Grants Database
Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) provides grants to high-performing U.S.-based departments of ophthalmology and to their high-potential investigators. Use our Grants Database to learn more. Award amounts for some grants are distributed over multiple years.
How to use the Grants Database
Refine your search by using the filter at left. Search by setting a date range, or filter your results by institution, research area keyword, or awardee. Sort the table by clicking on any column header.
Learn about an institution or individual by clicking on a name.
Learn about RPB-supported work by clicking on the text link "Research funded by this award," which will take you to our Research Database where you can refine and/or expand a search for published studies. (Note: In some cases this link will not be available because a researcher may have only recently received an award and has yet to publish findings.)
RPB Grant Awards from 2015 & 2016
96 Awards ($15,023,295)
| RPB Grant Type |
Year |
Award |
Research Area |
Awardee |
Institution |
| Career Development Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Retina | Rajagopal, Rithwick / MD, PhD | Washington University in Saint Louis School of Medicine |
| Will use animal models of diabetic eye disease to learn how fenofibrate, a drug clinically-approved to treat cholesterol, protects the eye from diabetes-related damage, as well as identify alternative therapeutic pathways that have fewer serious side effects. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Physiological Optics, Visual Psychophysics | Sabesan, Ramkumar / PhD | University of Washington School of Medicine |
| Proposes to develop a specialized camera to capture how the retina’s rods and cones (responsible for turning light energy into shapes and colors) work in health and how they fail in diseases. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2016 | $30,000 | Retina | Sears, Connie M. | David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles |
| Conducting research at the University of California, Los Angeles. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2016 | $30,000 | Retinal Cell Biology | Vo, Thomas | University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine |
| Conducting research at the University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine. | |||||
| Nelson Trust Award for Retinitis Pigmentosa | 2016 | $50,000 | Retina | Apte, Rajendra S. / MD, PhD | Washington University in Saint Louis School of Medicine |
| Proposes to investigate whether a specific cause of metabolic dysfunction plays a role in photoreceptor and vision loss across types of retinitis pigmentosa. | |||||
| Nelson Trust Award for Retinitis Pigmentosa | 2016 | $100,000 | Retina | Vandenberghe, Luk H. / PhD | Harvard Medical School |
| Proposes to create a method for safe and efficient gene transfer (a proven treatment for retinitis pigmentosa) to the retina via an intravitreal route of injection, thereby avoiding the issues associated with the current and more invasive standard, subretinal injection. | |||||
| RPB/SNF International Research Collaborators Award | 2016 | $75,000 | Amblyopia, Eye Movements, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Pharmacology, Physiological Optics, Physiology, Strabismus, Visual Neuroscience, Visual Psychophysics | Kohn, Adam / PhD | Albert Einstein College of Medicine |
| Propose a collaborative effort to discover how feedback signals change the activity of nerve cells in the visual cortex, and therefore how they might influence our capacity to see. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Immunology, Microbiology | Britton, Robert / PhD | Baylor College of Medicine |
| Will explore the mechanisms by which intestinal tract bacteria impact the health of the eye, as well as identify specific bacteria that can be used therapeutically for dry eye and/or uveitis. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Glaucoma | Jiang, Hongrui / PhD, MS | University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health |
| Will develop micro-scale devices to measure real-time pressure at the optic nerve head and choroidal tension during accommodation—two processes thought to be potentially responsible for damage related to glaucoma. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Pharmacology, Physiology | Malik, Asrar B. / PhD | University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine |
| Proposes to address mechanisms regulating the overgrowth of retinal blood vessels in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) using eye drops instead of injections. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Anatomy, Ocular Oncology, Pathology | Daniels, Anthony Brent / MD, MSc | Vanderbilt University School of Medicine |
| Seeking less toxic chemotherapeutic alternatives to currently-used regimens in the treatment of retinoblastoma (an eye cancer that develops in babies) in a rabbit model. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Immunology, Microbiology | Doan, Thuy A. / MD, PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Will use next-generation sequencing to comprehensively assess bacteria and viruses on and in the eye in normal health and disease and during treatment with antibiotics. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Glaucoma | Newman-Casey, Paula Anne / MD | The Regents of the University of Michigan School of Medicine |
| Seeking to optimize implementation of behavioral interventions into current clinical operations in the treatment of glaucoma, with the goal of increasing medication adherence. | |||||
| Disney Award for Amblyopia Research | 2016 | $100,000 | Amblyopia, Eye Movements, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Strabismus | Kiorpes, Lynne / PhD | New York University School of Medicine |
