VisionNewsSUMMER 2012

New diabetic retinopathy screening service

Stem cell treated contact lensesto repair damaged eyes

New chair takes the reinsat CERA

Optometrists & ophthalmologistsworking together

Bionic eye success;“All of a sudden, I could

see a little flash!”

Dr Penny Allen and Dianne Ashworth

2 Centre for Eye Research Australia

time there was stimulation there was a different shape that appeared in front of my eye,” Ms Ashworth said.

Dr Penny Allen, a specialist surgeon at CERA, led a surgical team to implant the prototype at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital.

“This is a world first – we implanted a device in this position behind the retina, demonstrating the viability of our approach. Every stage of the procedure was planned and tested, so I felt very confident going into theatre,” Dr Allen said.

Professor Anthony Burkitt, Director of Bionic Vision Australia said, “This outcome is a strong example of what a multi-disciplinary research team can achieve. Funding from the Australian

Government was critical in reaching this important milestone. The Bionics

Institute and the surgeons at the Centre for Eye Research Australia

played a critical role in reaching this point.”

This early prototype consists of a retinal implant with 24 electrodes. A small lead wire extends from the back of the eye to a connector behind the ear. An external system is connected to the unit in the laboratory, allowing researchers to stimulate the implant in a controlled manner. Implant recipient Ms Dianne Ashworth has profound vision loss due to retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited condition. A passionate technology fan, Ms Ashworth was motivated to make a contribution to the bionic eye research program.

“I didn’t know what to expect, but all of a sudden, I could see a little flash…it was amazing. Every

Researchers from CERA, as part of the Bionic Vision Australia consortium, have successfully performed the first patient implant of an early bionic eye prototype; a major milestone for the bionic eye project.

Dr Penny Allen examining Dianne Ashworth

Bionic eye prototype implanted into patient

3News Summer 2012

Vision

Tania Withers has type 1 diabetes and started to lose her sight due to diabetic retinopathy at the age of 23. “I didn’t get my eyes checked until it was too late,” she says. “If we had detected the small changes earlier, it might have prevented the big changes later on.”

Unfortunately, Tania’s story is common with almost half of people with diabetes developing the eye disease, caused by damage to the blood vessels in the retina. Untreated, diabetic retinopathy will eventually lead to vision loss and blindness.

Now, thanks to a new diabetic retinopathy screening service designed by CERA’s Associate Professor Ecosse Lamoureux, funded by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council and supported by Melbourne Pathology and Diabetes Australia-Vic, people with diabetes will be offered a free screening for diabetic retinopathy to help detect early changes in their eyes and prevent vision loss later in life. The new service offers people with diabetes free diabetic retinopathy screening as part of their regular visit to a pathology centre. The screening is simple and painless, consisting of a general questionnaire, a vision test and retinal photography. This new screening model is called ‘RetPath’.

To ensure the early detection and treatment of the disease, it is recommended that people with diabetes have a comprehensive eye examination at least once every 2 years. However, research suggests that between 30 and 50 per cent of people with diabetes do not have regular eye check-ups, putting them at risk of irreversible vision loss.

“We know that people with diabetes attend pathology centres regularly to have their bloods tested so this is a perfect opportunity to screen for diabetic retinopathy and remind them about the importance of regular eye check-ups,” says RetPath Project Manager Ms Melanie Larizza.

As someone who has lost her vision to the disease, Tania believes that the proposed service could fill a long-time gap in diabetes care. “It’s a brilliant idea and has been needed for a long time,” she said.

New diabetic retinopathy screening service Fact: Through regular eye examinations and adequate diabetes management, nearly all vision loss associated with diabetic retinopathy is preventable.

4 Centre for Eye Research Australia

Mr Peter Nankivell

Dr Fatemeh Rezania

Introducing Dr Fatemeh Rezania

Dr Rezania is an Iranian doctor completing her PhD with CERA in the Glaucoma Research Unit.

CERA is pleased to announcement the appointment of Mr Peter Nankivell as Chair of the Board.

New Chair takes the reins at CERA

Mr Nankivell is the Chair of Partners at Herbert Geer Lawyers and has been involved with CERA for the past 11 years. In 2006, Mr Nankivell joined the CERA Board and took on the role as Chair of the Eye Research Australia Foundation. For the past four years, Mr Nankivell has served as Deputy Chair of the CERA Board.

Upon accepting the Chairmanship, Mr Nankivell said “CERA is the pre-eminent eye research institution in Australia and has developed an enviable international reputation – I look forward to working with the Board, key stakeholders and above all the committed researchers and staff at CERA to help continue their fantastic work.”

CERA Managing Director Professor Jonathan Crowston thanked outgoing Chair Ms Tina McMeckan for her leadership over the past nine years. “Tina has been a driving force for innovation and a source of stability during a period of enormous growth and change at CERA over the past decade. Her dedication, tireless work and passion for eye health and our research have been paramount to our success.”

