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Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive degenerative disease that affects the macula of elderly people (age 65 year and older), resulting in irreversible loss of vision. The disease is characterized by the accumulation of proteaneous deposits called drusen occurring between the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and the Bruch’s membrane. There are both dry (atrophic) and wet form (accompanied by choroidal neovascularization) of AMD. While the genetics factors implicated in the disease are becoming clear, the pathophysiology remains difficult to understand. Specifically, the connection between predisposing polymorphisms, environmental factors and the formation of the characteristic drusen are not understood.
Our research focuses on RPE secreted proteins and their role in drusen formation and choroidal neovascularization. Through collaboration with a clinical expert in AMD at the NEI (Karl Csaky, MD) we have established several RPE cell cultures derived from AMD donors (diagnosed by histological examinations of the macula and genotyped for the predisposing SNPs) and from age matched control donors. Our goal is to define the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in AMD pathology. We are using Stable Isotope Labeling by Amino Acid (SILAC) strategy in combination with mass spectrometry and bioinformatics for accurate and comprehensive profiling of these RPE secreted proteins.
Our laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art mass spectrometers (ABI 4700 MALDI TOF-TOF and a Thermo-Finnigan ESI-LTQ coupled to and nano-LC system) for high throughput comparative proteomics and structural analysis.
Related Links
American Macular Degeneration Foundation
www.macular.org
National Eye Institute
www.nei.nih.gov
Medline
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Contact Information:
Yetrib Hathout, PhD
Children’s Research Institute
Research Center for Genetic Medicine
Children's National Medical Center
111 Michigan Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20010
202-476-3136
yhathout@cnmcresearch.org
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