| Will use psychophysical paradigms (stimulus-perception techniques) to explore attentional deficits in amblyopic children and to develop strategies that will improve not only visual acuity but also non-visual acuity perceptual deficits in amblyopia treatment. | |||||
| Disney Award for Amblyopia Research | 2016 | $100,000 | Amblyopia, Eye Movements, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Strabismus | McGee, Aaron W. / PhD | University of Louisville School of Medicine |
| Seeks to establish optimal, gene-inhibiting, drug intervention targets in the development of the visual pathway (in mice) in order to prolong the period of visual plasticity in the visual system – a sensitive period which is related to amblyopia in humans. | |||||
| International Research Scholar Award | 2016 | $1,295 | Biochemistry, Cornea, Immunology, Microbiology | Schenke-Layland, Katja / PhD, MSc | Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California |
|
Develop a novel stem cell-based tissue engineering strategy to regenerate lacrimal glands that are damaged by the autoimmune inflammation associated with Sjögren’s syndrome. |
|||||
| Low Vision Research Award | 2016 | $100,000 | Manduchi, Roberto / PhD | University of California, Santa Cruz | |
| Developing an economical and easy-to-use low vision screen magnifier that will enable scrolling control by means of the viewer’s own gaze, rather than using a mouse or trackpad. | |||||
| Low Vision Research Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Merabet, Lotfi B. / OD, PhD, MPH | Harvard Medical School | |
| Seeking to establish linkages between observed perceptual deficits and the underlying neurophysiology in cortical visual impairment (CVI), a leading cause of pediatric low vision. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2016 | $30,000 | Retina | Gupta, Priya Rani | Harvard Medical School |
| Conducting research at Harvard Medical School / MEEI. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2016 | $30,000 | Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Physiology, Retina, Retinal Cell Biology | Sengillo, Jesse D. | Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons |
| Conducting research at Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons. | |||||
| Physician-Scientist Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Cornea | Chan, Matilda F. / MD, PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Investigating the hypothesis that a specific form of DNA modification—DNA methylation—plays a significant role in the development of Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy (FECD); testing an FDA-approved drug that is able to reverse DNA methylation in cancer cells to reverse it also in the cornea. | |||||
| Physician-Scientist Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Retina | Sun, Jennifer K. / MD, MPH | Harvard Medical School |
| Using noninvasive optical coherence tomography angiography to establish changes in the retinal capillary network as biomarkers that predict retinal neural damage leading to vision loss or the worsening of diabetic retinopathy over time. | |||||
| Special Grant | 2016 | $125,000 | Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology | ||
| AUPO is a key ally in RPB's commitment to enrich the development of the Chairs, Directors of Research, and other leaders from departments of ophthalmology. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2016 | $75,000 | Retina | Lad, Eleonora / MD, PhD | Duke University School of Medicine |
| Understanding the role of monocytes (type of white blood cell) in dry AMD in order to support the concept that monocytes should be investigated as therapeutic targets for treatment of dry AMD. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2016 | $25,000 | Physiological Optics, Visual Psychophysics | McAnany, J. Jason / PhD | University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine |
| Developing a “multi-modal functional assay” for complete characterization of early neural changes in patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR), with the goal of early detection and diagnosis in at-risk populations. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2016 | $55,000 | Retina, Retinal Cell Biology | McGill, Trevor / PhD | Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine |
| Developing a novel contrast agent and cell viability marker for use with optical coherence tomography to document the survival, migration, and integration of transplanted, therapeutic stem cells in the treatment of retinal degenerative diseases. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2016 | $60,000 | Pharmacology, Physiology, Retina, Visual Neuroscience | Wong, Kwoon Y. / PhD | The Regents of the University of Michigan School of Medicine |
| Seeking to learn how intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) respond to light and interact with other retinal cells in order to potentially improve the visual capability of blind and low-vision patients. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Pharmacology, Physiology | Puro, Donald G. / MD, PhD | The Regents of the University of Michigan School of Medicine |
| Exploring the role of ion channels in the response of tear-film-stabilizing goblet cells to changes in the salt content of tears as a potentially new avenue to develop more effective therapeutic strategies to combat dry eye. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Retina | Schwartz, Daniel M. / MD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Developing and testing a novel light-activated drug that potentially can arrest progressive ocular growth and macular stretching that occurs in degenerative myopia. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2016 | $300,000 | Cell Biology, Retina, Retinal Cell Biology | Sung, Ching-Hwa / PhD | Weill Cornell Medical College |
