Project Overview Retina-based optogenetic therapy is a promising approach to restore vision to individuals suffering from retinal degeneration. After photoreceptor degeneration, optogenetics are targeted to remaining retinal neurons that are not intrinsically light sensitive, in order to make them light-responsive. However, due to technical reasons, the nature of light responses in the retina following optogenetic therapy differ from the light responses in healthy retina. It is unknown how altering retinal light responses via optogenetic therapy changes visual responses in visual cortex, and how this affects visual perception. Here, we will examine visual cortex responses and visual perception in mice following retina-based optogenetic therapy. These results will provide a multiscale analysis providing crucial insights into how the nature of retina-based vision restoration affects its efficacy.

Project Overview

Shreya Gandhi is studying how oxygen-deprived areas of deadly brain tumours called glioblastoma (GBM) contribute to treatment resistance to improve treatment options and outcomes for people with this type of cancer. Glioblastoma (GBM) is a fatal brain tumour that currently has no effective curative therapies. Despite surgical removal of the tumour, and therapy with radiation and chemotherapy slowing the progression of the disease, GBM tumours quickly regrow. The rapid growth of this tumour means that some areas of it receive very little oxygen and nutrients, known as hypoxic regions, rendering these cells slower to divide and more resistant to drugs and radiation. Finding ways to target these slow-growing cells in hypoxic regions could improve treatments for GBM. With funding from the Canadian Cancer Society, Shreya is researching how proteins in hypoxic regions of the tumour change in response to chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Using both preclinical models and working with patient’s GBM samples, the research team will tag hypoxic cells and compare proteins in both treated and untreated GBM cells to find out which proteins might influence response and resistance to treatments. If successful, this project could lead to identifying proteins that could be targeted to sensitize areas of GBM tumours to existing therapies, thereby improving outcomes for people with GBM.

Partners and Donors

Canadian Cancer Society