Experimental Ophthalmology

Staff

• Sara Dori, M.Sc.

Research focuses

• Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
• Stem & progenitor cell research
• Retinal regeneration
• Endogenous repair mechanisms
• Fibrosis
• 3D culture models of retinal degeneration 

Methods

• Stem cell differentiation in vitro and in vivo
• Microsurgery, laser treatment and optical coherence tomography (OCT)
• Animal models with specific retinal degenerations
• Visual function measurement
• Retinal organoids 

Short description

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in the industrialized world for people over 65 years old. Although the pathogenesis of AMD is still unclear, it likely has multifactorial causes. It is known that, in AMD, the retinal pigment layer that lies directly beneath the retina, displays major alterations. In addition, oxidative changes can be detected in photoreceptors.

Therefore, the experimental research at the Dept. of Ophthalmology focuses on developing new therapeutic strategies. Both the stem cell-based cell replacement therapy and endogenous neuroregeneration are of particular interest. In animal models with pharmacologically or laser induced retinal degeneration, specific restoration of visual functions are investigated. In order to quantify the outcome of the experimental manipulations electrophysiological and behavioral tests are employed. The long-term goal is to replace damaged retinal cells with new ones, thus preserving eyesight or, at minimum, slowing the disease progression.

Short publication list

for comprehensive publication list click here

• Conedera FM, Kokona D, Zinkernagel MS, Stein JV, Lin CP, Alt C, Enzmann V. Macrophagescoordinate immune response to laser-induced injury via extracellular traps. J Neuroinflamm.21(1):68, 2024.
• Jahnke L, Perrenoud V, Zandi S, Li Y, Conedera FM, Enzmann V. Modulation of ExtracellularMatrix Composition and Chronic Inflammation with Pirfenidone Promotes Scar Reduction inRetinal Wound Repair. Cells. 13(2):164, 2024.
• Conedera FM, Runnels JM, Stein JV, Alt C, Enzmann V, Lin CP. Assessing the role of T-cellsin response to retinal injury to uncover new therapeutic targets for the treatment of retinaldegeneration. J Neuroinflamm. 20(1):206, 2023.
• Jahnke L, Zandi S, Elhelbawi A, Conedera FM, Enzmann V. Characterization of MacrogliaResponse during Tissue Repair in a Laser-Induced Model of Retinal Degeneration. Int J MolSci. 24(11):9172, 2023.
• Zandi S, Li Y, Jahnke L, Schweri-Olac A, Ishikawa K, Wada I, Nakao S, Zinkernagel MS, Enzmann V. Animal model of subretinal fibrosis without active choroidal neovascularization. Exp Eye Res. 229:109428, 2023.
• Conedera FM, Enzmann V. Regenerative capacity of Müller cells and their modulation as a tool to treat retinal degenerations. Neural Regen Res. 18(1):139-140, 2023.
• Enzbrenner A, Zulliger R, Biber J, Pousa AMQ, Schäfer N, Stucki C, Giroud N, Berrera M, Kortvely E, Schmucki R, Badi L, Grosche A, Pauly D, Enzmann V. Sodium Iodate-Induced Degeneration Results in Local Complement Changes and Inflammatory Processes in Murine Retina. Int J Mol Sci. 22(17):9218, 2021.
• Conedera FM, Quintela Pousa AM, Mercader N, Tschopp M, Enzmann V: The TGFβ / Notch axis facilitates Müller cell-to-epithelial transition to ultimately form a chronic glial scar. Mol Neurodegener. 16(1):69, 2021.
• Conedera FM, Quintela Pousa AM, Presby DM, Mercader N, Enzmann V, Tschopp M: Diverse signaling by TGFβ isoforms in response to focal injury is associated with either retinal regeneration or reactive gliosis. Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, 41(1), 43-62, 2021.