Centre for Ophthalmology Institute for Ophthalmic Research · Institute for Ophthalmic Research...
Transcript of Centre for Ophthalmology Institute for Ophthalmic Research · Institute for Ophthalmic Research...
Centre for Ophthalmology
Institute for Ophthalmic Research
Eberhard Karls University of TuebingenCentre for OphthalmologyInstitute for Ophthalmic ResearchSchleichstr. 12–1672076 TuebingenGermany
www.uak.medizin.uni-tuebingen.de
Editor: A. WernerCover: A. Werner Layout: A. Werner & R. Hofer Printed by Maier Press, Rottenburg 2008 Centre for Ophthalmology, Institute for Ophthalmic Research
Institu
te for O
ph
thalm
ic Research
Cen
tre for O
ph
thalm
olo
gy
Co
nten
t
Overview
.................................................................................................................................5
Neu
rob
iolo
gy o
f the Eye ........................................................................................................6
Experim
ental O
ph
thalm
olo
gy ...............................................................................................7
Research
Gro
up
s associated
to Exp
erimen
tal Op
hth
almo
log
y ...........................................8
Mo
lecular G
enetics o
f Senso
ry Systems ..............................................................................11
Ocu
lar Neu
rod
egen
eration
.................................................................................................12
Section
for Exp
erimen
tal Vitreo
retinal Su
rgery .................................................................13
Experim
ental O
ph
thalm
ic Surg
ery ......................................................................................14
Research
Gro
up
Visu
al Pathw
ay: Neu
ro-O
ph
thalm
olo
gy &
Perimetry .............................15
Clin
ic for H
ereditary R
etinal D
egen
eration
........................................................................16
Clin
ical Fun
ction
Testing
......................................................................................................17
Low
Visio
n C
linic an
d R
esearch Lab
....................................................................................18
Pup
il Gro
up
...........................................................................................................................19
Research
Man
agem
ent ........................................................................................................20
Edu
cation
at the In
stitute ....................................................................................................21
Co
ntact ..................................................................................................................................22
Ho
w to
Find
Us .....................................................................................................................23
5
Overview
Th
e Institu
te for Oph
thalm
ic Research
is headed by P
rof. Dr. m
ed. E
berhart Z
renn
er and cooperates closely w
ith th
e Un
iversity Eye
Hospital (h
ead: Prof. D
r. med. K
arl Ulrich
Bartz-Sch
midt) u
nder
the com
mon
roof of the C
entre for O
phth
almology. T
he In
stitute,
foun
ded in 2007, aim
s at un
covering th
e causes for degen
erative, in
flam
matory, n
eoplastic, and vascu
lar diseases of the eye an
d the
visual pathw
ays at molecu
lar, cellular an
d systemic level.
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Karl U
lrich Bartz-Schmidt,
Director of the Eye H
ospital
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Eberhart Zrenner,
Director of the Institute
for Ophthalm
ic Research
Th
e U
niversity
Eye
Hospital
provides health
care in all areas
of oph
thalm
ology at
high
est qu
ality level
with
m
ore th
an
60.000 consu
ltations of patien
ts an
d more th
an 13.000 su
rgeries an
nu
ally. In close cooperation
w
ith th
e Institu
te, it develops n
ovel th
erapeutic
approaches
for diseases of the eye.
Th
e In
stitute
hou
ses several
teams of scien
tists wh
o work
together to develop an
d evalu-
ate con
cepts for
therapy
and
treatmen
t and optim
ise clini-
cal an
d research
diagn
ostics. T
hus, th
e Institu
te provides an
efficien
t in
frastructu
re w
hich
su
pports research an
d educa-
tion an
d mediates con
tacts to oth
er research in
stitution
s and
to indu
stry.
6
Ou
r goal is to un
cover the biological m
echan
isms of m
y-opia developm
ent an
d to develop strategies to inh
ibit its progression
. Developm
ent of n
ew optical tech
niqu
es to m
easure eye grow
th an
d optical properties of eyes in an
i-m
al models for m
yopia and in
hum
ans.
Meth
ods: Measu
remen
t of refractive state and accom
-m
odation
with
h
igh
temporal
resolution
, bin
ocularly
and in
cludin
g pupillography an
d gaze tracking: in
frared ph
otoretinoscopy;
optical m
easurem
ents
in
eyes: n
ew
phacom
etry and fast au
tomated periph
eral photorefrac-
tion; m
easurem
ent of ocu
lar dimen
sions: low
coheren
ce in
terferometry
and
A-scan
u
ltrasonography;
measu
re-m
ent of gen
e expression in
different fu
ndal layers: realtim
e R
T-P
CR
; screenin
g for candidate gen
es for myopia w
ith
mou
se and ch
icken m
icroarrays; description of activity
and gen
e expression in
individu
al cells: quan
titative im-
mu
noh
istochem
istry and laser m
icrodissection w
ith R
T
PC
R; testin
g of visual fu
nction
in tran
sgenic an
d wildtyp
e m
ice: autom
ated optomotor experim
ents an
d pupillogra-
phy; recording from
retinal gan
glion cells in
vitro: ME
A;
measu
remen
ts of
contrast
adaptation
due
to defocu
s: psych
ophysical measu
remen
t of supra-th
reshold con
trast sen
sitivity.
Recen
t major resu
lts of our research
: Dem
onstration
th
at the retin
a can detect am
oun
t and sign
of defocus an
d u
se this in
formation
to control th
e axial growth
rate of the
eye. Identifi
cation of th
e glucagon
amacrin
e cells as a ma-
jor carrier of this in
formation
and dem
onstration
that glu
-cagon
can act as an
axial eye growth
inh
ibitor in th
e chick-
en. A
nalysis of th
e central role of th
e transcription
factor E
gr1 as an in
itial trigger in th
e signallin
g cascade for visual
eye growth
control in
chicken
s and m
ice. Description
of m
echan
isms of atropin
e and oth
er mu
scarinic an
tagonists
durin
g the in
hibition
of myopia in
anim
al models. R
ole of in
sulin
durin
g myopia developm
ent. D
emon
stration of
the im
portance of periph
eral refractive errors for the de-
velopmen
t of myopia in
the cen
tral visual fi
eld in hu
man
s an
d chicken
s.
Brand C, Schaeffel F, Feldkaemper M
P. A microarray analysis of retinal transcripts that are
controlled by image contrast in m
ice. Mol Vis, 2007; 13: 920-32
Schaeffel F, Mathis U, Bruggem
ann G. Noncycloplegic photorefractive screening in pre-school
children with the „Pow
erRefractor“ in a pediatric practice. Optom
Vis Sci, 2007; 84(7): 630-9
Schippert R, Burkhardt E, Feldkaemper M
, Schaeffel F. Relative axial myopia in Egr-1 (ZEN
K) knockout m
ice. Invest Ophthalm
ol Vis Sci, 2007; 48(1): 11-7
Diether S, Schaeffel F, Lambrou G
N, Fritsch C, Trendelenburg AU. Effects of intravitreally and intraperitoneally injected atropine on tw
o types of experimental m
yopia in chicken. Exp Eye Res. 2007; 84(2): 266-74
Schippert R, Schaeffel F. Peripheral defocus does not necessarily affect central refractive de-velopm
ent. Vision Res. 2006; 46(22): 3935-40
Neu
rob
iolo
gy o
f the Eye
Prof. Dr. rer. nat.
Frank Schaeffel
Calwer Straße 7/1
72076 Tuebingen frank.schaeffel@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.uak.medizin.uni-
tuebingen.de/frank/schaeffel
7
Inh
erited retin
al degen
erations
such
as
Retin
itis P
igmen
tosa (R
P)
are a
major
cause of blin
dness in
indu
strialized coun
-tries.
