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Dr N P McLoughlin
Applications accepted all year round
Self-Funded PhD Students Only
About the Project
Glaucoma is a progressive optic neuropathy that affects many millions of people worldwide. Recent research has suggested that altered blood flow plays an important role in both the development and progression of glaucomatous optic neuropathy (GON). While there is no one standard method for monitoring blood flow within the retina, laser doppler flow and optical coherence tomography are commonly used in research laboratories and specialist clinical labs. These are quite technical procedures requiring expensive equipment and specialist knowledge and are also limited in the area that is probed in each scan.
Optical imaging is a technique for indirectly recording neural activity using light. Historically this technique has been employed to monitor the response properties of groups of cells in the neocortex of living animals. Our group in Manchester has been at the forefront of the development of this technique and its associated analysis software. Over the years we have built a number of imaging systems for recording activity from the brains of rodents and primates.
A recent intriguing report has suggested that optical imaging can be used to directly measure blood flow from the surface vessels of the human retina. This account presented data demonstrating flow impairment in the retinae of patients with a variety of eye disorders. Given current thinking that altered blood flow may significantly contribute to the development and be indicative of the prognosis of GON we have recently developed a new retinal imaging system based on a combination of an existing fundus camera and a high-resolution optical imaging camera. This project will make use of our new imaging system to monitor blood flow in retinae of diseased and normal retinae and correlate these findings with standard optometric measurements such as visual field maps.
Optical imaging is a technique for indirectly recording neural activity using light. Historically this technique has been employed to monitor the response properties of groups of cells in the neocortex of living animals. Our group in Manchester has been at the forefront of the development of this technique and its associated analysis software. Over the years we have built a number of imaging systems for recording activity from the brains of rodents and primates.
A recent intriguing report has suggested that optical imaging can be used to directly measure blood flow from the surface vessels of the human retina. This account presented data demonstrating flow impairment in the retinae of patients with a variety of eye disorders. Given current thinking that altered blood flow may significantly contribute to the development and be indicative of the prognosis of GON we have recently developed a new retinal imaging system based on a combination of an existing fundus camera and a high-resolution optical imaging camera. This project will make use of our new imaging system to monitor blood flow in retinae of diseased and normal retinae and correlate these findings with standard optometric measurements such as visual field maps.
Funding Notes
References
Schiessl I, Wang W, McLoughlin N. (2008) Independent components of the haemodynamic response in intrinsic optical imaging. Neuroimage. 39(2):634-46.
McLoughlin N, Schiessl I. (2006) Orientation selectivity in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus): the periodicity of orientation columns in V1 and V2. Neuroimage. 31(1):76-85.
Berwick J, Johnston D, Jones M, Martindale J, Redgrave P, McLoughlin N, Schiessl I, Mayhew JE. (2005) Neurovascular coupling investigated with two-dimensional optical imaging spectroscopy in rat whisker barrel cortex. Eur J Neurosci. 22(7):1655-66.
Mc Loughlin NP, Blasdel GG. (1998) Wavelength-dependent differences between optically determined functional maps from macaque striate cortex. Neuroimage. 7(4 Pt 1):326-36.
McLoughlin N, Schiessl I. (2006) Orientation selectivity in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus): the periodicity of orientation columns in V1 and V2. Neuroimage. 31(1):76-85.
Berwick J, Johnston D, Jones M, Martindale J, Redgrave P, McLoughlin N, Schiessl I, Mayhew JE. (2005) Neurovascular coupling investigated with two-dimensional optical imaging spectroscopy in rat whisker barrel cortex. Eur J Neurosci. 22(7):1655-66.
Mc Loughlin NP, Blasdel GG. (1998) Wavelength-dependent differences between optically determined functional maps from macaque striate cortex. Neuroimage. 7(4 Pt 1):326-36.
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