$1.6M grant aims to diagnose, monitor Parkinson's via eye's retina

09 Oct 2024, 12:00 by Andrea Lobo · Parkinson's News Today

Researchers at New York University (NYU) Langone Health were awarded a two-year, $1.6 million grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate eye changes as potential early signs and progression markers of Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s.

The grant, given under the NIH Common Fund Venture Program’s Oculomics Initiative, may be renewed for an additional two years and a total of $4.8 million. Oculomics refers to the integrative use of technology and eye imaging to identify disease biomarkers in the retina, the innermost and light-sensitive layer of the eye.

This project acknowledges the connection between the eyes and the brain, and has the potential to integrate vision exams into diagnostic and monitoring processes for neurodegenerative diseases. Early detection allows patients to start with treatment or participate in clinical trials of potential therapies at an earlier stage.

Intent is to detect disease, monitor its progression and effects of therapy

“We’re investigating important aspects of neuro-ophthalmology in this study and trying to answer three big questions,” Laura J. Balcer, MD, vice chair of NYU’s department of neurology and the project’s principal investigator, said in a press release from the health center.

“How can we distinguish eyes of those with neurological disease compared to those of disease-free individuals of similar age using visible-light OCT? How can we identify these conditions by looking at retinal layers? And how can we monitor the effects of therapies?” added Balcer, whose specialty is neuro-ophthalmology.

Visible-light optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a relatively novel eye-imaging technology that can capture detailed images of the retina to detect subtle, molecular-level changes in its structure. Its resolution is reported to be five times finer than that of current OCT technologies based on near-infrared light.

Diagnosing Parkinson’s can be challenging as disease symptoms appear gradually, sometimes taking years to become noticeable. Previous studies using eye scans have shown that changes in retinal structure could be an early sign of Parkinson’s, years before the disease is diagnosed.

The eye as an ‘easily accessible window to the brain’

The new technology will be used to map and detect retinal changes in patients referred by neurologists and clinicians at three NYU Langone sites: the NYU Fresco Institute for Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders, the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and the Pearl I. Barlow Center for Memory Evaluation and Treatment.

“The goal is to find signatures of neurological disease by looking into the eye, which is an easily accessible window to the brain,” said Vivek J. Srinivasan, PhD, a professor of ophthalmology and radiology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. “Using visible-light OCT, we are able to capture high-resolution images of the retina to potentially detect the early and progressive changes that are associated with neurological conditions.”

NIH support is “further recognition of the important role that eye and vision play … as a window into our cognitive and overall health,” said Kathryn A. Colby, MD, PhD, chair and professor at the NYU department of ophthalmology. “It’s thrilling to see this important work progress so that we might one day soon be able to slow the progression of these debilitating diseases.”