The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has granted researchers from the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine a $4.7 million award.
Its purpose: Funding the development of novel imaging techniques for identifying precise changes in capillary function via measuring blood flow in retinal capillaries to “detect and characterize cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD).”
That sounds pretty involved … but let’s start with NIH.
To be more specific, the NIH awarded this funding as part of its Common Funds Venture Program Oculomics Initiative, one of two initiatives launched in 2024.
What this does: Supports the development and application of novel, noninvasive ocular imaging technologies, machine learning algorithms, and other tools to identify “highly sensitive and specific biomarkers” for diseases affecting the whole body.
- Learn more about the initiative.
And oculomics?
The textbook definition: This is the study of the relationship between the eye and systemic health, including how changes within the eye can indicate disease.
More simply: Oculomics is known to “use the eye as a window into health and disease” in order to help provide a better technological understanding of the brain.
- Meaning: It’s a triple-threat combination involving ophthalmology, genetics, and bioinformatics.
So what does that mean in practice?
Oculomics has the potential to significantly impact:
- Early disease detection before symptoms develop
- Early disease intervention
- Risk assessment
- Disease progression tracking
- Supportive therapeutics
Now explain CSVD.
CSVD is a central nervous system (CNS) disorder that involves various conditions where small blood vessels in the brain are damaged due to inflammation and/or a buildup of misfolded proteins (plaques).
- This impairment of blood flow then leads to the potential for: Stroke, cognitive impairment, and dementia.
And what’s the research for this?
A team of researchers at Bascom Palmer are looking to create an advanced non-invasive ophthalmic imaging device that will read capillary blood flow through the retina.
- The goal: Establishing new biomarkers for CSVD.
And how will this be done?
A team of researchers at the Doheny Eye Institute in Pasadena, California, plan to develop the device, referred to as a high-speed, widefield, adaptive optics near-confocal ophthalmoscope (AONCO).
Its purpose involves three main actions:
- Reading capillary blood flow through the retina
- Helping to establish new biomarkers for detecting CSVD
- Using machine learning (and other means) to determine capillary health in the brain as well as throughout the body (potentially)
Speaking of these investigators …..
Led by lead principal investigator Jianhua (Jay) Wang, MD, PhD, a professor of ophthalmology at Bascom Palmer, the multidisciplinary team comprises scientists, clinical researchers, and computer experts.
Co-principal investigators include:
- Yuhua Zhang, PhD, a principal investigator at Doheny Eye Institute and professor of ophthalmology at the University of California, Los Angeles
- An expert in adaptive optics, high-resolution imaging, and retinal hemodynamics, Dr. Zhang will lead the research team developing this device
- Liang Liang, PhD, an assistant professor of computer science at the University of Miami
See the list of collaborating physicians and scientists from the Bascom Palmer departments of radiology and neurology as well as the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
So … what’s the potential significance of this technology?
Over the next two to three decades? “Huge,” stated Dr. Wang.
He added that he and the team of researchers “will develop an instrument that can illuminate capillary health in the brain and provide much-needed insights into these challenging neurological diseases.”