In
the
Division
of
Experim
ental
Oph
thalm
ology we are seekin
g to develop treatm
ents for R
P an
d related diseases that
affect photoreceptors. W
e argue th
at neu
-roprotection
or cell replacemen
t as a sur-
vival- and fu
nction
-uph
olding regim
e is a feasible approach
to preserve fun
ctional
vision
in
patients
affected by
inh
erited retin
al degeneration
s. Based on
our fi
nd-
ings on
cell death m
echan
isms, w
e believe th
at neu
roprotective treatmen
ts combin
ed w
ith a replacem
ent of diseased cells con
-stitu
ts the m
ost promisin
g approach to
preserve and restore fu
nction
al vision.
We u
se different an
imal m
odels for RP
as w
ell as retinal explan
t cultu
res to study
signallin
g pathways th
at are involved in
photoreceptor cell death
or survival. In
-sigh
ts into th
ese mech
anism
s are crucial
for the su
ccessful developm
ent of poten
tial th
erapies. Based on
these, differen
t neu
ro-protective strategies are evalu
ated for their
capacity to prevent or delay ph
otoreceptor cell death
. An
other approach
to preserve vision
is the replacem
ent of diseased cells
by transplan
tation of retin
al progenitors
that are in
duced to differen
tiate into fu
nc-
tional ph
otoreceptors and in
tegrate into
the pre-existin
g retinal n
etworks.
Pinzon-Duarte, G., Arango-Gonzalez, B. G
uenther, E. and Kohler, K. Effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor on cell survival, differentiation and patterning of neuronal connections and M
uller glia cells in the developing retina., European Journal of N
euroscience, 2004; 19: 1475-84.
Thaler, S., Rejdak, R., Dietrich, K., Ladewig, T., O
kuno, E., Kocki, T., Turski, WA.,
Junemann, A., Zrenner, E., Schuettauf, F. A selective m
ethod for transfection of retinal ganglion cells by retrograde transfer of antisense oligonucleotides against kynurenine am
inotransferase II. Mol Vis, 2006; 22(12): 100-7.
Kustermann, S., Schm
id, S., Biehlmaier, O., Kohler, K. Survival, excitability, and
transfection of retinal neurons in an organotypic culture of mature zebrafish
retina Cell Tissue Res. 2008. 332:195-209.
Paquet-Durand, F., Silva, J., Talukdar, T., Johnson, L., Azadi, S., Hauck, S., Ueffing, M
., van Veen, T., Ekström, P. Excessive activation of poly (ADP-ribose) polym
e-rase (PARP) contributes to inherited photoreceptor degeneration in the rd1 m
ouse, Journal of Neuroscience, 2007; 27: 10311-9.
Sancho-Pelluz J, Arango-Gonzalez B, Kusterm
ann S, Romero FJ, van Veen T, Zrenner
E, Ekström P, Paquet-Durand F. Photoreceptor Cell Death M
echanisms in Inheri-
ted Retinal Degeneration. Mol N
eurobiol. 2008. (Epub ahead of print).
Prof. Dr. phil. em
. Theo van Veen
Senior Consultant
Roentgenweg 11
72076 Tuebingentheo.van_veen@
med.lu.se
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Eberhart Zrenner
Director
Schleichstr. 12–16 72076 Tuebingenezrenner@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww.uak.m
edizin.uni-tuebingen.de/research
Experim
ental O
ph
thalm
olo
gy
8
Research
Gro
up
s associated
to Exp
erimen
tal Op
hth
almo
log
yC
olo
ur an
d V
isual Psych
op
hysics G
rou
p
Colou
r is a particularly sen
sitive indicator for visu
al dys-fu
nction
s. B
y developin
g soph
isticated psych
ophysical m
ethods an
d combin
ing th
em w
ith fM
RI, w
e investigate visu
al performan
ces and pathw
ays in n
ormal an
d dysfun
c-tion
al vision. C
urren
t topics inclu
de the testin
g of visual
fun
ctions in
congen
ital stationary n
ight blin
dness, visu
al defi
ciencies associated w
ith dyslexia, th
e effects of ageing
and colou
r vision at h
igh altitu
des. We also offer proce-
dures for u
se in clin
ical and research
testing. Fu
rtherm
ore, w
e investigate the fu
nction
al organization
of cortical col-ou
r processes, adaptive mech
anism
s (colour con
stancy),
and visu
o-motor in
tegration.
Bio
med
ical Eng
ineerin
g Lab
orato
ry
Th
e biomedical en
gineerin
g lab has th
ree main
areas of focu
s, clinical trials softw
are developmen
t, biosignal an
aly-sis in
ophth
almology, an
d developing retin
al prostheses by
answ
ering basic scien
tific an
d clinical qu
estions. T
he grou
p con
tributes to design
and con
duct experim
ents aim
ed at testin
g the safety an
d efficacy of Su
bretinal A
ctive Micro-
photodiode A
rrays (MP
DA
s) to replace degenerated ph
o-toreceptors in
blind hu
man
patients. B
asic research in
this
field is focu
sed on th
e un
derstandin
g of electrodynam
ic- an
d biological effects that occu
r durin
g electrostimu
lation
of the retin
a.
Dr. rer. nat. A
nnette Werner
Roentgenweg 13/1, 72076 Tuebingen
annette.werner@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.annettewerner.com
Dr. m
ed. Robert Wilke, M
Sc
Schleichstr. 12–16, 72076 Tuebingenrobert.w
ilke@m
ed.uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.biomed-engineering.de
Werner A. Color constancy im
proves, w
hen an object moves: High level
motion influences color proces-
sing. JoVis, 2008; 1: 1-14.
Werner A. The influence of depth segm
entation on
colour con-
stancy. Perception,
2006; 35:
1171-1184.
Gekeler F, Shinoda K, Blatsios G,
Werner A, Zrenner E. Scotopic
threshold responses to infrared irradiation
in cats. Vision
Res, 2005; 46: 357-364.
Werner
A. The
spatial tuning
of chrom
atic adaptation. Vision Res, 2003; 43: 1611-1623.
Werner
A, Sharpe
L, Zrenner
E. Asym
metries in the tim
e course of chrom
atic adaptation and the significance
of contrast. Vision
Res, 2000; 40: 1101-1113.
9
PD D
r. rer. nat. A
nne Kurtenbach
Frondsbergstr. 23, 72076 Tuebingenanne.kurtenbach@
uni-tuebingen.de
Th
e research of th
is group deals w
ith th
e fun
ction
of the n
ormal retin
a and th
e pathological altera-
tions associated w
ith in
herited an
d acquired retin
al disease. T
he focu
s is on th
e detection of early fu
nc-
tional alteration
s usin
g psychophysical an
d electro-physiological m
ethods.
Th
e illustration
show
s a representation
of the to-
pography of the fi
rst order kernel(left) an
d second
order, first slice, kern
el (right) respon
se amplitu
des of m
ultifocal oscillatory poten
tials over the cen
tral 50 degrees of th
e visual fi
eld. Th
e responses are
thou
ght to be gen
erated at the am
acrine-bipolar
synapses of th
e inn
er retina.
Retin
al Fun
ction
Research
Gro
up
R. Wilke
and E.
Zrenner, “Clinical
results: Thresholds and visual sensations elicited by subretinal im
plants in 8 patients,” in Proc. The Eye and the Chip W
orld Congress on Artificial Vision, 2008
R. Wilke, A. Schatz, H. Jägle, T. Strasser, H.
Benav, A. Messias, T. Peters, and E. Zrenner,
“Objective Assessm
ent of Retinal Functions of Persons W
ith Advanced Retinal Degene-ration in Clinical Trials,” Invest. O
phthalmol.
