News — Rockville, Md.—Ngozi Chidi-Egboka, OD, MPH, PhD (University of Sydney, Australia) and Mary Anne Garner, PhD (University of Alabama at Birmingham) have been named the 2025 recipients of the ARVO Foundation Research Catalyst Awards. Established in 2023, the $30,000 awards support an initial project for a superb research idea by an investigator beginning their career or returning to the workforce after an extended leave.
Chidi-Egboka is a postdoctoral research associate and clinical trial coordinator/sub-investigator for the Corneal Research Group at Save Sight Institute, The University of Sydney. She is studying how anti-cancer drugs for breast cancer affect the eyes.
The standard of care for post-menopausal women with oestrogen receptor-positive breast cancer is aromatase inhibitors therapy. Aromatase inhibitors have been associated with dry eye disease symptoms and signs, with previous studies demonstrating a dry eye disease prevalence of up to 46%. Chidi-Egbocka notes that as dry eye has a significant burden on patient quality of life, the outcome of this study could potentially impact treatment compliance and indirectly affect recurrence rates. "This project will have an immediate impact on clinical care as well as advancing knowledge. Our research group will also be the first to evaluate the use of a simple validated dry eye screening tool for oncologists; to allow oncologists to initiate appropriate therapy or provide timely referral for ophthalmic care for patients on aromatase inhibitors suffering dry eye symptoms.”
Chidi-Egboka says the award and her project will have direct relevance to further her research career. “I will then be able to establish guidelines for initiating treatment in the oncology clinic and algorithms for timely referral to ophthalmologists for multidisciplinary care in severe cases. Early identification and treatment of this common problem will improve quality of life, and compliance with therapy.”
Garner, an assistant professor in the Department of Neurobiology at University of Alabama at Birmingham, is an expert in molecular neurodegeneration. She is investigating whether an increase in available energy can protect rod photoreceptors in a mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa — a genetic eye disease caused by the degeneration of rod photoreceptors, which can lead to vision loss. The mice will be treated with Terazosin, an FDA-approved drug shown to increase the activity of the enzyme, phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1). PGK1 is an ATP (energy)-producing enzyme in the cell, and both Terazosin and elevated PGK1 activity have been shown to be neuroprotective in diseases such as Parkinson’s and stroke. “We hypothesize that increasing the activity of PGK1 will provide rod photoreceptors with the energy required to mitigate inflammation,” says Garner.
She adds that she is deeply honored to be a recipient of an ARVO Foundation Research Catalyst Award as she will be able to produce the primary results needed to continue carving a path forward for her research. "This award is crucial to my success as I establish my own lab and research program. It not only provides the necessary financial support for a project I am excited to complete, but it also validates my efforts during my transition back to full time academic research." Garner hopes to be able to pay this opportunity forward to support and mentor others who may also be on unconventional paths in science. "I am encouraged by and immensely grateful for this opportunity, and I am excited about the path ahead as I strive to make meaningful contributions to the field of retinal degeneration."
For more information about the ARVO Foundation Research Catalyst Awards, visit ARVO’s website
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The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) is the largest eye and vision research organization in the world. Members include approximately 10,000 eye and vision researchers from over 75 countries. ARVO advances research worldwide into understanding the visual system and preventing, treating and curing its disorders. Learn more at ARVO.org.
Established in 2001, the ARVO Foundation for Eye Research raises funds through partnerships, grants and sponsorships to support ARVO’s world-class education and career development resources for eye and vision researchers of all stages of career and education. Learn more at ARVOFoundation.org.
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