The scientific goal of the Unit of Vascular Retinal Neurobiology Research is to understand the process of angiogenesis and neuroprotection in the retina in development, normal physiology and various pathologies. We also strive to understand the basic cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the observed phenomena. One of our research interests focuses on neural and vascular protection in retinal degenerative diseases. We use various animal models to characterize the neural and vascular effects of several important growth factors, and also use other systemic approaches to investigate the basic mechanisms of such diseases, and try to identify novel molecules and pathways involved. Another aspect of our research lies with the functional studies of ocular neovascular disorders. In this project, we characterize the angiogenic and vasculogenic nature of some potent angiogenic or antiangiogenic molecules using different disease models. Furthermore, we utilize molecular and cell biology tools to study the key mechanisms and pathways involved in such diseases. Moreover, our team uses the developing mouse retina as a model to explore the fundamental mechanisms of angiogenesis. Insight derived from such studies may not only provide basic knowledge of angiogenesis and neurogenesis, but might potentially lead to new directions to developing better therapies for human diseases.
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