Vis. Sci. 2008 49: E-Abstract 3810
T. Strasser, G. Lotz, E. Troeger, C. Zrenner, T. Peters, B. W
ilhelm, E. Zrenner, and R. W
ilke, “An Integrated System
for Workflow
and Data M
anagement in Clinical Trials,” Invest.
Ophthalm
ol. Vis. Sci. 2008 49: E-Abstract 5216
A. Kusnyerik, U. Greppm
aier, U. Klose, K.U. Bartz-Schm
idt, R. Wilke, H. Sachs, A. Hek-
mat, A. Bruckm
ann, F. Gekeler, and E. Zren-
ner, “Preoperative 3D Planning of Implan-
tation of a Subretinal Prosthesis Using MRI
Data,” Invest. Ophthalm
ol. Vis. Sci. 2008 49: E-Abstract 3025
H. Benav, R. Wilke, A. Stett, and E. Zrenner, “A
model for tem
poral features of visual sensa-tions evoked by a subretinal electrode array for restoration of vision [Abstract].” Journal of Vision, vol. 8(6), pp. 370, 370a, 2008.
Wilke R, Bach M
, Wilhelm
B, Durst W, Trauzet-
tel-Klosinski S & Zrenner E (2007) „Testing visual
functions in
patients w
ith visual
prostheses“, in “Artificial
Sight”, edited
by Humayun M
S, Weiland JD, Chader G
& G
reenbaum E., Springer, N
ew York
Research
Gro
up
s associated
to Exp
erimen
tal Op
hth
almo
log
y
Kurtenbach A, Heine J, Jagle H. Multifocal electroretinogram
in trichromat
and dichromat observers under cone isolating conditions. Vis N
eurosci 2004;21(3):249-55.
Kurtenbach A, Mayser HM
, Jagle H, et al. Hyperoxia, hyperglycemia, and
photoreceptor sensitivity in normal and diabetic subjects. Vis N
eurosci 2006;23(3-4):651-61.
Langrova H, Jagle H, Zrenner E, Kurtenbach A. The multifocal pattern
electroretinogram (m
fPERG) and cone-isolating stim
uli. Vis Neurosci
2007;24(6):805-16.
Langrova H, Kurtenbach A, Zrenner E, Seeliger M. Age-related changes of
retinal functional topography. IOVS 2008;In print.
Kurtenbach, A. Jägle, H. Multifocal O
scillatory Potentials of the Human Retina.
In Visual Tranduction and Non-Visual Light Perception. Eds Tom
bran-Tink, J., Barnstable, C. Hum
ana Press, 2008
10
Ou
r lab combin
es imagin
g (Calciu
m Im
-agin
g, Laser Scann
ing M
icroscopy, FRE
T)
and electrophysiological tech
niqu
es (Patch
Clam
p) to study cellu
lar question
s related to retin
al sensory processin
g and m
echa-
nism
s leading to cell degen
eration in
retinal
diseases. Ou
r specific fi
elds of interest are
the calciu
m h
omeostasis in
retinal gan
glion
cells and ph
otoreceptors investigated un
der physiological an
d pathophysiological con
-dition
s.
Finally, w
e wan
t to give new
insigh
ts into
the cellu
lar mech
anism
s un
derlying diseas-
es like the au
tosomal-dom
inan
t optic nerve
atrophy or achrom
atopsia and retin
itis pig-m
entosa.
Labo
ratory fo
r Cellu
lar Electrop
hysio
log
y and
Imag
ing
Techn
iqu
es
Dr. rer. nat.
Thomas Ladew
ig
Roentgenweg 11, 72076 Tübingen
ladewig.thom
http://ww
w.uak.m
edizin.uni-tuebingen.de/thom
as/index.htm
Reuter P, Koeppen K, Ladewig T, Kohl S, Baum
ann B, Wissinger B; Achrom
atopsia Clinical Study Group.
Mutations in CN
GA3 im
pair trafficking or function of cone cyclic nucleotide-gated channels, resul-ting in achrom
atopsia. Hum M
utat. 2008 Jun 2.
Koeppen K, Reuter P, Kohl S, Baumann B, Ladew
ig T, Wissinger B. Functional analysis of hum
an CNG
A3 m
utations associated with colour blindness suggests im
paired surface expression of channel mu-
tants A3(R427C) and A3(R563C). Eur J Neurosci. 2008 M
ay;27(9):2391-401.
Wissinger B, Dangel S, Jägle H, Hansen L, Baum
ann B, Rudolph G, Wolf C, Bonin M
, Koeppen K, La-dew
ig T, Kohl S, Zrenner E, Rosenberg T. Cone dystrophy with supernorm
al rod response is strictly associated w
ith mutations in KCN
V2. Invest Ophthalm
ol Vis Sci. 2008 Feb;49(2):751-7.
Mann M
, Haq W, Zabel T, G
uenther E, Zrenner E, Ladewig T. Age-dependent changes in the regulation
mechanism
s for intracellular calcium ions in ganglion cells of the m
ouse retina. Eur J Neurosci.
2005 Dec;22(11):2735-43.
Research
Gro
up
s associated
to Exp
erimen
tal Op
hth
almo
log
y
11
Mo
lecular G
enetics o
f Senso
ry Systems
Th
e Molecu
lar Gen
etics Laboratory h
as a well docu
men
ted research
record in th
e field of h
ereditary retinal disorders
(HR
D). B
eginn
ing in
the early 1990s w
e have establish
ed a large bioban
k of DN
A an
d RN
A sam
ples from patien
ts an
d families su
ffering from
HR
D. T
his bioban
k curren
tly com
prises ~4000 D
NA
samples of affected patien
ts and
thus represen
ts the largest sam
ple collection for H
RD
in
Germ
any. We h
ave been involved in
the fi
rst description of
several “disease genes” (C
NG
A3, C
NG
B3, G
NA
T2, P
DE
6C,
RB
P4, N
YX
) as well as n
um
erous follow
-up m
utation
screen
ings in
a variety of retinal disease gen
es and clin
i-cal su
btypes. A
noth
er main
research project focu
ses on th
e cau
ses of hereditary optic n
europath
ies. In th
e past we h
ave w
orked inten
sively on th
e matern
ally and m
itochon
drial in
herited Lebers H
ereditary Optic N
europathy (LH
ON
). C
urren
tly we are w
orking on
the au
tosomal dom
inan
tly in
herited form
s of Optic A
trophy Type Kjer (A
DO
A).
Ou
r lab was su
bstantially involved in
the iden
tification
, clon
ing an
d characterisation
of the fi
rst causative gen
e O
PA1.
Ou
r most recen
t project deals with
the iden
tification
of h
ereditary factors in glau
coma. In
the last years ou
r group
has also been
engaged in
transcript an
alyses and th
e cha-
racterization of retin
al gene prom
oters.
As th
ere is a large gap concern
ing th
e know
ledge of the
pathom
echan
isms betw
een gen
etic cause an
d clinical ph
e-n
otype, a m
ajor aim of ou
r group is to evalu
ate the physi-
ologic properties of mu
tant gen
e products. In
that con
text w
e have been
able to establish en
zymatic an
d biochem
ical assays to m
easure en
zyme activity an
d chan
nel fu
nction
of m
utan
t proteins. W
e are also workin
g on th
e charac-
terization of h
omologou
s anim
al models on
a fun
ctional,
histological an
d molecu
lar level in order to elu
cidate the
pathology of th
ese disorders and th
e un
derlying m
olecular
processes and sign
alling pathw
ays.
Alexander, C., Votruba, M., Pesch, U., Thiselton, D., M
ayer, S., Moore, T., Rodriguez,
M., Kellner, U., Leo-Kottler, B., Auburger, G., Bhattacharya, S., W
issinger, B. OPA1,
a gene encoding a dynamin-related G
TPase, is mutated in autosom
al dominant
optic atrophy linked to chromosom
e 3q28. Nat G
enet, 2000; 26: 211-5.
