Ms Karouta

Biography

The work Cindy is partaking in the laboratory focuses on how the environmental effects of day light can modulate the neural pathways underlying the development of myopia (short-sightedness). Myopia is a visual disorder caused by excessive elongation of the eye during development. It has become a major health concern due to the rapid increase in prevalence across the world, most notably in urban East Asia, where 80-90% of school-leavers are myopic. Recent epidemiological studies have reported that children who spend greater amounts of time outdoors are less likely to develop myopia. It has been postulated that the protective effects might be due to the higher light intensities experienced outside. In agreement with this hypothesis, animal studies from our laboratory has shown a strong negative correlation between the development of experimental myopia and the light levels in which the animals were reared, with greater protection provided with higher light intensities. Following on from these findings, the genomic and epigenomic regulatory mechanisms are being investigated to discover what underlies the ability of light to manipulate the rate of ocular growth and therefore prevent the development of experimental myopia. The work Cindy is partaking in the laboratory focuses on how the environmental effects of day light can modulate the neural pathways underlying the development of myopia (short-sightedness). Myopia is a visual disorder caused by excessive elongation of the eye during development. It has become a major health concern due to the rapid increase in prevalence across the world, most notably in urban East Asia, where 80-90% of school-leavers are myopic. Recent epidemiological studies have reported that children who spend greater amounts of time outdoors are less likely to develop myopia. It has been postulated that the protective effects might be due to the higher light intensities experienced outside. In agreement with this hypothesis, animal studies from our laboratory has shown a strong negative correlation between the development of experimental myopia and the light levels in which the animals were reared, with greater protection provided with higher light intensities. Following on from these findings, the genomic and epigenomic regulatory mechanisms are being investigated to discover what underlies the ability of light to manipulate the rate of ocular growth and therefore prevent the development of experimental myopia.

Research Interest

Health and wellbeing throughout the lifespan; Biomedical discovery for disease prevention and treatment.Health and wellbeing throughout the lifespan; Biomedical discovery for disease prevention and treatment.