Vanderbilt Eye Institute researchers have discovered that an imbalance in the ionic environment of retinal ganglion cells may contribute to functional impairments in glaucoma.

Two Vanderbilt Eye Institute (VEI) researchers were recently awarded National Eye Institute (NEI) Audacious Goals Initiative (AGI) for Regenerative Medicine grants for $6.8 million over five years to develop new treatments for optic neuropathies and glaucoma, the leading cause of irreversible blindness.

Increasing a certain signaling molecule prevents the degeneration of retinal cells that are lost in glaucoma, suggesting a new way to treat this disease.

New findings highlight microRNAs — molecules that regulate gene expression — that are differentially expressed in glaucoma and could be candidate biomarkers or targets for therapy.

A team of researchers, led by David Calkins, PhD, vice chair and director of Research at the Vanderbilt Eye Institute, has made a breakthrough discovery in the field of glaucoma showing new hopes for treatments to preserve vision.

A signaling molecule called interleukin-6 may be a therapeutic target to prevent vision loss or nerve degeneration in glaucoma, Vanderbilt researchers have discovered.

Understanding how the protein TRPV1 helps neurons survive after glaucoma-related stressors could lead to new therapeutic strategies for glaucoma and other neurodegenerative conditions.