Tränkner, D., Jägle, H, Kohl, S., Apfelstedt-Sylla, E., Sharpe, L.T., Kaupp, U.B., Zrenner, E., Seifert, R., W
issinger, B. Molecular basis of an inherited form
of incomplete
achromatopsia. J N
eurosci, 2004; 24: 138-47.
Weisschuh, N., Dressler, P., Schuettauf. F., W
olf, C., Wissinger, B., G
ramer, E. (2006)
Novel M
utations of FOXC1 and PITX2 in Patients w
ith Axenfeld-Rieger Malfor-
mation. Invest O
phthalmol Vis Sci, 2006; 47: 3846-52.
Alavi, M., Bette, S., Schim
pf, S., Schüttauf, F., Schraermeyer, U., W
ehrl, H.F., Rüttiger, L., Beck, S.C., Tonagel, F., Pichler, B.J., Knipper, M
., Peters, T., Laufs, J., Wissinger,
B. A splice site mutation in the m
urine OPA1 features pathology of autosom
al dom
inant optic atrophy. Brain, 2007; 130: 1029-42.
Prof. Dr. rer. nat.
Bernd Wissinger
Roentgenweg 11
72076 Tuebingenw
ww
w.m
gl-eye-tuebingen.de
12
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Dipl.-Ing.
Mathias Seeliger
Schleichstr. 4/3 72076 Tuebingen+
49-7071-298-0718see@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.uak.medizin.uni-tuebingen.de/
neurodegen
Ou
r mission
is to un
cover the path
o-physiology
of ocu
lar n
eurodegen
era-tive processes, to develop an
d test the-
rapeutic strategies an
d to un
derstand
and
model
norm
al retin
al fu
nction
. T
he basis of ou
r work is in
-depth fu
nc-
tional an
d morph
ological phen
otyping
of genetic m
odels of blindin
g hum
an
neu
rodegenerative disorders w
ith elec-
troretinography (E
RG
), scann
ing-laser
ophth
almoscopy
(SLO),
and
optical coh
erence
tomography
(OC
T),
the
same n
on-invasive tech
niqu
es used in
affected patien
ts.
Neu
rodegeneration
research: We investigate th
e causes
of and th
e disease mech
anism
s in retin
al degeneration
s, an
d relate the fi
ndin
gs in hu
man
patients to th
ose in
anim
al models w
ith h
omologou
s genetic defects.
Also, w
e examin
e anim
al models gen
erated by groups
worldw
ide for their relevan
ce in th
is regard.
Systems biology: A
s many aspects of n
ormal retin
al fu
nction
are still un
clear, we assess fu
nction
al pathways,
particularly in
the ou
ter retina, by m
eans of m
ouse lin
es w
ith specifi
c genetic defects in
photoreceptor fu
nction
an
d/or con
nectivity.
Cross-breedin
g of
such
lin
es en
ables us to investigate isolated pathw
ays, to obtain
new
insigh
ts about th
eir natu
re and to m
odel their
behaviou
r.
Molecu
lar therapy:
Recen
t advan
ces in
th
erapeutic
research (particu
larly gene an
d stem cell th
erapy) have
led to collaborations w
ith m
any leading grou
ps on th
e evalu
ation of th
erapy in affected m
odels. Ou
r main
field
is the developm
ent of optim
al application procedu
res an
d the evalu
ation of th
e therapeu
tic success by sh
ort- an
d long-term
follow-u
p in vivo.
Methodological in
novation
and refi
nem
ent: Sin
ce more
than
a decade we are involved in
the developm
ent an
d refi
nem
ent of in
novative diagn
ostic strategies in hu
man
patien
ts and an
imal m
odels. In addition
, we are regu
larly con
tributin
g to ER
G stan
dards/guidelin
es issued by th
e In
ternation
al Society for Clin
ical Electrophysiology of
Vision
(ISCE
V).
Seeliger MW
, Grim
m C, Ståhlberg F, Friedburg C, Jaissle G,
Zrenner E, Guo H, Rem
é ChE, Humphries P, Hofm
ann F, Biel M
, Fariss RN, Redmond TM
, Wenzel A. N
ew view
s on RPE65 deficiency: the rod system
is the source of vision in a m
ouse model of Leber congenital am
aurosis. Nat G
enet 2001; 29: 70-74.
Grim
m C, W
enzel A, Groszer M
, Mayser H, Seeliger M
W, Bauer
C, Gassm
ann M, Rem
e CE. HIF-1-induced erythropoietin in the hypoxic retina protects against light-induced retinal degeneration. N
at Med 2002; 8: 718-24.
Tolmachova T, Anders R, Abrink M
, Bugeon L, Dallman M
J, Fut-ter CE, Ram
alho JS, Tonagel F, Tanimoto N, Seeliger M
W,
Huxley C, Seabra MC. Cell-autonom
ous retinal degenerati-on in a conditional knockout m
ouse model of choroidere-
mia. J Clin Invest 2006; 116: 386- 394.
Bemelm
ans AP, Kostic C, Crippa SV, Hauswirth W
W, Lem
J, Seeliger M
W, W
enzel A, Arsenijevic Y. Lentiviral-mediated
transfer of the RPE65 cDNA rescues both survival and
function of cone photoreceptors in a mouse m
odel of Le-ber congenital am
aurosis. PLoS Med 2006; 3: 1892-1903.
Hirzel K, Mueller U, Latal UT, Huelsm
ann S, Grudzinska J, See-
liger MW
, Betz H, Laube B. Hyperekplexia phenotype of glycine receptor
1 subunit mutant m
ice identifies Zn2+ as
an essential endogenous modulator of glycinergic neuro-
transmission. N
euron 2006; 52: 679-690.
Ocu
lar Neu
rod
egen
eration
13
Section
for Exp
erimen
tal Vitreo
retinal Su
rgery
We are especially in
terested in processes th
at lead to a loss of sigh
t in age-related m
acu-
lar degeneration
(AM
D). T
here are several
question
s we are w
orking on
, e.g. why does
the R
PE
partially lose its fun
ction in
elderly people? H
ow can
the fu
nction
of the R
PE
be m
aintain
ed or even restored? W
hat role
does melan
in play in
the eye? A
nd w
hat
about th
e lipofuscin
formed du
ring a life-
time? W
e recently fou
nd in
mon
key eyes th
at lipofuscin
can be rem
oved from th
e R
PE
by drug treatm
ent.
Moreover, w
e have developed a m
odel (in
rats
and
rabbits) for
VE
GF-in
duced
choroidal
neovascu
larization
in
order to
compare differen
t anti-V
EG
F strategies. We
apply several meth
ods, such
as gene th
era-py, su
bretinal tran
splantation
of genetically
modifi
ed cells (e.g., stem cells) to replace
the defective R
PE
, and adm
inistration
of th
erapeutic an
tibodies and ph
armacologic
compou
nds. A
broad range of experim
en-
tal techn
iques is perform
ed in ou
r lab on
experimen
tal anim
als, rangin
g from su
r-gery an
d drug treatm
ent, electrophysiology
(ER
G an
d VE
P), fu
nction
al diagnostics w
ith
OC
T an
d SLO, an
d fin
ally analysis of tissu
es on
histological, im
mu
noh
istochem
ical and
ultrastru
ctural
levels in
cludin
g im
mu
no-
gold and an
alytical electron m
icroscopy.
Prof. Dr. rer. nat.
