Thank you for tuning in to Season 1 Talking Retina. This season, we’ve covered so many things, so a quick recap. Ass Prof Lauren Ayton and I introduced you to the retina and inherited retinal diseases. Prof Andrew Turpin and I discussed vision testing, what AI is and its potential roles and setbacks in eye care. Prof Robyn Guymer helped us understand where research for macular degeneration is at and best practice clinical management. This means, not forgetting to offer clinical trials as an option, if no treatments are currently available to prevent vision loss. Ass Prof Penny Allen took us through the story of bionic eye development in Australia. Prof John Nolan took us through the research for macula protection and the use of macula pigment supplementation. And Ass Prof Anai Gonzalez-Cordero and Dr. Tom Edwards introduced us to the incredible work in vision restoration that is happening now.

It’s been a huge learning journey for me and I hope it’s been one for you as well. As an optometrist, public health practitioner, amateur athlete, globetrotter, and mother in pursuit of living my best life, I set out to create something to make it easier to learn about and put into practice, our most latest understanding of the human eye. A stand out for me recording this season was hearing directly from people who have been affected by vision conditions that we diagnose and treat. I learnt as much from them as I learned from the experts in the field.

So, with this season under my belt and so much learning, not only about the research on eyes, but about podcast creation as well, I’m aiming to bring you something more exciting next season. It’s currently in R&D stage so I can’t say too much, but for Season 2, we will be Talking Cornea. If you’d like to get involved as a contributor or a sponsor, you can reach me on my socials via Instagram and Facebook @Talking Eyes. Follow and share, and subscribe to Talking Eyes to stay updated. I’m Lien Trinh, your host of Talking Eyes.

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How does Lego relate to Genetics? In our final episode of our Talking Retina series, we have a very interesting chat with Dr. Tom Edwards, head of the Gene Therapy Research unit at the Centre for Eye Research Australia about how gene therapy works, how it might look in people receiving treatment, and the process from research to clinical delivery. According to Dr. Tom, multiple gene therapies are expected to roll out over the next 5 to 10 years, so genetic testing and signing up to registers is more important now than ever.

Dr. Tom Edwards and A/Prof Lauren Ayton work closely with the Australian and global community on Inherited Retinal Diseases.

Research sites specialising in IRDs in Australia are:

• The VENTURE Registry is a collaboration between the Centre for Eye Research Australia and the University of Melbourne which collects both clinical and genetic information on people living with IRDs in Victoria. This registry also includes female carriers of X-linked IRDs. 
• The Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Register and DNA Bank is Australia’s largest DNA ban collecting family history and genetic samples, but not comprehensive clinical data (which is captured by state-based registries – below). The AIRDR has proudly been funded by Retina Australia since its inception in 2009. 
• The Save Sight Institute IRD Registry is based in NSW and led by an ophthalmologist (Prof Grigg) and geneticist (Prof Jamieson), collecting both clinical and genetic data on people living with IRDs.
• The Western Australia Retinal Disease (WARD) study is based at the Lions Eye Institute in Perth, collecting clinical and genetic information on people with IRDs. The Lead Investigator, A/Prof Fred Chen, is also the Head of the Ocular Tissue Engineering Laboratory at Lions, developing new treatments for IRDs.

Additional resources can be found at:

• Retina Australia

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Associate Professor Anai Gonzalez-Cordero is a research scientist at the Children’s Medical Research Institute who joins me to discuss regenerative medicine and this incredible exciting possibility for vision restoration. We begin our discussion with the very basics of what stem cells can do, how we are now able to produce them without using embryonic tissue, what disease modeling is and excitingly, how we might manufacture and transplant stem cells to restore vision.

Additional resources:

• A fantastic article about How iPS cells changed the world
• Retina Australia
• About Stem Cells is a public resource provided by the International Society of Stem Cell Research. 
• Stem Cells Australia hosts a site supported by the University of Melbourne which links researchers with the community. A complete list of current clinical trials can also be found here.

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Have you ever wondered what sort of nutrition advice is best for vision, for eye health and importantly, to prevent eye disease? Feeding your eyes is the very beginning of a conversation on nutrition for eye health. Professor John Nolan, the founder and director of the Nutrition Research Centre in Ireland, joins me to discuss the ingredients needed to improve and retain our vision. We deep dive into John’s areas of expertise: the role of nutrition for vision, cognitive function and the prevention of age-related diseases like macular degeneration. And we dare to venture into provocative territories that challenge the status quo. Food for thought.

