International Research Agenda IRAP / Foundation for Polish Science

Project Leader: prof. Maciej Wojtkowski

The research conducted as part of this project aimed to provide ophthalmologists with a new method capable of simultaneously detecting and comparing structural and objective functional information about the state of the retina during the normal ageing process and disease. The research activities included two overarching scientific objectives focusing on the introduction of two new retinal imaging technologies, which were pursued by all 5 research groups at ICTER.

OBJECTIVE 1: Two Photon Excited Fluorescence imaging for human eye
During ICTER implementation, we completed some of the tasks of our research agenda and brought all the others to an advanced state of execution. We have presented, for the first time, TPEF images in the living human eye, measured in two healthy volunteers. Using a multiplicity of imaging, we demonstrate the absence of the effects of multiple exposures to a femtosecond (fs) laser beam during TPEF imaging on healthy volunteers. We published the results of this research in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

OBJECTIVE 2: Flicker Based optoretinography
We introduced a new method of optoretinography based on flicker excitation (f-ORG) and observation of nanometer thickness changes in photoreceptors. To realize this, we also introduced a new imaging technique called STOC-T. We have given proof-of-concept that this technique works in humans, and we are optimizing its application to mice. This allows the identification of biomarkers and the understanding of the physiological mechanism responsible for the signals we observe. This work required the collective effort of all the research groups in ICTER.

Unlike standard research projects focusing on technology development, which explore new technological discoveries in themselves, in our project we addressed specific ophthalmic needs using a strong background of biochemical, biological and genomic knowledge. Only by combining all these elements are we able to propose reliable biomarkers that are key in providing the essential information needed to determine disease prognosis, predict response to therapies, adverse events and drug interactions, and establish baseline risk.

Total project funding 2019-2023: PLN 34,999,400