Ulrich Schraerm
eyer
Schleichstraße 12/1 72076 Tuebingenulrich.schraerm
eyer@m
ed. uni-tuebingen.de
Julien S, Kreppel F, Beck S, Heiduschka P, Brito V, Schnichels S, Kochanek S, Schraermeyer U. A re-
producible and quantifiable model of choroidal neovascularization induced by VEG
F A165 after subretinal adenoviral gene transfer in the rabbit. M
ol Vis. 2008. 14:1358-72.
Arnhold S, Heiduschka P, Klein H, Absenger Y, Basnaoglu S, Kreppel F, Henke-Fahle S, Kochanek S, Bartz-Schm
idt KU, Addicks K, Schraermeyer U. Adenovirally transduced bone m
arrow strom
al cells differentiate into pigm
ent epithelial cells and induce rescue effects in RCS rats. Invest Ophthalm
ol Vis Sci. 2006. 47:4121-9.
Semkova I, Kreppel F, W
elsandt G, Luther T, Kozlowski J, Janicki H, Kochanek S, Schraerm
eyer U. Auto-logous transplantation of genetically m
odified iris pigment epithelial cells: a prom
ising concept for the treatm
ent of age-related macular degeneration and other disorders of the eye. Proc N
atl Acad Sci U S A. 2002. 99:13090-5.
Heiduschka P, Fietz H, Hofmeister S, Schultheiss S, M
ack AF, Peters S, Ziemssen F, N
iggemann B, Julien
S, Bartz-Schmidt KU, Schraerm
eyer U; Tübingen Bevacizumab Study G
roup. Penetration of beva-cizum
ab through the retina after intravitreal injection in the monkey. Invest O
phthalmol Vis Sci.
2007. 48:2814-23.
Heiduschka P, Schraermeyer U. Com
parison of visual function in pigmented and albino rats by electro-
retinography and visual evoked potentials. Graefes Arch Clin Exp O
phthalmol. 2008 Jul 25. [Epub
ahead of print].
Eibl O, Schultheiss S, Blitgen-Heinecke P, Schraermeyer U. Q
uantitative chemical analysis of ocular
melanosom
es in the TEM. M
icron. 2006. 37:262-76.
Zeiss Leo 912 omega
electron microscope
with com
plete analytical equipm
ent
Fenestrations in the choriocapillaris of a m
onkey eye
Our new
SLO and O
CT for sm
all animal use
Transduced RPE cells in an eye of a living rat view
ed by SLO
Imm
unogold-labelling of rhodopsin in a m
onkey eye
14
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Benedikt Jean
Derendinger Str. 41 72072 Tuebingenbenedikt.jean@
uni-tuebingen.de
Th
e Division
<E
xperimen
tal Oph
thalm
ic Surgery>
is one
of the very few
interdisciplin
ary research u
nits in
Eu
rope w
here oph
thalm
ologists, engin
eers, physicists and softw
are en
gineers develop con
cepts for futu
re inn
ovative diagnosis
and treatm
ent u
nder th
e roof of a Un
iversity Eye H
ospital. H
istorically, its personn
el has been
involved in th
e earliest steps of th
e developmen
t of refractive laser surgery sin
ce 1989; its con
tinu
ation is a clin
ical refractive laser un
it, spe-cialized in
complex pattern
s of visual im
pairmen
t, high
am
etropia or complicated retreatm
ents.
Ow
n h
ard- and soft-
ware
developmen
ts for
excimer lasers – partly in
cooperation
with
leading
intern
ational laser com
-pan
ies - as well as an
own
tech
nology platform
for advan
ced h
igh
resolu-
tion corn
eal topography
allow
for in
dividualized
custom
treatm
ents,
often
not
available elsewh
ere.
Presen
t research focu
ses on a sim
ultan
eous total eye
morph
ometry system
and th
e first m
odel of a real data based <
Individu
al virtual eye>
(Real R
ay Tracing), en
a-blin
g the plan
nin
g and calcu
lation of com
bined refractive
laser- and IO
L- based procedures; it likew
ise provides a ba-sis for th
e calculation
of futu
re true in
dividually optim
ised IO
Ls. Oth
er research topics in
clude m
odels, studies an
d application
s of laser tissue in
teraction in
the U
V an
d IR
spectral range, on
-line feedback con
cepts for optimisin
g laser treatm
ent param
eters and O
CT
research an
d imag-
ing.T
he division
´s interdisciplin
ary approach provides at-
tractive opportun
ities for youn
g physicists and en
gineers
on th
eir way to gradu
ation, M
A or P
hD
qualifi
cations in
the
neigh
bourh
ood of experimen
tal and clin
ical medicin
e.
Running cooperations w
ith Univ. of
Vienna, M
edical Physics; B
elarus-sian
Institute of
System
Analysis,
Minsk.
Jean B, Bende T. Photoablation of gelatin with the free-electron laser betw
een 2.7 and 6.7 m
icrons. J Refract Corneal Surg. 1994 Jul-Aug;10(4):433-8.
Pustovalov VK, Jean B. Melanin granule m
odels for the processes of laser-induced thermal
damage in pigm
ented retinal tissues. I. Modeling of laser-induced heating of m
elanoso-m
es and selective thermal processes in retinal tissues. Bull M
ath Biol. 2007 Jan;69(1): 245-63. Epub 2006 Jul 19.
Jean B, Bende T. Zum Stand der infraroten Photoablation der Hornhaut. Klin M
onatsbl Augen-heilkd. 1999 Apr;214(4):195-202.
Einighamm
er J, Oltrup T, Bende T, Jean B. Calculating intraocular lens geom
etry by real ray tracing. J Refract Surg. 2007; 23(4):393-404.
Jean B, Bende T: Infrared Lasers – Therapeutic Applications: In: Ophthalm
ic Clinics of North
America, 1998 11(2): 243-55.
Experim
ental O
ph
thalm
ic Surg
ery
15
Detection
of fun
ctional an
d morph
ological interrelation
-sh
ip of circum
scribed visual pathw
ay lesions, in
order to evalu
ate their n
atural cou
rse and in
dividual effect as w
ell as to facilitate statem
ents in
regard to indication
and prog-
nosis of th
erapeutical m
ethods. C
linical stu
dies concern
ing
glaucom
a, neu
roprotective strategies and early diagn
osis of tu
mou
rs affecting th
e visual pathw
ay are pursu
ed by re-fi
ned tech
niqu
es of visual fi
eld assessmen
t developed by the
group.
