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Visiting Lecturers

Lecture Series Speakers 2021


Nicholas Marsh-Armstrong, PhD

"Live imaging the optic nerve to understand axon degeneration and regeneration."

November 11, 2021

Nicholas Marsh-Armstrong, PhD

University of California, Davis


Bela Anand-Apte, MD, PHD

"New Insights into Diabetic Retinopathy and Blood Retinal Barrier Disruption."

October 13, 2021

Bela Anand-Apte, MD, PHD

Cleveland Clinic


Maria B. Grant, MD, FARVO

"Inside out: Relationships between the gut microbiome, metabolism and diabetic retinopathy."

September 22, 2021

Maria B. Grant, MD, FARVO

University of Alabama at Birmingham


Joshua L. Dunaief, MD, PhD

"Pumping iron: the role of iron induced oxidative stress, ferroptosis, and neuroinflammation in retinal disease."

July 7, 2021

Joshua L. Dunaief, MD, PhD

University of Pennsylvania


Christine A. Curcio, PhD

"New concepts of AMD pathophysiology and retinal neuroscience arising from histologically validated clinical imaging"

June 9, 2021

Christine A. Curcio, PhD

University of Alabama at Birmingham


Malia Edwards, PhD

"Glial exodus from the retina in AMD."

May 12, 2021

Malia Edwards, PhD

Johns Hopkins Medicine


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"Microglia - a key regulator of neurovascular spatial patterning."

April 14, 2021

Gopalan Gnanaguru, PhD

Harvard Medical School 


Eric Ng, PhD

"Neurovascular Spatial Patterning"

March 10, 2021

Eric Ng, PhD

Harvard Medical School


Eric A. Moulton, OD, PhD

"fMRI of Pain-Related Processing in the trigeminal System and Photophobia."

February 10, 2021

Eric A. Moulton, OD, PhD

Boston Children's Hospital 

Harvard Medical School Teaching Hospital 

Lecture Series Speakers 2020


Marie Burns, PhD

Postponed

April 1, 2020

Marie Burns, PhD

UC Davis



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"Novel Approaches for Inducing Regeneration of the Injured Retina"

March 11, 2020

Abigail S. Hackam, PhD

University of Miami


Lecture Series Speakers 2019


Dritan Agalliu, PhD

"Mechanisms of Blood-Brain Barrier Development, Breakdown, and Repair in the CNS"

March 15, 2019

Dritan Agalliu, PhD

Columbia University



Wallace B. Thoreson, PhD

"Retinal Exosomes in Development and Disease"

June 12, 2019

Stephen M. Redenti, PhD

Lehman College, CUNY



Rachel Kutchey, MD, PhD

"Fibrillinopathy and Elastosis in Glaucoma"

July 17, 2019

Rachel Kuchtey, MD, PhD

Vanderbilt University



Louis Pasquale, PhD

"Insights gained from advances in Glaucoma"

September 9, 2019

Louis R. Pasquale, MD, FARVO

Mount Sinai



Kirill Martemyanov, PhD

"Molecular organization of the first visual synapse"

September 20, 2019

Kirill Martemyanov, PhD

Scripps Research Institute



Daniel Stamer, PhD

"Modifying Outflow: The Future of Glaucoma Therapies"

November 8, 2019

W. Daniel Stamer, PhD FARVO

Duke University



Michel Cayouette, PhD

"Building and Rebuilding the Retina"

November 20, 2019

Michel Cayouette, PhD

McGill University



Eric Pierce, MD, PhD

"Genetic Causes of and Treatments for Inherited Retinal Degenerations"

December 11, 2019

Eric Pierce, MD, PhD

Harvard University



Kirill Martemyanov, PhD

"Illuminating Visual Circuits"

December 18, 2019

Tiffany M. Schmidt, PhD

Northwestern University


Lecture Series Speakers 2018


Dasheng Ren, PhD

"Sleep number of bacteria: Effects of material stiffness on bacterial attachment and biofilm formation"

February 15, 2018

Dasheng Ren, PhD

Syracuse University



Wallace B. Thoreson, PhD

"Childhood glaucoma genetics"

April 18, 2018

Terri Young, MD PhD, Chair

University of Wisconsin



Gareth Howell, PhD

"Preserving vascular health to prevent neurodegeneration"

June 8, 2018

Gareth Howell, PhD

The Jackson Laboratory



Deborah Ferrington, PhD

"Matching therapy to disease mechanism: Targeting the mitochondria to treat age-related macular degeneration"

July 11, 2018

Deborah Ferrington, PhD

University of Minnesota



Sheila Baker, PhD

"Held up at the starting line: Regulating the trafficking of HCN1 channels"

October 10, 2018

Sheila A. Baker, PhD

University of Iowa



Sabine Fuhrmann, PhD

"Regulation of patterning and morphogenesis of the developing eye"

December 10, 2018

Sabine Fuhrmann, PhD

Vanderbilt University


Lecture Series Speakers 2017


David Krizaj, PhD

"Sensory integration in retinal ganglion cells: what does the mouse retina tell the mouse brain?"

