64 people in 13 states, including 8 cases of vision loss, as well as lung and urinary tract infections, and one death. Federal agencies warned people to stop using EzriCare and Delsam Pharma artificial tears after tests of opened bottles used by those affected found a rare, extensively drug-resistant strain of P. aeruginosa. The strain had never been reported in the United States.What is clear is that eye health experts have advice for people using artificial tears, which are sold over the counter and widely used for eye irritation associated with dry eye disease, contact lens use, and refractive surgery, as well among those using other eye drops regularly, such as for glaucoma.

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While early treatment of diabetes-related eye disease slowed progression to severe disease, it did not improve visual acuity compared with treating more severe disease once it developed, according to a clinical study from the DRCR Retina Network.

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Scientists at the National Eye Institute (NEI) have developed a zebrafish model of NEDBEH—a rare genetic disorder that can cause coloboma, where parts of the eye are missing due to developmental defects. The model provides a new tool for understanding the eye's embryonic development. The NEI is part of the National Institutes of Health.

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Scientists used patient stem cells and 3D bioprinting to produce eye tissue that will advance understanding of the mechanisms of blinding diseases. The research team from the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health, printed a combination of cells that form the outer blood-retina barrier—eye tissue that supports the retina's light-sensing photoreceptors. The technique provides a theoretically unlimited supply of patient-derived tissue to study degenerative retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

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Using a new stem-cell based model made from skin cells, scientists found the first direct evidence that Stargardt-related ABCA4 gene mutations affect a layer of cells in the eye called the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE).

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Scientists have discovered a mechanism by which an area of a protein shape-shifts to convert vitamin A into a form usable by the eye’s light-sensing photoreceptor cells.

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National Eye Institute researchers mapped the organization of human retinal cell chromatin, the fibers that package 3 billion nucleotide-long DNA molecules into compact structures that fit into chromosomes within each cell’s nucleus. The resulting comprehensive gene regulatory network provides insights into regulation of gene expression in general, and in retinal function, in both rare and common eye diseases. The study published in Nature Communications.

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Researchers from the National Eye Institute (NEI) have developed a gene therapy that rescues cilia defects in retinal cells affected by a type of Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a disease that causes blindness in early childhood.

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Using a new imaging technique, researchers from the National Eye Institute have determined that retinal lesions from vitelliform macular dystrophy (VMD) vary by gene mutation. Addressing these differences may be key in designing effective treatments for this and other rare diseases. NEI is part of the National Institutes of Health.

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Loss of the protein pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF), which protects retinal support cells, may drive age-related changes in the retina, according to a new study in mice from the National Eye Institute (NEI).

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Clinical trial results from the DRCR Retina Network suggest that a specific step strategy, in which patients with diabetic macular edema start with a less expensive medicine and switch to a more expensive medicine if vision does not improve sufficiently, gives results similar to starting off with the higher-priced drug.

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The eye’s light-sensing retina taps different circuits depending on whether it is generating image-forming vision or carrying out a non-vision function such as regulating pupil size or sleep/wake cycles, according to a new mouse study from the National Eye Institute (NEI) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

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Byron Lam and collaborators at the University of Miami reported results from an 8-patient phase 1 gene therapy clinical trial for the degenerative retinal disease Leber hereditary optic neuropathy. They found no significant safety concerns; however, treatment failed to improve or slow vision loss, with even the highest dose.

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The AREDS2 dietary supplement formula not only reduces risk of lung cancer due to beta-carotene, but is also more effective at reducing risk of AMD progression, compared to the original AREDS formula.

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Researchers have identified distinct differences among the cells comprising a tissue in the retina that is vital to human visual perception. The scientists from the National Eye Institute (NEI) discovered five subpopulations of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)—a layer of tissue that nourishes and supports the retina’s light-sensing photoreceptors. Using artificial intelligence, the researchers analyzed images of RPE at single-cell resolution to create a reference map that locates each subpopulation within the eye.

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New research shows that a treatment for retinal vein occlusion yields long-lasting vision gains, with visual acuity remaining significantly above baseline at five years. However, many patients require ongoing treatment.

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The road from discovering a potential drug to getting the therapy into the hands of patients is a long and uncertain one. An NIH program offers researchers a smoother path from basic science to clinical testing and regulatory approval.