What the facility does
Research molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for retinal degenerative diseases, including macular degeneration, that constitute a major cause of blindness.
Areas of expertise
The main focus of the Centre for Macular Research is to elucidate molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for retinal degenerative diseases, including macular degeneration, that constitute a major cause of blindness in Canada and the world population. The information derived from these studies is being used to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to slow or eliminate photoreceptor degeneration and improve visual outcome. New imaging methods are also being developed to better evaluate the disease progression and therapeutic interventions.
Research services
- Optical coherence tomography
- Electroretinography
- Confocal scanning microscopy
- Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy
Sectors of application
- Education
- Life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment
Specialized labs and equipment
| Equipment | Function |
|---|---|
| Confocal scanning microscope | Visualize retinal cell structure |
| Optical coherence tomography equipment | Non-invasive method to analyze retinal structure |
| Electroretinography equipment | Evaluate the photoresponse |
| HPLC system and related accessories | Identify retinal compounds |
| Optokinetics instrumentation | Evaluate visual behaviour in animal models for retinal diseases and subjected to therapeutic intervention |
| Tissue culture facilities | Grow normal, disease and stem cells for retinal research |