Christine A. Curcio, Ph.D., was recently invited to present at the 18th Annual Angiogenesis Meeting at Bascom Palmer. This year’s program, Angiogenesis, Exudation, and Degeneration 2021, was attended virtually by 948 retina specialists, general ophthalmologists, researchers, and industry representative in 52 countries. Presenters are considered global experts in the clinical practice of retina and world-class researchers in the field of retinal degenerations.
The paper Curcio presented at the meeting was the work of a recent UAB resident in the UAB Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. Lead author Amol Sura MD, chose as part of his training at UAB a research experience that resulted in a major publication. Co-first author, Ling Chen, was a fellow who returned to China in fall 2020.
“The paper is one of the big discovery papers from the Project MACULA website of AMD histopathology, which I designed to assist the interpretation of multimodal clinical imaging based on optic coherence tomography (OCT),” says Curcio. “This online resource features high-resolution histopathology and annotations of 82 AMD eyes and 59 age-matched control eyes. The paper explores the thin layers between the photoreceptors and their blood supply that lead to neovascularization, a treatable form of AMD. One of the earliest known risk factors within the eye for AMD progression, a layer called basal laminar deposit, may be now be visible by OCT. Knowing what tissue features are visible in OCT can help retina specialists make treatment decisions.” Curcio’s presentation led off a session on forthcoming high-resolution imaging technology based on OCT. More and more details previously visible under laboratory microscopes are visible in living people and can be followed over time in the clinic.