The broad goal of this proposal is to provide core support services for 21 Participating Investigators and over 30 Associate Investigators to: (1) enhance the quality and quantity of their research; (2) facilitate collaborations between investigators with different backgrounds and skills; and (3) recruit new investigators to vision research, help young vision investigators establish their labs, and allow established investigators to explore new directions. Participating Investigators hold 25 individual R01 research grants from the National Eye Institute, and Associate Investigators study vision but do not currently hold an R01 grant from the NEI. Collectively, the investigators represent a broad range of vision research, and include experts on animal models of retinal degeneration, retinal circuitry, gene therapy, cell and molecular biology, molecular genetics, eye, central visual pathways and cortical physiology, visual performance and cortical function in awake- behaving primates, cognitive neuroscience of vision, computational modeling, and visual psychophysics. The core grant will support 5 resource/service modules: Biostatistics provides expert assistance in experimental design and data analysis, particularly for clinical studies, as well as bioinformatics support; Image Analysis provides expert support for the development and implementation of image processing and analysis solutions, as well as other data analysis services; Imaging and Electrophysiology provides vision investigators access to shared equipment and technical support for a variety of imaging modalities and electrophysiological recording, including conventional and two-photon confocal microscopy, multi-electrode array recording from in vitro tissue, and spectral OCT imaging; Instrumentation provides for design and construction of custom stimulus delivery, data acquisition, and electrophysiological instruments that are unavailable from commercial sources, as well as maintenance and repair of such instruments; Noninvasive Assessment of Visual Function provides equipment and technical support for assessing visual function in animal models. Methods include ERG, pupillometry, and water maze testing of vision.
This core grant facilitates the research programs of scientists studying vision at the University of Pennsylvania. These scientists conduct research that reveals the mechanisms of healthy vision, characterizes how disease affects these mechanisms, uses the insights gained from the basic research to develop sight-saving and sight- restoring treatments, and conducts clinical trials to evaluate what treatments work well. Because it provides support for the entire research chain, this core grant contributes to public health by helping to reduce vision loss.
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