Foundation Fighting Blindness Announces Over $9 Million in New Research Awards for FY2025

These awards span six strategic programs—each targeting critical gaps in understanding and treating inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Advancing Early AMD Research: Free Family AMD Initiative

With support from the Free Family Foundation, the Foundation is funding a dual-investigator award to explore the earliest stages of dry AMD. The project, led by Dr. Glenn Yiu (UC Davis Health) and Dr. Rui Chen (UC Irvine), will use multiomics approaches in nonhuman primates to investigate the formation of drusen—lipid-rich deposits that mark the onset of AMD. Their work will provide insights into how diet and systemic factors influence retinal degeneration and may pave the way for new therapeutic targets and dietary recommendations.

Tackling PRPH2-Associated Retinal Diseases: PARD Program

The PARD Program, supported by the Nixon Visions Foundation, is funding two projects focused on PRPH2-related IRDs, which are known for their clinical variability.

• Dr. Jason Comander (Mass Eye and Ear) will lead a comprehensive study to map all potential disease-causing variants in the PRPH2 gene. Using high-throughput assays and zebrafish models, this project aims to improve diagnosis and enable future therapeutic development.
• Dr. Frauke Coppieters (Ghent University) will investigate the genetic and cellular mechanisms behind disease variability in PRPH2 patients. Her team will also test a novel antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapy, offering hope for treatment where none currently exists.

Accelerating Translational Therapies: Brint Family Translational Research Awards

In its inaugural year, the Brint Family Translational Research Award program is funding two high-impact projects in the area of novel medical therapies.

• Dr. Sylvain Chemtob (Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, Montreal) will advance MU-010, a next-generation IL-1 receptor modulator for geographic atrophy an advanced form of dry age-related macular degeneration. This therapy shows promise in selectively reducing inflammation while preserving immune function, a major advancement over current treatments.
• Dr. Daniel Paull (New York Stem Cell Foundation) will develop a precision drug discovery platform using patient-derived iPSCs and AI-driven imaging. This scalable system will enable high-throughput screening of AMD therapies and could revolutionize how retinal diseases are modeled and treated.

Supporting Emerging Scientists: Alan Laties Career Development Program

To foster the next generation of vision researchers, the Foundation is awarding two Career Development and one Clinical Research Fellowship Awards. These awards support early-career clinician-scientists pursuing bold, innovative research in retinal degenerative diseases.

• Dr. Ishrat Ahmed (Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University) will study how extracellular vesicles (EVs) contribute to disease progression in retinitis pigmentosa, focusing on cellular communication at the transition zone between healthy and diseased retina.
• Dr. Christopher Langlo (Medical College of Wisconsin) will use optoretinography (ORG) to assess photoreceptor function in patients with retinal degeneration, aiming to understand how cone cells respond to structural changes in the retina.

• Dr. Maram Abdalla (Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust) will investigate the “smooth zone” in patients with choroideremia as a potential biomarker for disease progression. This work could establish a new endpoint for pivotal gene therapy trials.

Empowering Individual Investigators: IIRA Program

The Foundation is awarding seven Individual Investigator Research Awards. These projects aim to deepen understanding of IRDs and accelerate therapeutic development:

• Dr. Miranda Scalabrino (Medical College of Wisconsin): Investigating RP1-related retinitis pigmentosa and gene therapy responses.
• Dr. Ramkumar Sabesan (University of Washington): Using ORG to detect early photoreceptor dysfunction in retinitis pigmentosa.
• Dr. Eric Pierce (Mass Eye and Ear): Identifying circulating RNA biomarkers in extracellular vesicles for IRD monitoring.
• Dr. Jason Comander (Mass Eye and Ear): Developing high-throughput assays to classify variants of uncertain significance in IRDs.
• Dr. Rob Collin (Radboud University Medical Center): Designing truncated EYS proteins for gene therapy in EYS-associated retinal disease.
• Dr. Kinga Bujakowska (Mass Eye and Ear): Evaluating rare IRD variants using high-throughput splicing and gene expression assays.
• Dr. Radha Ayyagari (UC San Diego): Studying TMEM216 mutations in RP98 and developing gene therapy strategies for ciliopathies.

Strengthening Clinical Trial Design: REDI Working Group Initiative

The Foundation is funding the Regulatory Endpoints and Clinical Trial Design for IRDs (REDI) Working Group of the Clinical Consortium. This multi-year initiative aims to generate regulatory support for new clinical endpoints in IRD trials, a priority of the five-year science strategic plan.

Leveraging published studies, data from approved rare disease products, and feedback from regulatory agencies, REDI will use natural history data (e.g., the RUSH2A study), literature, and data-sharing collaborations to validate novel endpoints. The first project will focus on establishing the clinical relevance of full field stimulus threshold (FST) testing for vision restoration in individuals with Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA).

A Strategic Vision for the Future

“The launch of our five-year Science Strategic Plan marks a pivotal moment in our mission to accelerate treatments for inherited retinal diseases and dry AMD. The research awards announced this year reflect our commitment to overcoming the barriers that slow progress—from developing validated clinical endpoints, to nurturing emerging talent and creating innovative disease models. These projects are not only advancing science—they are laying the groundwork for real, transformative therapies for patients.”
— Amy Laster, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, Foundation Fighting Blindness

To learn more about these and other funded projects, visit the Funded Grants page.