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Three-dimensional structural mapping of the retinal neurovascular unit and the influence of diabetes

School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences | PHD
Funding
Unfunded
Reference Number
SMED-2201-1081
Application Deadline
None specified
Start Date
None specified

Overview

The aim of this PhD project is to better understand why people with diabetes are at risk of losing their vision.

Diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of visual impairment and blindness in developed countries. Presently, our understanding of the pathogenesis of this condition remains incomplete. Recent studies have suggested that diabetic retinopathy is a disease of the retinal neurovascular unit (NVU), with numerous, interdependent cell types contributing to dysfunction of the retina. Precisely how the structural features of the retinal NVU change during the progression of diabetic retinopathy, however, remains poorly understood. In this PhD project, we will define for the first time how the three-dimensional ultrastructure of the retinal NVU changes during the development of diabetic retinopathy. To accomplish this, we will use an innovative methodology called serial block face scanning electron microscopy to reconstruct the retinal NVU at nanoscale resolution in retinas from experimental models of diabetes and human post-mortem samples. We expect that the project will result in a step change in our understanding of how the retinal NVU is disrupted in diabetes and provide new knowledge on the pathological events that underpin the development of diabetic retinopathy.

Project Summary
Supervisor

Professor Tim Curtis

More Information

askmhls@qub.ac.uk

Research Profile


Mode of Study

Full-time: 3 years


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