News by Subject Medicine & Health

At high enough levels, Retinol Binding Protein 3 (or RBP3) prevents the development of diabetic retinopathy. If introduced early enough in the development of the disease, RBP3 was shown to reverse the effects of the complication in rodent models of diabetes.

People have a limited ability to regenerate nerves after injury or illness. In glaucoma patients, degeneration of the optic nerve that connects the retina and the brain causes permanent blindness, and there is currently no effective treatment. Now, researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, USA, can induce human retinal ganglion cells, which form the optic nerve, to regenerate nerve fibers in a dish. This study providing a new system for nerve regeneration research.

A new study from City, University of London suggests that effective communication from eye health professionals may help reduce patient fears after they are diagnosed with the 'dry' form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Dry AMD is a currently incurable, progressive disease of the macular, the central part of the retina through which we see the world directly in front of us.

There are hundreds of thousands of distinct colors and shapes that a person can distinguish visually, but how does the brain process all of this information? Scientists previously believed that the visual system initially encodes shape and color with different sets of neurons and then combines them much later. But a new study from Salk researchers, published in Science on June 27, 2019, shows that there are neurons that respond selectively to particular combinations of color and shape.

A new study brings the connection between statin use and risk of glaucoma into sharper focus. Investigators from Brigham and Women's Hospital have found that using statins for five or more years is associated with lower risk of primary open-angle glaucoma. Results of the study were published recently in JAMA Ophthalmology.

Photoreceptor cells in our eyes can adjust to both weak and strong light levels, but we still don't know exactly how they do it. Emeritus Professor Fumio Hayashi of Kobe University and his colleagues revealed that the photoreceptor protein rhodopsin forms transient clusters within the disc membranes in retina. These clusters are concentrated in the center of disc membranes, and act as platforms in the process of light to chemical signal conversion.

A substantial proportion of US adults reported recently having an eye exam in this online survey study that included 2,013 adults ages 50 to 80. About 82% of those surveyed reported an eye exam in the past two years.