News and Updates

19 November 2020

Retina Australia 2021 Grant Recipients Announced

We are pleased to announce that the 2021 recipients of the Retina Australia medical research grants are Dr Lauren Ayton (The University of Melbourne), Professor Alex Hewitt (The University of Tasmania), Dr Fred Chen (The University of Western Australia), Associate Professor Heather Mack (CERA/The University of Melbourne), and Dr Jennifer Thompson (Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital). These grants have a combined total value of $160,000.

You can view a detailed breakdown of the research grants in Word version here or in PDF version here.

Congratulations to the researchers and their teams, we look forward to hearing about how things progress over the next twelve to eighteen months. Thank you to all of our supporters across the country, for without your generous donations, we would not be able to help fund these important programs.

1 October 2020

Webinar Event: Gene therapy, clinical trials and new developments in IRD research

The regulatory approval and commercialisation of Luxturna in 2017 has opened the floodgates for gene therapy, with numerous clinical trials underway or rapidly approaching. Dr Tom Edwards and Dr Lauren Ayton will update Retina Australia members on the national approach to identifying and characterising people who might be eligible for these trials (through the Inherited Retinal Disease Natural History Study), as well as describing the most promising developments in the field.

This webinar will take place on Saturday 17th October at 2:00pm EST. You can find a copy of the flyer in Word version here or in PDF version here

25 September 2020

Retina International announces the launch of Know Your Code – a genetic testing advocacy portal to mark WORLD RETINA DAY, September 26th, 2020.

Retina Australia Chairman, Leighton Boyd, provides his thoughts on the need for accessible and affordable genetic testing. You can view the official Retina International press release via Word option here and via PDF option here.

17 September 2020

I Spy, With My Bionic Eye – Herald Sun article featuring Retina Australia Chairman, Leighton Boyd

Retina Australia Chairman, Leighton Boyd, was recently featured in the Herald Sun article ‘I spy, with my bionic eye’. The article discusses a revolutionary device – an implant and camera headset – produced by Monash Vision Group that could help people who are blind to see again. Credit to Herald Sun, journalist Alanah Frost & photographer David Caird. View the Word option here and the PDF option here.

1 September 2020

Sipora Round-Up App Partnership

Retina Australia have partnered with round-up app Sipora so our supporters can give us their spare e-change every month. What’s a roundup app and how does it work? Good question! You can find an information sheet detailing the sign-up process and how the app works in Word version here and in PDF version here.

11 August 2020

Our Constitution

For any new or current members that wish to learn about how we operate, you can download a copy of our constitution here.

18 June 2020

Webinar Series 2020 – 2021

We are excited to bring you a series of informative online webinars over the next year. Members will have access to all events and non-members will be able to pay a casual fee for individual webinars. If you want to learn more about how you can access these webinars, you can send an email to info@retinaaustralia.com.au or phone (03) 9650 5088.

Our first webinar will take place on Thursday 13th August at 1:00pm EST and will discuss genetic analysis and how this can help patient management and the development of therapies for inherited retinal diseases.

You can find a copy of the flyer in Word version here and in PDF version here.

26 May 2020

2019 Annual Report and Chairman’s Report available for download

We are currently updating our website to include annual reports and other important documentation. For now, you can find a copy of the 2019 Annual Report here. You can also find the Annual Chairman’s Report here.

12 November 2019

Retina Australia announces new grant recipients for 2020

We are pleased to announce that we have awarded our medical research grants to four recipients for the year ahead.

We are pleased to announce that we have awarded our medical research grants to four recipients for the year ahead. The 2020 recipients are Dr Raymond Wong (Centre for Eye Research Australia, Dr Anai Gonzalez Cordero (Children’s Medical Research Institute), Professor Andrea Vincent (Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital) and Dr Jennifer Thompson (Australian Retinal Disease Register and DNA Bank).

Sensing the Light: Using Cell Reprogramming to Regenerate Photoreceptors
Dr Raymond Wong
Dr Wong’s Project aims to understand the disease mechanism in photoreceptor degeneration, and to develop cell reprogramming technology to regenerate photoreceptors and restore vision in retinitis pigmentosa.

His team possesses a unique combination of expertise in cell reprogramming, CRISPR technology, single-cell transcriptomics and preclinical retinal research (gene delivery to retina, electrophysiology, retinal imaging, and visual assessment in animal models). This places them in an exceptional position to undertake this Project, reveal the potential for using cell reprogramming to restore vision and shift the field into a new and exciting direction.