- Investigation
of the fu
nction
al and m
orphological in
ter-relation
of lesions in
the ascen
ding visu
al system aim
ing
at un
derstandin
g the con
sequen
ces for prognosis
- D
evelopmen
t of
semi-au
tomated
kinetic
perimetry
(SKP
), wh
ich allow
s for a considerable stan
dardization
of kinetic perim
etry with
additional assessm
ent of an
d correction
for individu
al reaction tim
e of a patient
- G
erman
adaptive thresh
old estimatin
g (GA
TE
): develop-m
ent of a fast static perim
etric thresh
olding algorith
m,
wh
ich is in
dependen
t of stimu
lus grids an
d applicable to all kin
ds of ophth
almologic path
ologies
- E
nh
anced evalu
ation an
d visualization
of progressive visu
al field loss, u
sing poin
twise lin
ear regression (P
LR),
event an
alysis and oth
er procedures
- V
isual
Field R
eading
Cen
ter for
mu
lticenter
clinical
studies (con
sultation
service, certification
service, data processin
g service, data analysis, reports)
- Scotom
a oriented perim
etry (SCO
PE
): application of
individu
ally conden
sed grid for locally enh
anced spatial
resolution
, especially in glau
comatou
s optic neu
ropathy (in
co-operation w
ith th
e Ham
ilton G
laucom
a Cen
ter, U
niversity of C
alifornia, San
Diego)
- A
ssessmen
t of compen
satory exploration an
d driving
performan
ce un
der “virtual reality con
ditions” in
pa-tien
ts sufferin
g from h
omonym
ous visu
al field defects
Prof. Dr. m
ed. U
lrich Schiefer
Schleichstr. 12–16 72076 Tuebingen ulrich.schiefer@
med.uni-tuebingen.de
ww
w.visual-pathw
ay.de
Research
Gro
up
Visu
al Pathw
ay: N
euro
-Op
hth
almo
log
y & Perim
etry
Now
omiejska K, Vonthein R, Pätzold J, Zagorski Z, Kardon R, Schiefer U (2005) Com
parison betw
een semi-autom
ated kinetic perimetry and conventional G
oldmann m
anual kine-tic perim
etry in advanced visual field loss. Ophthalm
ology 112:1343-54
Schiefer U, Now
omiejska K, Krapp E, Pätzold J. Johnson CA (2006) K-Train – a com
puter-based, interactive training program
with an incorporated certification system
for practi-cing kinetic perim
etry: evaluation of acceptance and success rate, Graefes Arch Clin Exp
Ophthalm
ol, 244(10): 1300-1309
Schreiber A, Vonthein R, Reinhard J, Trauzettel-Klosinski S, Connert C, Schiefer U (2006) Effect of Visual Restitution Training on Absolute Hom
onymous Scotom
as, Neurology
67: 143-145
Pascual JP, Schiefer U, Pätzold J, Zangwill LM
, Tavares IM, W
einreb RN, Sample PA (2007)
Spatial characteristics of visual field progression determined by M
onte Carlo simulation:
diagnostic innovations in glaucoma study, Invest O
phthalmol Vis Sci 48: 1642-1650
Papageorgiou E, Ticini LF, Hardiess G, Schaeffel F, Wiethoelter H, M
allot HA, Bahlo S, Wil-
helm B, Vonthein R, Schiefer U, Karnath HO
(2008) The pupillary light reflex pathway
- Cytoarchitectonic probabilistic maps in hem
ianopic patients, Neurology 70:956–963
16
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Eberhart Zrenner
Director
Schleichstr. 12–16 72076 Tuebingenezrenner@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww.uak.m
edizin.uni-tuebingen.de/ research
Hereditary
retinal
degeneration
s, e.g.
retinitis pigm
entosa (R
P), are th
e most
comm
on
cause
of blin
dness
in
youn
g adu
lts. Since 1989 a special clin
ic for pa-tien
ts sufferin
g the variou
s forms of th
ese diseases
has
been
established
with
th
e aim
to help elu
cidating th
e causative gen
e m
utation
s, to develop elaborate meth
ods of fu
nction
testing for correct diagn
osis an
d to advise and treat patien
ts. Novel
meth
ods of electrophysiology and im
ag-in
g techn
iques h
ave been developed to al-
low for m
ultim
odal mappin
g and refi
ned
phen
otype
analysis.
Approxim
ately 500
patients
are investigated
and
coun
seled an
nu
ally. In close cooperation
with
the
Molecu
lar Gen
etics laboratory of the In
sti-tu
te, the D
NA
of these patien
ts is analyzed
in con
jun
ction w
ith th
e clinical research
grou
p, supported by th
e Germ
an research
cou
ncil sin
ce 2005. Th
is allows n
ot only
for classifyin
g patien
ts in
carefu
l stu
d-ies bu
t for establishin
g a huge n
etwork of
cooperation w
ith oth
er special RP
clinics
and m
olecular gen
etic laboratories. Th
is h
as led to the discovery of m
any new
genes
and to m
ajor contribu
tions in
developing
novel th
erapeutic strategies based eith
er on
ph
armacological
agents
or m
edical devices. Sin
ce 1995 a subretin
al mu
ltipho-
todiode chip h
as been developed, carefu
lly investigated in
anim
al experimen
ts and
applied in th
e mean
time in
a clinical stu
dy th
at has sh
own
the feasibility of th
is ap-proach
to restore usefu
l visual sen
sations
in com
pletely blind R
P patien
ts.
Clin
ic for
Hered
itary Retin
al Deg
eneratio
n
Dr. m
ed. A
ntje Bernd
Schleichstr. 12–16 72076 TuebingenAntje.Bernd@
med.uni-tuebingen.de
ww
w.uak.medizin.uni-tuebingen.de/
research
Zrenner E. Will Retinal Im
plants Restore Vision? Science. 2002. 295:1022-1025.
Zrenner E. THE 2007 EMIKO
ADACHI AWARD LECTURE: Restoring neuroretinal function: new
potentials. Doc O
phthalmol. 2007. 115:56-59.
Kitiratschky VB, Grau T, Bernd A, Zrenner E, Jägle H, Renner AB, Kellner U, Rudolph G, Jacobson SG,
Cideciyan AV, Schaich S, Kohl S, Wissinger B. ABCA4 gene analysis in patients w
ith autosomal
recessive cone and cone rod dystrophies. Eur J Hum G
enet. 2008. 16:812-819.
Gekeler F, Szurm
an P, Grisanti S, W
eiler U, Claus R, Greiner TO, Völker M
, Kohler K, Zrenner E, Bartz-Schm
idt KU. Compound subretinal prosthesis w
ith extra-ocular parts designed for human tri-
als: successful long-term im
plantation in pigs. Graefe‘s Arch Clin Exp. 2007. 245:230-241.
Eckhorn R, Wilm
s M, Schanze T, Eger M
, Hesse L, Eysel UT, Kisvarday ZF, Zrenner E, Gekeler F, Sch-
wahn H, Shinoda K, Sachs H, W
alter P. Visual resolution with retinal im
plants estimated from
recordings in cat visual cortex. Vision Research. 2006. 46:2675-2690.
17
Th
e aim of C
linical Fu
nction
Testing is to access th
e fun
c-tion
of the variou
s parts of the ascen
ding an
d descendin
g visu
al pathway by refi
ned m
ethods of psych
ophysics, elec-trophysiology an
d imagin
g. Em
phasis is placed on
furth
er developm
ent of su
ch m
ethods as w
ell as its application in
patien
ts with
lesions of th
e visual pathw
ays. Th
is inclu
des also th
e determin
ation of n
ormal valu
es in large coh
orts of volu
nteers as w
ell as the developm
ent of stan
dardization,
inclu
ding stan
dard operating protocols an
d application
in m
onocen
ter and m
ulticen
ter clinical stu
dies. Meth
ods in
clude A
utofl
uorescen
ce, Optical C
oheren
ce Tomogra-
phy (OC
T), E
lectroretinography, R
od-ER
G, C
one-E
RG
, O
N-O
FF ER
G, M
ultifocal E
lectroretinography O
N-O
FF M
ultifocal E
RG
, Electroocu
lography, refin
ed Static and
Kin
etic Perimetry, V
isual Evoked C
ortical Potentials, an
d P
upillography .
We exam
ine patien
ts with
hereditary diseases of th
e retin
a and optic n
erve, toxic lesions of th
e visual system
, loss of fu
nction
due to glau
coma, stroke, trau
ma, tu
mou
rs an
d degenerative diseases. P
resently stu
dies are done on
glau
coma, R
etinitis P
igmen
tosa patients, an
d restitution
of vision
in blin
d by subretin
al microph
otodiode arrays.
Clin
ical Fun
ction
Testing
Wissinger B, Dangel S, Jägle H, Hansen L, Baum
ann B, Rudolph G, Wolf C, Bonin M
, Koeppen K, Ladew
ig T, Kohl S, Zrenner E, Rosenberg T.-Cone Dystrophy with Supernorm
al Rod res-ponse Is Strictly Associated w
ith Mutations in KCN
V2. Investigative Ophthalm
ology & Visual Science;Vol:49 N
o:2, S.751-757 (2008)
Langrová H, Jägle H, Zrenner E, Kurtenbach A. The multifocal pattern electroretinogram
(mfPERG
) and cone-isolating stim
uli. Visual Neuroscience. 2007. 24:805-816.