What made you decide to come to CERA for your postgraduate study?

During medical school, I was involved in a number of neuroscience research projects. I found CERA

when I was looking for a postgraduate program to build my career as a clinician-scientist. CERA’s affiliation with the University of Melbourne and its location at the heart of Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, make it a hotspot to conduct bench-to-bedside research.

Why did you choose the Glaucoma Research Unit? It’s not easy to find a research unit that

conducts an extensive range of high quality research in your particular field of interest! I’m excited to be a part of a translational research unit with the opportunity to be involved in a range of studies, from molecular to clinical.

Tell me a little bit about your projectAt CERA, scientists are working hard to establish a new method for glaucoma treatment through better understanding of the disease mechanisms. We know that a low calorie diet could slow down ageing and neurodegeneration; my research looks at the underlying mechanisms of this process. Ultimately, we could target these anti-ageing pathways to slow down, or even stop the neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases, including glaucoma.

5Vision

CERA has applied adult stem cells to a specially designed contact lens to help restore vision to damaged corneas.

In people with severely damaged corneas, the current and most common treatment is corneal transplant. However, this option does not work if the outer edge of the cornea is damaged, such as in injuries caused by chemical or thermal burns.

The outer edge of the cornea contains adult stem cells needed to replenish the cornea. Like our skin, our corneal tissue is constantly regenerating.

The technique, developed by the team from CERA, along with collaborators at the Mawson Institute at the University of South Australia, uses a special contact lens to transfer corneal stem cells onto the damaged part of the cornea where they multiply and regenerate the tissue.

Importantly, the stem cells are tagged, which allows researchers to demonstrate for the first time that the transferred cells contribute to repair.

Mr Karl Brown is a PhD student working on the project, led by Dr Mark Daniell, Head of CERA’s Surgical Research Unit.

“This is an exciting development in stem cell therapy and eye research. A lot of people don’t realise the huge potential for stem cells to treat eye disease and eye injuries,” says Mr Brown.

“It’s my hope that this therapy will one day restore sight for people for whom traditional corneal transplants are not an option.”

This experiment builds on the work of University of NSW researchers who used a similar technique with an ‘off the shelf’ contact lens.

In Australia, the technique is still experimental but researchers believe international human trials look promising.

Are you interested in supporting vision regeneration research? Community support is vital to continue the exciting work of Dr Mark Daniell and his team. Please fill out the donation form at the back of Vision News to support CERA’s vision regeneration program.

Stem cell treated contact lenses to repair damaged eyes

News Summer 2012

6 Centre for Eye Research Australia

They also noted that shared care yielded substantial savings in travel time for participants. They found a significant association between travel time and participation by patients. They noted, however, that trust and relationship building between optometrists and ophthalmologists needed to be further developed.

The Medical Journal of Australia is a publication of the Australian Medical Association.

Dr Hong Zhang and Ms Jenny Taing

Some of the CERA marathon team

Optometrists and ophthalmologists working together

A study led by CERA and the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital shows patients with chronic eye diseases can be successfully managed through a shared care model.

The research was published in the June 4 issue of the Medical Journal of

Australia.

Traditionally eye disease patients are mainly managed by an ophthalmologist, but waiting times are long. Optometrists, on the other hand, are more numerous and have greater geographical coverage across rural and urban locations.

In the trial, 98 patients from the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital with stable age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma, saw optometrists who monitored the progression of their eye diseases, with referral to ophthalmologists as needed.

The researchers, led by CERA’s Head of Population Health Professor Jill Keeffe OAM, conducted semi-structured interviews with participating optometrists, ophthalmologists and patients. They found that optometrists not only met expectations, but exceeded them, appropriately detecting and referring patients with additional previously undetected conditions.

“Shared care between local optometrists and hospital-based ophthalmologists not only provides a solution to reducing hospital waiting times but also offers an opportunity for these two key groups of eye care professionals to collaborate in providing localised care for the benefit of patients,” the authors wrote.

News in brief

CERA 2012 Scientific Exchange and Awards

This annual event is an exhibition of the exciting, world-class research from the past 12 months, presented by some of CERA’s best and brightest researchers. The event also includes the CERA awards, which recognise outstanding achievement above and beyond normal expectations.

CERA Melbourne Marathon Team

A team of over 30 runners and walkers from CERA and software company TechnologyOne competed in the 2012 Melbourne Marathon festival. Running or walking 3km, 5.7km, 10km, 21.1km or 42.2km, the team raised much needed funds for eye research.