Single Cell RNA Sequencing to Characterise Cell Diversity and Molecular Signatures of hiPSC-derived Retinal Organoids
Dr Anai Gonzalez Cordero
The aim of Dr Gonzalez Cordero’s project is to enhance the understanding of inherited eye diseases by combining two important technologies, stem cells and single cell RNA sequencing. Dr Gonzalez Cordero and their team will use stem cells generated from patient’s blood to generate mini human retinas called organoids.

They will characterise cells isolated from organoids from two distinct forms of diseases, named Usher2a and Stargardts and compare these to normal organoids and the adult human retina.

The experiments undertaken Gonzalez Cordero’s project will be used to identify the cell populations within the organ cultures to establish if they are indeed good models in which to study disease. They will also gain insights into the causes of cell damage in disease.

The study is the first step before these organoids can be used in larger projects, aimed to enhance our understanding of eye degenerations and develop new treatment strategies.

Complex Phenotyping in X-Linked Retinal Degeneration due to RPGR Mutations
Professor Andrea Vincent
Dr Vincent’s project is based upon the hypothesis that cilia present in cultured nasal cells will show disruption in structure, and aberrant protein expression in RPGR-Rod Cone Retinal Dystrophy (RCD) individuals with lung disease, compared with normal; and that others with RPGR-RCD, and obligate female carriers will show less severe functional and structural changes.

The project is being undertaken with the idea that better understanding the systemic disease associations present in RPGR-associated inherited retinal disease, can optimise health outcomes for those already affected with a significant visual disability, as identification of mild or pre-clinical lung and ear disease will allow early intervention and treatment.

Provision of Genetic Research Reports to Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Registry Participants via their Nominated Ophthalmologist or Clinical Geneticist
Dr Jennifer Thompson
Our grant will allow Dr Thompson and her team to provide genetic research reports for 200 families via nominated clinicians. In addition to providing support for their participants, the data will be published with other established data, increasing knowledge of the causes of IRD in Australia.

We would like to congratulate the successful applicants and to thank all the researchers who took the time to make applications. We wish them all the best of luck in their research.

1 October 2019

Friends of Retina Australia Perth social gathering and AIRDR presentation

We held our social gathering and presentation on Saturday, 21 September 2019. The event was organised and hosted by our friend Lyn so we must give her a warm thank you!

We're excited to say that we had a total of 41 people attend the event which was a fantastic result.

The team at the Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Register and DNA Bank (AIRDR) gave very enthusiastic insight into what they do and some current research being undertaken.

Lyn caught up with most of those who attended and everyone said how much they enjoyed the presentation by the AIRDR Team.

We would like to say a huge thanks to the AIRDR Team and all those who attended.
For those of you who couldn't make it, Lyn has recorded the presentation and we've uploaded it below so you don't have to miss out! The recording is approximately 1 hour and 7 minutes long.
Enjoy!

1 July 2019

2020 Grant Applications are closed

Our 2020 Grant application period has now closed. Currently our Grants Assessment Committee, headed by Professor John Grigg of The University of Sydney School of Medicine, are assessing the applications. Applicants will be notified whether they are successful before 31 December 2019.

30 November 2018

2019 grant announcements

Congratulations to Dr Livia Carvalho from the Lions Eye Institute in Perth, Professor Nigel Lovell from the University of NSW, Dr Michael O‘Connor from Western Sydney University, and Dr John De Roach from the Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Registry and DNA Bank, for being awarded Retina Australia Research Grants for 2019. These grants have a total value of $159,900.

This brings the total amount provided by Retina Australia for research since these grants were established twenty years ago, to more than $5.5 million dollars.

Dr Carvalho‘s project is entitled ― Dual AAV retinal gene therapy approach for Usher 1F treatment. Professor Lovell will be studying the topic ― Improving the global acceptance of retinal prostheses: Assessing the influence of different stages of retinal degeneration on selective activation of retinal ganglion cells; and Dr O‘Connor will be investigating ―the mechanism by which C.1 rescues some functions in Best Disease Retinal Pigment Epithelium.

The Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Registry and DNA Bank team under the leadership of Dr De Roach will continue their maintenance and development of the Registry and DNA Bank. We look forward to hearing reports of this work over the next twelve to eighteen months.