Recent grants - February 2017

March 7, 2017

Grayson Armstrong, MD, MPH, was selected to receive a Massachusetts Society of Eye Physicians and Surgeons (MSEPS) Advocacy Ambassador Travel Grant to attend the AAO’s 2017 Mid-Year Forum in Washington, DC. MSEPS is dedicated to the public’s direct access to ophthalmic care, and to serve the total visual health care needs of the people of Massachusetts through public and professional education, membership services, and legislative advocacy. Dr. Armstrong is dedicated to health care policy, and is a national leader with the American Medical Association (AMA). He is on the Board of the AMA's Political Action Committee (AMPAC) and was recently elected to represent AAO as well as residents nationwide in health care policy-making decisions in the AMA House of Delegates. Dr. Armstrong is a Harvard Ophthalmology resident.

Joseph Ciolino, MD, received an R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the amount of $1,971,645 over four years for his project, “Antibiotic eluting contact lenses for the treatment of bacterial keratitis.”

Yang Lu, PhD, a post-doctoral research fellow at Beetham Eye Institute, Joslin Diabetes Center, was awarded an Overseas Chinese Association for Vision Eye Research (OCAVER) Travel Grant to attend the 2017 ARVO Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD. His abstract is titled, “Diabetic Retinal Microaneurysm (MA) Perfusion Analysis Based on Computational Fluid Modeling and Adaptive Optics Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscopy (AOSLO)”

Milica Margeta, MD, PhD, was selected to receive a 2017 American Glaucoma Society Young Clinician Scientist Award in the amount of $40,000 over one year for her project, “Investigation of microglial molecular signature in glaucoma.”

 

Russell Woods, PhD, received an R21 grant from the National Institutes of Health in the amount of $560,841 over two years for his project, “Impact of Peripheral Islands in the Visual Field of Functional Ability in Patients with Retinitis Pigmentosa.” This award includes a subcontract with Michael Sandberg, PhD.

 

Three faculty members will receive research funding support for 2017 from the Harvard Department of Ophthalmology’s Unrestricted Grant from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB). The Unrestricted Grant supports faculty research efforts across the department and enables all faculty and their active research collaborators to be nominated for additional RPB funding. The grant is administered by Joan W. Miller, MD, Harvard Ophthalmology department chair and Chief of Ophthalmology at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital.  Funds will go to support :

  • Tobias Elze, PhD, received $38,333 for his project, “Association between retinal structure and age-related impairments.”
  • Kevin Houston, OD, MSc, received $38,333 for his project, “Management of Eyelid Motility Disorders with Neodymium Magnet Systems: The Boston Blink-netic Project.”
  • Jaya Rajaiya, PhD, received $38,333 for her project, “Finding novel interactions in adenovirus corneal infections using proteomics.”

 

See also: Grants