[Research to Prevent Blindness] Current

50 Years of Research to Prevent Blindness

Since it was founded in 1960, RPB has been a catalyst in vision research, responsible for spawning a vibrant community of eye research institutions, for initiating the movement that led to the creation of the National Eye Institute, for... Read more...

Breakthrough Gene Therapy Prevents Retinal Degeneration

RPB-supported researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts have demonstrated that non-viral gene therapy, delivered by nanoparticles, can delay the onset of some forms... Read more...

Healthy Diet May Reduce Cataracts in Women

Women who eat foods rich in a variety of vitamins and minerals appear to have a lower risk of developing cataracts, according to a large population study. Read the press release. Read the article. Read the abstract. Read more...

Resveratrol May Prevent Some Blinding Diseases

Resveratrol — found in red wine, grapes, blueberries, peanuts and other plants — stops out-of-control blood vessel growth in the eye, according to vision researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. There are... Read more...

First Signs of Glaucoma Appear In The Brain, Not The Eyes

Many glaucoma patients experience vision loss despite efforts to manage ocular pressure. Now, researchers are a step closer to understanding why...and treating it. The findings represent a paradigm shift in how scientists think about... Read more...

Smoking Past Age 80 Worsens AMD Risk, Also Linked to Uveitis

Smokers 80 and older who don't quit will face an ever-rising risk of macular degeneration beyond that associated with age, RPB researchers said. The study's findings were also consistent with previous research linking alcohol to... Read more...

New Tool for Gene Delivery

RPB-supported researchers have developed a new tool for gene therapy that significantly increases gene delivery to cells in the retina compared to other carriers, without using a virus, the most common means of DNA delivery. Following is... Read more...

New Retinal Disease Discovered

RPB-supported researchers have found a new, rare inherited retinal disease. The investigators hope that finding the genetic cause will increase understanding of more common retinal diseases. The macula, located within the retina, is... Read more...

Curing Color Blindness

Research teams at three RPB-supported institutions have collaborated in curing color blindness with gene therapy, the second successful application of gene therapy in treating an eye disorder. RPB also supported the previously announced... Read more...

Major Breakthrough in Early Detection and Prevention of AMD

RPB-supported researchers have discovered a biological marker for wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that shows strong potential as a means for both early detection and preventive treatment. "This is a major paradigm shift in... Read more...