Shinoda K, Rejdak R, Schuettauf F, Blatsios G, Völker M, Tanim
oto N, Olcay T, G
ekeler F, Lehaci C, N
askar R, Zagorski Z, Zrenner E. Early electroretinographic features of streptozotocin-induced diabetic retinopathy. Clincal and Experim
ental Ophthalm
ology 35, 9:847-54 (2007)
Zrenner E. Restoring neuroretinal function: new potentials. Doc O
phthalmol 115:56-59, (2007)
Schuster A, Janecke AR, Wilke R, Schm
id E, Thompson DA, Uterm
ann G, Wissinger B, Zrenner E, G
al A.The Phenotype of Early-O
nset Retinal Degeneration in Persons with RDH12 M
utations. Invest. O
phthalm. & Vis. Sci., Vol. 48, N
o. 4 (2006)
Kurtenbach A, Mayser,H.M
, Jägle H, Fritsche A, Zrenner E. Hyperoxia, hyperglycemia, and photore-
ceptor sensitivity in normal and diabetic subjects. Visual N
euroscience (2006),23, 651-661
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Eberhart Zrenner
Director
Schleichstr. 12–16 72076 Tuebingenezrenner@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww.uak.m
edizin.uni-tuebingen.de/ research
18
Th
is group focu
ses on th
e assessmen
t, optimization
and
rehabilitation
of visual fu
nction
s, wh
ich are relevan
t for daily livin
g skills, such
as reading an
d orientation
. In th
e research
lab, the m
ain focu
s lies on th
e analysis of readin
g disorders an
d motor con
trol, eye movem
ent recordin
g (by video eye tracker an
d Scann
ing Laser O
phth
almoscope) in
patien
ts with
visual fi
eld defects, psychophysical m
ethods
and developm
ent of stan
dardized low vision
tests.
An
other grou
p of patients are ch
ildren w
ith develop-
men
tal dyslexia.
Th
e residual fu
nction
in patien
ts with
visual im
pairmen
t is exam
ined in
order to analyze cortical adaptive m
echa-
nism
s and to optim
ize the fu
nction
by mean
s of visual
aids and n
ew train
ing program
s. In th
e Low V
ision C
linic
the patien
ts receive detailed diagnostics, con
sultin
g, visual
aids and train
ing. T
he Low
Vision
Clin
ic and R
esearch Lab
are interlocked very closely an
d have an
active netw
ork of in
terdisciplinary an
d intern
ational cooperation
.
Trauzettel-Klosinski S, Reinhard J. The vertical field border in human hem
ianopia and its significance for fixation behavior and reading. Invest O
phthalmol Vis Sci 1998 ; 39: 2177-86
Trauzettel-Klosinski S. Reading disorders due to visual field defects - a neuroophthalmological view
. Neuro-
Ophthalm
ology 2002; 27(1-3): 79-90
Reinhard J, Schreiber A, Schiefer U, Sabel BA, Kasten E, Kenkel S, Vonthein R, Trauzettel-Klosinski S. Does visual restitution training change absolute hom
onymous scotom
a? British Journal of Ophthalm
ology, 2005; 89: 30-5
Trauzettel-Klosinski S, Dürrwächter U, Klosinski G, Braun C. Cortical activation during w
ord reading and picture nam
ing in dyslexic and non-reading-impaired children. Clinical N
europhysiol, 2006; 117: 1085-97
Reinhard J, Messias A, Dietz K, M
acKeben M, Lackm
ann R, Scholl HPN, Apfelstedt-Sylla E, Weber BHF, Seeliger
M, Zrenner E, Trauzettel-Klosinski S. Q
uantifying fixation in patients with Stargardt disease, Vision Research,
2007; 47: 2076–85
Messias A, Reinhard J, Cruz A, Dietz K, M
acKeben M, Trauzettel-Klosinski S. Eccentric fixation in Stargardt´s
disease - assessed by Tuebingen Perimetry. Invest O
phthalmol Vis Sci, 2007; 48(12): 5815-22
Nguyen N
X, Weism
ann M, Trauzettel-Klosinski S. Spectrum
of ophthalmologic and social rehabilitation at the
Tübinger Low-Vision Clinic. A retrospective analysis for 1999–2005 O
phthalmologe 2008 105: 563-569
Low
Visio
n C
linic an
d R
esearch Lab
Prof. Dr. m
ed. Susanne Trauzettel-Klosinski
Osianderstr. 5
72076 Tuebingensusanne.trauzettel-klosinski@
med.
uni-tuebingen.de
19
Prof. Dr. m
ed. H
elmut W
ilhelm
Osianderstr. 6
72076 Tuebingenw
ilhelm@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.helmut-w
ilhelm.de
Th
e pupil provides plen
ty of inform
ation abou
t vision,
emotion
al state, vigilance state an
d fun
ction of th
e auto-
nom
ic nerve system
. Th
e Pu
pil Research
Grou
p does ba-sic an
d clinical research
and applies special kn
owledge in
clin
ical routin
e. Th
e afferent visu
al system is exam
ined by
the sw
ingin
g flash
light test, even
with
an au
tomated pu
pil-lograph
ic meth
od that h
as been developed by th
is group.
Addition
ally a pupillograph
ic pupil cam
pimetry h
as been
developed. Th
is is used in
basic research to provide a better
un
derstandin
g of the visu
al pathways, in
clinical research
to develop early diagn
ostic procedures in
glaucom
a and in
daily rou
tine clin
ic as an objective perim
etric tool to dis-close m
alingerin
g.
Pu
pillography is done by differen
t devices to obtain
objective inform
a-tion
about retin
al fun
ction, e.g. in
patien
ts w
ith
subretin
al im
plants
and to investigate differen
t branch
es of th
e visual system
.
A
major
topic in
research
an
d clin
ical application is pu
pillographic
testing of cen
tral nervou
s activation
by mean
s of the P
upillograph
ic Sleepiness Test, P
ST, wh
ich
has been
developed and paten
ted by this grou
p. Pu
pillary oscillation
s in darkn
ess provide direct inform
ation abou
t th
e state of the cen
tral sympath
etic nervou
s system an
d al-low
objective assessmen
t of the alertn
ess level. Qu
antitative
analysis of pu
pillary oscillations in
darkness h
as opened
a wide fi
eld of research an
d clinical application
s. Both
in
occupation
al medicin
e and ph
armacological research
PST
gives in
sight on
the effects of w
orking environ
men
ts and
drugs in
flu
encin
g wakefu
lness. In
sleep medicin
e the P
ST
has already becom
e a routin
e clinical application
and is
provided by this grou
p as a service for other clin
ics with
in
and ou
tside the U
niversity H
ospital.
Th
e Neu
ro-ophth
almology clin
ic serves as a coun
try-w
ide reference cen
tre for pupillary disorders by applyin
g all diagn
ostic features provided by th
e pupil grou
p.
Pup
il Gro
up
Wilhelm
H. The pupil.Curr Opin N
eurol. 2008 Feb; 21(1):36-42.
Wilhelm
BJ, Wilhelm
H, Moro S, Barbur JL. Pupil response com
ponents: studies in patients w
ith Parinaud’s syndrome.Brain. 2002 O
ct;125 (Pt 10):2296-307.
Wilhelm
H, Wilhelm
B. Clinical applications of pupillography. J Neurooph-
thalmol. 2003 M
ar;23(1):42-9. Review.
Wilhelm
H, Peters T, Lüdtke H, Wilhelm
B. The prevalence of relative afferent pupillary defects in norm
al subjects.J Neuroophthalm
ol. 2007 Dec;27(4):263-7.
