Calendar

Current Events

3.30

Creating a Sustainable Society

3.16

Sustainable Energy Engineering

2.28

National Science Foundation Day

2.17

Reformulation-Based Approaches to Query Optimization

2.15

FREEDM Day

2.10

WEST: Cloning Data Cache Behavior using Stochastic Traces

2.09

Computer Vision and Image Analysis in the Study of Art

2.08

GSA Social

2.03

Skewed functional processes and their applications

The Complex Genetics of Myopia

Myopia (nearsightedness) is a potentially blinding eye condition, and it is the most common human eye disorder. Genetic studies of myopia are limited, and historically have been small sample-size reports. Molecular genetic analyses of myopia in general have not been fully explored, and findings to date suggest a difference in genetic influences in moderate myopia versus that of high myopia. We seek to gain a greater understanding of the molecular genetic basis of
myopia. State-of-the-art molecular genetic and statistical tools have been used to correlate genotypic with clinical information. We hypothesize that the identification of myopia susceptibility genes will not only provide insight into the molecular basis of this significant eye disorder, but will also identify pathways that are involved in eye growth and development. This effort may lead to effective therapies to treat or potentially prevent this common eye condition.

Biography

Dr. Young is a graduate of Harvard Medical School, did her internship at Harvard’s Boston Children’s Hospital, ophthalmology internship at University of Illinois, Chicago Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary and Pediatric Ophthalmology fellowship at University of Pennsylvania at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is a Professor of Ophthalmology and Pediatrics who specializes in the medical and surgical management of pediatric eye disorders and adult/childhood strabismus (eye misalignment). She has developed a program with clinical geneticists to provide comprehensive care and evaluation of patients with genetic disorders with accompanying eye issues. Young has received Honor Awards from the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Association of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus. She is a Fellow of the prestigious American Ophthalmological Society, and the College of Philadelphia Physicians.