January 11, 2017

David Krizaj, PhD

University of Utah



Wallace B. Thoreson, PhD

"Release at ribbon synapses of rods and cones in the vertebrate retina"

February 8, 2017

Wallace B. Thoreson, PhD

University of Nebraska



Mark Emerson, PhD

"Illuminating the developmental origins of neuronal diversity through cis-regulatory analysis"

March 8, 2017

Mark Emerson, PhD

City College of New York



Andrew Huberman, PhD

"Circuit mechanisms of visual perception"

April 6, 2017

Andrew D. Huberman, PhD

Stanford University



Muna Naash, PhD

"Nanoparticle-based gene therapy for ocular disease"

May 17, 2017

Muna Naash, PhD

University of Houston



Muayyad R. Al-Ubaidi, PhD

"Retbindin's role in retinal homeostasis"

May 18, 2017

Muayyad R. Al-Ubaidi, PhD

University of Houston



Stephen Tsang, MD, PhD

"Of mice and men: Targeting pathways in precision medicine"

June 14, 2017

Stephen H. Tsang, MD, PhD

Columbia University



Krzysztof Palczewski, PhD

"Chemistry of vision and inherited retinal diseases"

September 13, 2017

Krzysztof Palczewski, PhD

UC Irvine



Sylvain Chemtob, MD, PhD

"Retinopathy of prematurity: Associated unsuspected choroidopathy"

September 18, 2017

Sylvain Chemtob, MD, PhD

Chu Sainte-Justine



Scott Cousins, MD

"Rationale for mitochondrial dysfunction in dry AMD: Prospects for mitochondria-targeted therapies"

October 11, 2017

Scott W. Cousins, MD

Duke University



Maribel Vasquez, ScD

"Microfluidics for the visual system"

December 13, 2017

Maribel Vazquez, ScD

Rutgers University


Lecture Series Speakers 2016


Ben G. Szaro, PhD

"ER chaperones and the UPR in the retina and retinal disease"

February 10, 2016

Sarah X. Zhang, MD

University at Buffalo



Lin Gan, PhD

"Molecular mechanisms for the development of retinal ganglion cells"

March 9, 2016

Lin Gan, PhD

University of Rochester



Deborah L. Stenkamp, PhD

"Seeing double: Regulation of tandemly-duplicated opsins in the zebrafish"

April 13, 2016

Deborah L. Stenkamp, PhD

University of Idaho



Ronald G. Gregg, PhD

"Architecture and signaling at the first retinal synapse"

May 11, 2016

Ronald G. Gregg, PhD

University of Louisville



Amy Kiernan, PhD

"Notch signaling during sensory cell development in the inner ear"

May 20, 2016

Amy Kiernan, PhD

University of Rochester



Audrey M. Bernstein, PhD

"The cell biology of pathological protein accumulation in corneal scarring and glaucoma"

June 8, 2016

Audrey M. Bernstein, PhD

SUNY Upstate Medical University



Lawrence Rizzolo, PhD, FARVO

"Neurospheres to planar sheets: Engineering a co-culture of retinal progenitors and RPE"

June 24, 2016

Lawrence Rizzolo, PhD, FARVO

Yale School of Medicine



Silvia C. Finnemann, PhD

"Timing is everything: molecular mechanisms of photoreceptor outer segment renewal"

September 14, 2016

Silvia C. Finnemann, PhD

Fordham University



Xiangyun Wei, PhD

"Planar cell polarity in retinal development"

October 12, 2016

Xiangyun Wei, PhD

University of Pittsburgh



Larry I. Benowitz, PhD

"Optic nerve regeneration: Oncomodulin, peten, zinc, and other actors"

October 21, 2016

Larry I. Benowitz, PhD

Boston Childrens Hospital



Jeffrey M. Gross, PhD

"Epigenetic regulation of retinal development"

December 14, 2016

Jeffrey M. Gross, PhD

University of Pittsburgh


Lecture Series Speakers 2015



Ben G. Szaro, PhD

"Decoding the intrinsic molecular mechanisms underlying successful optic axon regeneration"

December 9, 2015

Ben G. Szaro, PhD

Albany



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"Synaptic mechanisms for visual computation in retinal circuitry"

November 11, 2015

Jonathan Demb, PhD

Yale University
Ophthalmology and Visual Science



Nadean Brown, PhD

"Roles for the optic nerve head in compartmentalizing the embryonic mouse eye"