Wilhelm
B, Wilhelm
H, Lüdtke H, Streicher P, Adler M (1998) Pu-
pillographic assessment of sleepiness in sleep-deprived healthy
subjects. Sleep 21, 258-265
20
In th
e course of an
increased n
ational an
d intern
ational
crosstalk in R
&D
, the requ
iremen
ts on th
e professional or-
ganization
and m
anagem
ent of th
e Institu
te for Oph
thal-
mic R
esearch are m
andatory. In
order to ensu
re the h
igh
competitiven
ess and th
e quality of th
e research, th
e scien-
tists need effi
cient in
strum
ents as provided by th
e ‘Un
it for R
esearch M
anagem
ent (U
RM
; Stabsstelle Wissen
schafts-
man
agemen
t (SWM
))’.
Th
e UR
M su
pervises a wide an
d diverse portfolio of lo-cal, n
ational an
d intern
ational projects, in
cludin
g several E
C-projects. Its team
is cooperating w
ith n
early hun
dred research
-partners in
all Eu
ropean cou
ntries. T
he U
nit for
Research
Man
agemen
t at the In
stitute for O
phth
almic R
e-search
initiated n
um
erous application
s and is presen
tly
involved in th
e coordination
of 12 intern
ational research
projects. Som
e of the projects coordin
ated by the U
RM
are exclu
sively dedicated to transfer of kn
owledge an
d th
e trainin
g of youn
g researchers. T
he U
RM
has proved
its ability to man
age successfu
lly and effectively th
is level of diversity an
d consists of an
established team
of profes-sion
al project man
agers, wh
o are focused on
professional,
cost effective and effi
cient scien
ce-driven m
anagem
ent.
Wheeler-Schilling, Hoffm
ann, Bhattacharya. Education: the m
ost powerful tool for progression and excellence in Euro-
pe. Ophthalm
ology Times Europe, 2007; 3(2): 33-7
Wheeler-Schilling, Zrenner, Schiefer. Integrated approach to the prom
otion of young academics in vision research at a
European level. Ophthalm
ologe, 2006; 103: 104-8
Zrenner, Cunha-Vaz, Sahel, Sillito, Scholl, Wheeler-Schilling.
The European Vision Institute: Opening up new
frontiers? O
phthalmologe, 2006; 103: 100-3
Scholl, Wheeler-Schilling, Zrenner, Holz: Establishing ophthal-
mology in the fram
ework program
mes of the European
Union, Ophthalm
ologe, 2006; 103: 91-9
Dr. rer. nat.
Thomas H
. Wheeler-Schilling
Roentgenweg 11
72076 Tuebingenthom
as.wheeler-schilling@
uni-tuebingen.dew
ww
.uak-swm
.de
Research
Man
agem
ent
Institu
te and
Local Level
Fun
d raisin
gC
on
sultin
gD
ata inq
uiry
Data co
llection
Gran
t app
lication
Pro
ject man
agem
ent
Finan
ce adm
inistratio
nA
dm
inistratio
nIT-In
frastructu
reD
issemin
ation
&d
emo
nstratio
nM
eeting
sTrain
ing
Perso
nn
el servicesIn
divid
ual co
nsu
lting
Career d
evelop
men
t plan
Young researchers promotion
Trainin
g
Fou
nd
ation
s
BM
BF
DFG
DA
AD
fortü
ne
Hospital adm
inistration dept.
Local p
ub
lic auth
ority
Datab
ase & In
ternet
Pub
lication
s
Repo
rts
Training module developm
ent
Evaluatio
n
Co
-op
eration
and
exch
ang
e with
in
ternatio
nal p
artners
un
d research
ers
Edu
cation
and
trainin
g o
fth
e You
ng
Researchers
Natio
nal an
d In
ternatio
nal Level
EUB
MB
F
DFG
EU C
om
missio
n
Natio
nal &
Intern
ation
alPartn
ers
Intern
et
Pub
lication
s
Repo
rts
Training module developm
ent
Evaluatio
n
Co
-op
eration
and
exch
ang
e with
in
ternatio
nal p
artners
un
d research
ers
Edu
cation
and
trainin
g o
fth
e You
ng
Researchers
Strategy | N
etwo
rkin
g | In
no
vation
| Lob
byin
g | Exp
ertise | Ideas
21
Th
e Research
Institu
te offers nu
merou
s trainin
g activities for stu
dents from
medicin
e as well as from
biology and
other related n
atural scien
ces. Th
e trainin
g ranges from
teach
ing in
Oph
thalm
ology to specialist worksh
ops on ap-
plied meth
ods (e.g. the fam
ous FU
N cou
rse, an in
teractive cou
rse for application of advan
ced neu
ro-ophth
almolo-
gical techn
iques; B
asic Science C
ourse in
Vision
, Research
C
olloqium
, Lab R
otation P
rogram, G
laucom
a worksh
op; In
teractive courses on
[kinetic] perim
etry, fun
ction testin
g in
neu
ro-ophth
almology, E
lectroretinography C
ourse) as
well as soft skills, su
ch as project an
d laboratory man
age-m
ent.
Trainin
g at the C
entre for O
phth
almic R
esearch h
as in
the past received top evalu
ations in
the Tu
evalon ran
kings.
Prof. D
r. med. U
. Schiefer h
as been aw
arded the m
edal for excellen
ce in teach
ing from
the State of B
aden-W
uerttem
-berg. T
he In
stitute also participates in
lectures an
d courses
at the G
raduate Sch
ool for Neu
ral and B
ehaviou
ral Neu
-roscien
ces, Max-P
lanck-R
esearch Sch
ool, and th
e faculty
of biology. Several theses D
octoral Studen
ts have been
m
arked with
a sum
ma cu
m lau
da from th
e faculty of biol-
ogy and m
edicine.
Edu
cation
at the In
stitute
22
Un
iversity of Tuebin
gen
Cen
tre for Ophthalm
ology In
stitute for O
phthalmic R
esearchSch
leichstr. 12–16
72076 Tuebin
genG
ermany
ww
w.u
ak.medizin
.un
i-tuebin
gen.de/research
Director:
Prof. D
r. med. E
berhart Zren
ner
Offi
ce:Sabin
e Hailfi
nger
Tel: +49(0)7071 29 84786
Fax: +49(0)7071 29 5038
E-m
ail: sabine.h
ailfin
ger@klin
ikum
.un
i-tuebin
gen.de
Prof. D
r. phil. em. T
heo van V
een, Sen
ior Con
sultan
t Professor
Offi
ce:B
arbara Hu
thTel: +
49(0)7071 29 84021Fax: +
49(0)7071 29 5777E
-mail: barbara.hu
th@
kliniku
m.u
ni-tu
ebingen
.de
Scientifi
c Co-ordin
ator:D
r. Mich
aela Bitzer
Tel.: +49 (0)7071 29 80733
Fax: +49(0)7071 29 4470
E-m
ail: mich
aela.bitzer@klin
ikum
.un
i-tuebin
gen.de
Co
ntact
23
Ho
w to
Find
Us
1
23 4
57
6
1 Schleichstr. 12–16: Clinical Function Testing,
Biomedical Engeneering Laboratory,
Research Group Visual Pathw
ay
2 Schleichstr. 12/1: Section for Experim
ental Vitreoretinal Surgery
3 Schleichstr. 4/3: O
cular Neurodegeneration
4 Osianderstr. 5:
Low Vision Clinic and Research Lab,
Pupil Group
5 Calwerstr. 7/1:
Neurobiology of the Eye
6 Röntgenweg 11:
Research Managem
ent,
M
oleculal Genetic of Sensory System
s,
Experim
ental Ophthalm
ology
7 Röntgenweg 13:
Colour and Visual Psycho Physics Group
2008