03/11/2004
Queen’s awarded eye research funding
Researchers at Queen's University have been awarded a £300,000 grant to find out how defects in the blood vessels of the eye can lead to sight-threatening conditions.
The team, from the School of Medicine, will be looking at how contraction is controlled in the muscle of the very small arteries which regulate blood supply to the retina. Defects in their structure can lead to loss of sight in a number of conditions, such as diabetic retinopathy.
"These small vessels are very important in regulating the amount of blood which gets to the retinal nerves and receptors. When this fails, many new vessels can grow in an attempt to supply blood to the oxygen starved cells,” said Dr Graham McGeown, one of those behind the research.
"We hope to find out more about how these vessels work normally and provide a foundation on which a study of diseased vessels can build.”
A complication of diabetes, diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness which occurs when diabetes damages the tiny blood vessels inside the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.
Funding for the three-year study, totalling £306,373, has been provided by the Wellcome Trust, an independent research-funding charity which fosters and promotes research with the aim of improving human and animal health.
(MB/SP)
The team, from the School of Medicine, will be looking at how contraction is controlled in the muscle of the very small arteries which regulate blood supply to the retina. Defects in their structure can lead to loss of sight in a number of conditions, such as diabetic retinopathy.
"These small vessels are very important in regulating the amount of blood which gets to the retinal nerves and receptors. When this fails, many new vessels can grow in an attempt to supply blood to the oxygen starved cells,” said Dr Graham McGeown, one of those behind the research.
"We hope to find out more about how these vessels work normally and provide a foundation on which a study of diseased vessels can build.”
A complication of diabetes, diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness which occurs when diabetes damages the tiny blood vessels inside the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.
Funding for the three-year study, totalling £306,373, has been provided by the Wellcome Trust, an independent research-funding charity which fosters and promotes research with the aim of improving human and animal health.
(MB/SP)
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