The Award winners in each category were:• Excellence in Research Award - Dr Lauren Ayton• Teaching and Training Award - Dr Amirul Islam• Community Engagement and Knowledge Transfer - CERA Run Melbourne Team• Outstanding Contribution of a Student - Dr Jefitha Karimurio• The CERA Award (for enhancing CERA as an organisation) - Mr Sanj Perera

They also noted that shared care yielded substantial savings in travel time for participants. They found a significant association between travel time and participation by patients. They noted, however, that trust and relationship building between optometrists and ophthalmologists needed to be further developed.

The Medical Journal of Australia is a publication of the Australian Medical Association.

Some of the CERA Run Melbourne TeamNews Summer 2012 Vision 7

The research was published in the June 4 issue of the Medical Journal of

Australia.

Traditionally eye disease patients are mainly managed by an ophthalmologist, but waiting times are long. Optometrists, on the other hand, are more numerous and have greater geographical coverage across rural and urban locations.

In the trial, 98 patients from the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital with stable age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma, saw optometrists who monitored the progression of their eye diseases, with referral to ophthalmologists as needed.

The researchers, led by CERA’s Head of Population Health Professor Jill Keeffe OAM, conducted semi-structured interviews with participating optometrists, ophthalmologists and patients. They found that optometrists not only met expectations, but exceeded them, appropriately detecting and referring patients with additional previously undetected conditions.

“Shared care between local optometrists and hospital-based ophthalmologists not only provides a solution to reducing hospital waiting times but also offers an opportunity for these two key groups of eye care professionals to collaborate in providing localised care for the benefit of patients,” the authors wrote.

Melbourne University Department of Ophthalmology is turning 50

Preparations are underway for the Melbourne University Department of Ophthalmology (MUDO) 50th Anniversary celebrations in 2013. The Department was established in 1963 and was the starting point for the creation of CERA in 1996. CERA and the Department will be celebrating this milestone with a public event in the second half of 2013. Stay tuned for more details as they become available...

facebook.com/CERA.eye

Join CERA on facebook!

CERA 2012 Scientific Exchange and Awards

This annual event is an exhibition of the exciting, world-class research from the past 12 months, presented by some of CERA’s best and brightest researchers. The event also includes the CERA awards, which recognise outstanding achievement above and beyond normal expectations.

CERA Melbourne Marathon Team

A team of over 30 runners and walkers from CERA and software company TechnologyOne competed in the 2012 Melbourne Marathon festival. Running or walking 3km, 5.7km, 10km, 21.1km or 42.2km, the team raised much needed funds for eye research.

The Award winners in each category were:• Excellence in Research Award - Dr Lauren Ayton• Teaching and Training Award - Dr Amirul Islam• Community Engagement and Knowledge Transfer - CERA Run Melbourne Team• Outstanding Contribution of a Student - Dr Jefitha Karimurio• The CERA Award (for enhancing CERA as an organisation) - Mr Sanj Perera

Royal Victorian Eye and Ear HospitalLevel 1, 32 Gisborne Street, East Melbourne VIC 3002Telephone: 1300 737 757 Email: cera-info@unimelb.edu.au

www.cera.org.au

Hosted by CERA’s Professor Robyn Guymer and Ms Narelle Mollet, Senior Lawyer at Moores Legal.

10.30am - 11.30am, Thursday 21 February 2013at the Centre for Eye Research AustraliaRSVP cera-rsvp@unimelb.edu.au or call 1300 737 757

Bequest InformationSession

Leaving a bequest for eye research

Peter Lemon is a long-time supporter of CERA and has decided to leave a bequest for eye research in his will. "Whilst I have every intention of staying around for quite some time yet, and despite some of the research advances made in eye research, I am certain that the need for funding in this important area will remain strong for many years to come.”

What is a bequest?A bequest is a gift made through your will. It may be a specific sum of money, a percentage of an estate or the residual of your estate.

I don’t have millions to leave behind – is it still worth me leaving a bequest?Yes! All bequests - large or small - leave a lasting legacy and contribute to our sight-saving research.

How do I make a bequest?You may wish to consult your solicitor about the preparation of a will or amendment of an existing will to give effect to your wishes.

How will my bequest be used?Subject to the wishes of the benefactor, bequests received by the Foundation are invested to preserve and grow their value. Income from investments supports our research, with the Foundation distributing a set amount to CERA annually through a competitive grant process.

Contact: Robert Armitage, Philanthropy Coordinator,roberta.armitage@unimelb.edu.au or please call 1300 737 757.

The Eye Research Australia Foundation supports the sight-saving research of the Centre for Eye Research Australia.

Your donation will support CERA’s vision regeneration program, to restore vision or prevent its loss.

Centre for Eye Research Australia

Locked Bag 8

East Melbourne VIC 8002

Credit card donations or bequest enquiriescan be made by phone or fax: Telephone: 1300 737 757

Fax: (03) 9662 3859

Online donations can be made viaour website:

www.cera.org.au/supporters

Vision regenerationis an exciting newresearch area at CERA!

www.cera.org.au