| Testing the hypothesis that manipulating signals to structures on the surface of cultured retinal progenitor cells can generate specific types of retinal neurons essential to cell replacement therapy for damaged retinas. | |||||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of CWRU | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Emory University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Harvard Medical School | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Indiana University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Mayo Clinic, College of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | University of Nebraska Medical Center | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Vanderbilt University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Washington University in Saint Louis School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2016 | $115,000 | Weill Cornell Medical College | ||
| Special Grant | 2016 | $32,000 | The Heed Ophthalmic Foundation | ||
| Resident Retreats, 2016 and 2017. Encourage and facilitate talented residents to pursue a career in academic ophthalmology. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Anatomy, Glaucoma, Ocular Oncology, Pathology, Pharmacology, Physiology | Huang, Alex / MD, PhD | David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles |
| To develop aqueous angiography as an aqueous humor outflow imaging technique -- a tool that may improve the basic understanding of fluid flow in the eye and/or clinical results from minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries (MIGS). | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Anatomy, Ocular Oncology, Pathology, Pharmacology, Physiological Optics, Physiology, Retina, Retinal Cell Biology, Visual Neuroscience, Visual Psychophysics | Schallek, Jesse / PhD | University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry |
| To use a use a custom-built, high resolution camera (adaptive optics scanning light ophthalmoscope) to study how blood cells interact with the capillary endothelium in the early stages of microvasculopathy in diabetes. | |||||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $300,000 | University of Colorado School of Medicine | ||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2015 | $30,000 | Clinical, Epidemiologic | Dong, Zachary Michael | University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine |
| Conducting research at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2015 | $30,000 | Retinal Cell Biology | Kim, Clifford | Harvard Medical School |
| Conducting research at Harvard Medical School / MEEI. | |||||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2015 | $30,000 | Retinal Cell Biology | Vu, Khiem | University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas |
| Conducting research at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. | |||||
| Nelson Trust Award for Retinitis Pigmentosa | 2015 | $100,000 | Retina | Duncan, Jacque L. / MD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Will use adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscopy to probe photoreceptor structure and function in eyes with retinitis pigmentosa at the earliest stages of disease. | |||||
| Nelson Trust Award for Retinitis Pigmentosa | 2015 | $100,000 | Retina, Retinal Cell Biology | Wen, Rong / MD, PhD | University of Miami Miller School of Medicine |
|
To carry out pre-clinical studies on three treatment strategies for retinitis pigmentosa, including pharmacological therapy, gene therapy, and neuroprotective therapies. |
|||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Development, Molecular Biology, Retinal Cell Biology | Näär, Anders M. / PhD | Harvard Medical School |
| To investigate gene regulation of cholesterol/lipid homeostasis in the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Amblyopia, Eye Movements, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Strabismus | Stryker, Michael P. / PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| To reveal which cortical circuits are altered in amblyopia in order to target and stimulate signaling mechanisms which could promote recovery during adulthood. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Cell Biology, Development | Zambidis, Elias T. / MD, PhD | Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine |
| To develop mature human retinas in mice by injecting human induced pluripotent stem cells into mouse blastocysts (cluster of cells from which an embryo arises). | |||||
| Stein Professorship/Extension | 2015 | $250,000 | Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Retinal Cell Biology | Antonetti, David / PhD | The Regents of the University of Michigan School of Medicine |
| To restore diabetes-damaged blood vessels in the hopes of repairing the retinal vascular network and preventing vision loss. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Retinal Cell Biology | Hulleman, John D. / PhD | University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas |
| Using protein engineering to test the hypothesis that selective activation of a specific oxidative stress response will protect the retinal pigment epithelium cell layer from the initiating events of AMD. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Eye Movements, Strabismus, Amblyopia, Neuro-Ophthalmology, Immunology, Microbiology | Levin, Marc Harris / MD, PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| To identify mechanisms that lead to optic nerve inflammation in neuromyelitis optica and other disorders. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Physiology, Pharmacology, Retinal Cell Biology, Stem Cell | Singh, Ruchira / PhD | University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry |
