Project details

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a major cause of visual impairment and blindness in young children. The incidence of this disease is likely to increase along with improvements in neonatal care. This disease occurs in two stages: 1) exposure of premature infants to high oxygen damages the retinal blood vessels, resulting in the light sensitive cells in the retina becoming starved; 2) new vessels grow in an attempt to rescue the tissue, but unfortunately, they grow above the surface of the retina, leading to permanent vision loss. Current treatments focus on the second phase with limited success and significant side effects.

The aim of the project is to focus on finding a therapy that will protect the vessels in stage 1. Dr McDonald and colleagues have evidence that a molecule called nitric oxide (NO) produced in blood vessels can switch from a nourishing role to one that is damaging, depending upon the environment.  They plan to investigate ways to change the cellular environment to ensure that this molecule is protective and not damaging, in order to preserve the delicate blood vessels of the eye and prevent the deleterious consequences of ROP. In particular they will investigate the potential of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids to act as vaso-protective agents to preserve endothelial cell integrity and prevent pathological sight threatening neo-vascularisation