Ophthalmology & Ocular Biology
Soohyun Kim, DVM, PhD
Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences
I am a veterinary ophthalmologist and clinician-scientist at the Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California – Davis. I am particularly interested in the advanced ocular imaging of anterior and posterior segments.
Potential projects for STAR students include:
Investigating the Ultrastructure of the Corneal Stroma-Descemet's Membrane Interface and Optimizing Air-Injection Techniques for Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty in Veterinary Species. There are insufficient studies on the ultrastructure of the interface between corneal stroma and Descemet's membrane (DM), which need to be separated by air injection. We will define the ultrastructure of this interface using ex vivo corneas from various species for veterinary patients, as well as to find the best animal model for human patients. We will then optimize the DALK technique by titrating the amount of air injected and the speed of injection using live imaging techniques such as optical coherence tomography (OCT). This study will contribute to a better understanding and improvement of skills for the DALK technique and could be a milestone for further clinical studies in veterinary and human patients.
Contact information: shvkim@ucdavis.edu
Brian Leonard
Department of Surgical & Radiological Sciences
(see also: Immunology/Infectious Disease, Translational Research)
My research focuses on ocular surface health and immunity. I am particularly interested in the factors that promote tear film stability and the pathologies that lead to destabilization and ocular surface disease. Additionally, I am interested in the innate immune system of the ocular surface and the potential for modulating host responses to limit microbial keratitis.
Active projects in the lab include ocular surface disease, dry eye disease, ocular surface immunity, corneal immunology and corneal microbiology.
I can be reached at bcleonard@ucdavis.edu for questions.
Bianca Da Costa Martins, DVM, MS, PhD, DACVO, DCLOVE (Hon)
VM: Surgical & Radiological Sciences
Dr. Bianca Martins is a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist and clinician-scientist at the Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences at the School of Veterinary Medicine at University of California – Davis. Her overall focus are include ocular surface reconstruction with an emphasis on the use of biological and synthetic grafts. My research program has three focus area: 1) corneal banking for corneal transplantation; 2) the use of amniotic membrane for ocular surface reconstruction; 3) equine ocular surface health.
Contact information: bcmartins@ucdavis.edu
Sara Thomasy, DVM, PhD, DACVO
Corneal endothelial disease, large animal models of ocular disease, corneal wound healing, glaucoma, ocular pharmacology & toxiciology
VM: Surgical & Radiological Sciences
Dr. Sara Thomasy is a veterinary ophthalmologist and clinician-scientist with strong interests in advanced ocular imaging, large animal models of ocular diseae, corneal wound healing and glaucoma. She is co-PI with Dr. Brian Leonard of the Comparative Ophthalmology Vision Sciences Laboratory (COVSL), a large (approx 15 personnel) highly collaborative interdisciplinary laboratory which conducts research at the intersection of mechanobiology, translational medicine and clinical need. Their laboratories are fully equipped for cell and molecular biology studies as well as in vivo studies. The lab has a fully equipped suite for advanced ocular imaging of the anterior and posterior segment.
We have a wide variety of in vitro and in vivo projects on ocular disease models in mice, dogs and nonhuman primates. Students would learn how to do ocular exams and diagnostic testing as well as image analysis.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Comparative Ophthalmology & Vision Sciences Lab: Tupper Hall, room 1220; smthomasy@ucdavis.edu.
Glenn Yiu, MD, PhD
Med: Ophthalmology & Vision Science
(See also: Translational Research, Non-Human Primate Medicine)
Dr. Yiu is a clinician-scientist and vitreoretinal surgeon at the UC Davis Medical Center who uses advanced ocular imaging technologies to study diseases of the eye. Examples include optical coherence tomography (OCT), which allows visualization of retinal pathology in vivo with near-histological details. OCT imaging allows physicians to identify age-related or pathologic changes in the structure of the retina or vasculature, particularly in diseases such as age-related macular degeneration in humans, the leading cause of blindness in the elderly.
Through collaborations with veterinary ophthalmologist Dr. Sara Thomasy, they are now using OCT technology to study retinal anatomy in rhesus macaques at the California National Primate Research Center.
STAR students will participate in a project related to retinal imaging in rhesus macaque models of age-related macular degeneration. This study will involve learning to custom ocular imaging analysis, histology, and immunohistochemistry, to understand the pathophysiology of the leading cause of blindness in the elderly using this nonhuman primate model.
More details about Dr. Yiu are available at: https://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/eyecenter/yiulab/index.html
Contact Dr. Yiu: gyiu@ucdavis.edu