| To use patient-derived retinal stem cell models to understand the effect of the environment (blue light, cigarette smoke, free iron) on development and progression of AMD. | |||||
| Career Development Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Glaucoma | Tehrani, Shandiz / MD, PhD | Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine |
| To develop a method to locally deliver therapeutic molecules to the optic nerve head in vivo, with the goal of stabilizing structures to prevent axonal injury in experimental glaucoma. | |||||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of CWRU | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Emory University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Harvard Medical School | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Indiana University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Mayo Clinic, College of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Cincinnati College of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Nebraska Medical Center | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Tennessee Health Science Center | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Vanderbilt University School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Washington University in Saint Louis School of Medicine | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Weill Cornell Medical College | ||
| Departmental Grant | 2015 | $115,000 | Yale University School of Medicine | ||
| Medical Student Eye Research Fellowship | 2015 | $30,000 | Retinal Cell Biology | Diaz-Aguilar, Daniel | Harvard Medical School |
| Elucidating a potential therapeutic modality for preservation of vision in advanced AMD patients with geographic atrophy. | |||||
| Physician-Scientist Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Cornea, Dry Eye, Stem Cell | Shindler, Kenneth S. / MD, PhD | University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine |
| Evaluating novel therapies that prevent retinal ganglion cell (RGC) damage and visual loss in optic neuritis: the role of Dexras1, a small G protein, in RGC death; modulating iron uptake as a treatment for optic neuritis. | |||||
| Physician-Scientist Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Retina | Zacks, David / MD, PhD | The Regents of the University of Michigan School of Medicine |
| Defining the mechanism by which dysregulation of autophagy (a central biologic process that helps regulate cellular health and response to metabolic and oxidative stress) in the retinal pigment epithelium results in age-related degeneration and how activation of compensatory stress-response pathways serves to reduce the rate of degeneration. | |||||
| Special Grant | 2015 | $150,000 | General Operating Support | Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology | |
| AUPO is a key ally in RPB's commitment to enrich the development of the Chairs, Directors of Research, and other leaders from departments of ophthalmology. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2015 | $55,000 | Eye Movements, Strabismus, Amblyopia, Neuro-Ophthalmology | Moss, Heather E. / MD, PhD | University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine |
| Defining how changes in blood vessels in the eyes, in the structure of the optic nerve and in the electrical activity of the eyes in Idiopathic intracranial hypertension(IIH) patients can be used to measure disease development and treatment success, and to predict future vision loss in IIH. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2015 | $60,000 | Retina, Retinal Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology | Nair, Kayarat Saidas / PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Seeking ways to make a subset of mammalian M�ller cells more amenable to support retinal regeneration, with the potential to restore vision. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2015 | $25,000 | Retina | Saint-Geniez, Magali / PhD | Harvard Medical School |
| Characterizing the effect of retinal detachment on photoreceptor metabolism and evaluating the therapeutic benefits of PGC-1 transcriptional coactivator isoforms on photoreceptor response to energetic stress and survival secondary to retinal detachment. | |||||
| Special Scholar Award | 2015 | $75,000 | Retinal Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology | Sodhi, Akrit S. / MD, PhD | Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine |
| Identifying and validating safe and effective targets for the treatment of abnormal �leaky� blood vessels in wet AMD. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Retina | Dean, Douglas / PhD | University of Louisville School of Medicine |
| Investigating central vision rescue in retinitis pigmentosa by restoring rod dependent cone function via rod precursor cell transplantation. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Glaucoma | Kaufman, Paul L. / MD | University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health |
| Expanding glaucoma therapeutics by using micro invasive surgical techniques to deliver viral vector gene therapy constructs directly to tissues of the outflow pathways in the eye that are affected by glaucoma: the trabecular meshwork and Schlemm's canal. | |||||
| Stein Innovation Award | 2015 | $300,000 | Glaucoma, Nanophotonics | Sretavan, David W. / MD, PhD | University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine |
| Developing a novel, nanosensor method of intraocular pressure (IOP) tracking using light and a highly miniaturized implant for the ongoing, automated monitoring of IOP in glaucoma patients. | |||||
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