October 21, 2015

Nadean Brown, PhD

UC Davis



Maureen McCall

"Congenital stationary night blindness: Three simple mutants and their complex outcomes"

September 9, 2015

Maureen McCall, PhD

University of Louisville
Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences



Susan B. Udin

"NMDA receptors rule: from the tectum to the shin"

June 10, 2015

Susan B. Udin PhD

Department of Physiology and Biophysics
Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences



Timothy Kraft

"Light induced hypersensitivity in mice and men, a nights' tale"

May 13, 2015

Timothy Kraft, PhD

School of Optometry
University of Alabama at Birmingham


DesplanRobert B. Barlow Twelfth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Claude Desplan, PhD

New York University
Director, Center for Developmental Genetics

Lecture Title:  Processing of Color Information in Drosophila
Lecture Date:  October 19, 2012


WuRobert B. Barlow Eleventh Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Samuel Miao-Sin Wu, PhD

Cullen Eye Institute
Baylor College of Medicine

Lecture Title:  Rod and Cone Signaling Pathways in Normal, Mutant and Diseased Retinas
Lecture Date:  October 17, 2011


HagoRobert B. Barlow Tenth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Gregory S. Hageman, PhD

The University of Utah School of Medicine
John A. Moran Eye Center
Director, John A. Moran Center for Translational Research
John A. Moran Presidential Professor of Ophthalmology

Lecture Title:  A New Era in Our Understanding of Age-related Macular Degeneration
Lecture Held:  October 7, 2010


MoldayNinth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Robert S. Molday, PhD

The University of British Columbia
Canada Research Chair in Vision and Macular Degeneration
Fellow, Royal Society of Canada
Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
Director, Centre for Macular Research

Lecture Title: Pathogenic Mechanisms and Gene Therapy for Inherited Retinal Degenerative Diseases
Lecture Held: March 8, 2008


CepkoEighth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Constance L. Cepko, PhD

Harvard Medical School
Department of Genetics and
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Lecture Title: Determination of Retinal Cell Fates
Lecture Held: October 19, 2007


DryjaSeventh Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Thaddeus P. Dryja, MD

Director, Cogan Eye Pathology Laboratory
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary

Lecture Title: Hereditary Photoreceptor Diseases
Lecture Held: Friday, March 10, 2006


HubelSixth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

David H. Hubel, MD, PhD

1981 Winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology
Research Professor of Neurobiology
Harvard University

Lecture Title: Vision and Brain: Possible Physiological Basis for Some Common Illusions
Lecture held: Friday, April 1, 2005


Fifth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Paul A. Sieving, MD, PhD

Director of the National Eye Institute
Bethesda, Maryland

Lecture Title: Night Blindness and the State of Rod Photo Receptors in Retinitis Pigmentosa
Lecture held: Tuesday, March 2, 2004


Fourth Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Debora B. Farber, PhD, DPhhc

Professor of Ophthalmology
Associate Director of the Jules Stein Eye Institute, and Co-Chief of the Vision Science Division

Lecture Title: From Mouse to Man: Characterization and Regulation of Genes Causing Retinal Degeneration
Lecture held: Tuesday, April 16, 2002


Third Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Jeremy H. Nathans, MD, PhD

Professor of Molecular Biology & Genetics
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Lecture Title: Molecular Biology of Visual Pigments
Lecture held: Monday, March 26, 2001


Second Distinguished Lecture in Vision

John E. Dowling, PhD

Harvard College Professor and
Maria Moors Cabot Professor of Natural Science
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology
Harvard University

Lecture Title: Searching for Visual System Mutations in Zebrafish
Lecture held: Friday, March 3, 2000


WieselFirst Distinguished Lecture in Vision

Torsten N. Wiesel, MD, FRS

1981 Nobel Laureate, Torsten N. Wiesel, MD, FRS visited Syracuse on March 4, 1999. Dr. Wiesel is President Emeritus and Director of the Shelby White and Leon Levy Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior at Rockefeller University. He is also an Advisory Board Member for the University Center for Vision Research.

Robert B. Barlow, Ph.D., of University Center for Vision Research hosted Dr. Wiesel's lecture entitled, "Brain Mechanisms of Vision." Dr. Barlow described Dr. Wiesel as a "hero" and "a most outstanding role model for young scientists."

After his lecture, which was standing room only in the Alumni Auditorium of Weiskotten Hall, Dr. Wiesel was guest of honor at an exclusive lunch. Exceptional neuroscience graduate students, and program candidates lucky enough to be touring the S.U.N.Y. Upstate Medical University's campus that day, were invited to attend. The group enjoyed this unique opportunity to talk openly with a renowned researcher. One student said of Dr. Wiesel, "Not only is he a great scientist, he's such a nice person."

Dr. Wiesel rounded out his visit with an informal meeting with the vision scientists of University Center for Vision Research.

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