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Director: Bela Anand-Apte, Ph.D., M.B.B.S.
Department of Ophthalmic Research
Cole Eye Institute
9500 Euclid Avenue, i32
Office telephone: 216/ 445-9739
Fax: 216/ 445-3670
Email: anandab@ccf.org
Front Row: Quteba
Ebrahem, M.D., Bela Anand-Apte, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., and Nina Moore, Ph.D.
Back Row: Phil Klenotic, Ph.D., and Jian Hua Qi, Ph.D.
Goals and
projects of Anand-Apte Lab:
Ocular Neovascularization Regulated by Extracellular Matrix
The clinical significance of ocular
angiogenesis is enormous, due to the fact that in the Western hemisphere,
retinal neovascularization resulting from diabetic retinopathy is the most
common cause of new blindness in young patients. Choroidal neovascularization
(CNV) is the chief cause of severe and irreversible loss of vision in elderly
patients.
Much progress has been made in the
field of angiogenesis research in recent years, fueled by the hypothesis that
inhibition of angiogenesis would be a useful strategy to treat cancers.
However, there are a number of other diseases in which pathologic angiogenesis
plays a role. Retinal neovascularization involves the development of sprouts
from retinal vessels, which usually penetrates the inner limiting membrane
(ILM) and grows into the vitreous. Retinal neovascularization is observed in
ischaemic retinopathies such as diabetic retinopathy, retinopathy of
prematurity, central vein occlusion and branch retinal vein occlusion.
Choroidal neovascularization (CNV) refers to the formation of new vessels in
the subretinal or sub RPE space, which arises from the choriocapillaris. CNV is
seen in ocular diseases such as AMD, presumed ocular histoplasmosis, high
myopia and angioid streaks.
The broad, long-term goal of the
laboratory is to gain an understanding of the mechanism(s) by which alterations
in matrix integrity may regulate ocular neovascularization. We are continuing
our studies on the role of Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases-3 in the
regulation of choroidal neovascularization and are exploring its potential as a
therapeutic agent. We have also identified a novel ADAM-TS like molecule which
is expressed in the retina and may play a role in angiogenesis. We are attempting
to identify other novel endogenous inducers and inhibitors of angiogenesis to
understand the basic biology of neovascularization with a final goal of
designing therapeutic approaches to combat this process in disease states.
Our ultimate goal is the prevention
and/or reversal of this process in an effort to control the devastating
consequences of ocular neovascularization.
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