News & Research

    University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Underlying Mechanism of Therapeutic Efficacy of Fenofibrate on Diabetic Retinopathy

General Research Subject: Both Type 1 And Type 2 Diabetes

Focus: Clinical Therapeutics/New Technology\Pharmacologic Treatment of Diabetes or its Complications, Complications\Ocular, Signal Transduction (Non-Insulin Action)\Transcriptional Regulation

Type of Grant: Junior Faculty

Project Start Date: July 1, 2011

Project End Date: June 30, 2014

Research Description

Diabetic retinopathy is a common vascular complication of diabetes mellitus and a leading cause of blindness in the working age population. Retinal neovascularization and diabetic macular edema caused by retinal vascular leakage and retinal inflammation are the major pathological features responsible for vision loss in diabetic retinopathy. Although recent progress in anti-VEGF reagents has displayed encouraging outcomes, diabetic retinopathy remains a major cause of blindness in the industrialized countries. This project will identify a novel therapeutic role of PPAR activation for the diabetic retinopathy. This will not only provide new insights into the pathogenesis of diabetic complications, but also reveal a new target for drug intervention of diabetic retinopathy.

Research Profile

What area of diabetes research does your project cover? What role will this particular project play in preventing, treating and/or curing diabetes?

Diabetic retinopathy in both Type1 and Type 2 diabetes.

This project will be very useful to develop new treatment methods and intervention of ocular complication.

If a person with diabetes were to ask you how your project will help them in the future, how would you respond?

This project will develop new knowledge and new function of an oral drug in prevention the visual loss in diabetic patients, the patient will get a new approach of stop the vision by a non-torturous way.

Why is it important for you, personally, to become involved in diabetes research? What role will this award play in your research efforts?

Currently I am at an early stage of my career; this support will assist me to move forward with my career development independently.

In what direction do you see the future of diabetes research going?

The complications of diabetes can be prevented and stopped by a safe, easy and non-tortured way.