NEI and European researchers hosted international investigators on June 18, 2021, to present and discuss recent advances in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and its relationship to the microbiome. AMD is a leading cause of vision impairment and blindness in the U.S. and worldwide. Together, participants appraised the state of the science and plotted future research collaborations.
The virtual meeting was co-sponsored by the Institut de la Macula, Barcelona, Spain; and the Doheny Eye Center, University of California Los Angeles. Organizers included Jordi Monés, Institut de la Macula; Giovanni Staurenghi, University of Milan; SriniVas Sadda, Doheny Eye Center; and Gyan Prakash, National Eye Institute.
Topics addressed included personalized medicine, machine learning applications, the microbiome and its association with eye disease, AMD pathogenesis, and the NIH grants review process. Participants reviewed findings from clinical studies including the NEI-funded the Age-related Eye Disease Study 1/2, the EYE-RISK Consortium, and the Ryan Initiative for Macular Research.