The late Michael Moseley is mentioned in this episode, related to his work investigating the legitimacy of Prof. John’s work. We’d like to acknowledge not only his tragic passing this year, but his brilliant contributions to the field of science translation. Vale Michael.

Additional resources:

The Brain and Ocular Nutrition Conference aims to connect the global scientific community as well as nutrition enthusiasts, for the advancement of eye and brain function through nutrition. It is planned for June 2025 in Massachusetts, USA.

Nutritional therapist Hannah Nunn’s channel can be found at www.youtube.com/@nutritionforamd

Michael Moseley’s “Trust Me I’m a Doctor” review of macula pigment supplementation: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1f4vsRpHghwGWZcSvRN72xM/can-i-improve-my-eyesight

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Associate Professor Penelope Allen is a leading expert in ophthalmology and a pivotal figure in the Australian Bionic Eye project. Join us as she delves into the fascinating journey of this initiative, from its inception and the brilliant minds behind it to the many challenges they have faced along the way. We'll also hear about the outcomes of the first and second clinical trials, offering hope and new possibilities for vision-impaired individuals. 

To learn more about this project, visit:

Centre for Eye Research Australia https://www.cera.org.au/research/bionic-eye-and-vitreoretinal-research/

Bionics Institute https://rb.gy/p2t75w 

Check out Channel 9’s recent news coverage (May 2024) of the 2nd clinical trials here

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This week I'm joined by special guest Associate Professor Lauren Ayton to discuss inherited retinal diseases.

One time not long ago, there was very little we could do to change the prognosis of inherited retinal diseases. People with Retinitis Pigmentosa. Choroideremia. Leber congenital amaurosis. Stargardt's disease. To name but a few. All conditions we previously monitored, and could only counsel on. But critical advances in research over the last decade now provide hope to people with such conditions.

Resources

• Retina Australia: https://retinaaustralia.com.au/
• An optometrist guide to the top candidate inherited retinal diseases for gene therapy: https://doi.org/10.1080/08164622.2021.1878851
• The Australian Inherited Retinal Disease Register and DNA Bank is Australia’s largest DNA ban collecting family history and genetic samples, but not comprehensive clinical data (which is captured by state-based registries – below). The AIRDR has proudly been funded by Retina Australia since its inception in 2009. https://www.scgh.health.wa.gov.au/Research/DNA-Bank
• The VENTURE Registry is a collaboration between the Centre for Eye Research Australia and the University of Melbourne which collects both clinical and genetic information on people living with IRDs in Victoria. This registry also includes female carriers of X-linked IRDs. https://www.cera.org.au/research/venture-study/
• The Save Sight Institute IRD Registry is based in NSW and led by an ophthalmologist (Prof Grigg) and geneticist (Prof Jamieson), collecting both clinical and genetic data on people living with IRDs. https://www.sydney.edu.au/save-sight-institute/our-research/eye-genetics-inherited-retinal-diseases/inherited-retinal-diseases.html
• The Western Australia Retinal Disease (WARD) study is based at the Lions Eye Institute in Perth, collecting clinical and genetic information on people with IRDs. The Lead Investigator, A/Prof Fred Chen, is also the Head of the Ocular Tissue Engineering Laboratory at Lions, developing new treatments for IRDs. https://www.lei.org.au/research/clinical-trials/the-western-australian-retinal-degeneration-ward-study-lions-eye-institute-retina-australia/

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From the godmother of age-related macular degeneration research, this podcast touches on all the things a clinician diagnosing and monitoring AMD needs to know right now about this condition: how it affects a person, staging and recording it, past, current and new treatment, and potential emerging knowledge and innovations.

About our guest Professor Robyn Guymer:  Robyn is the Deputy Director of CERA, the Head of Macular Research at CERA, and Professor of Ophthalmology at Melbourne University. She is also a senior retinal specialist at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. Learn more about Robyn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/robyn-guymer-am-6b498992/?originalSubdomain=au

A standout resource available for all things AMD related, for both clinicians and non-clinicians: https://www.mdfoundation.com.au

Robyn’s current clinical trials for AMD can be found at the Centre for Eye Research Australia: https://www.cera.org.au/current-trials/?

Prof. Robyn and A/Prof Lauren have created an e-learning course on AMD with the latest information on imaging tools, clinical biomarkers and management with the newest emerting treatments and technology. It has been designed specifically for primary eye care practitioners which can be found here: https://study.unimelb.edu.au/find/short-courses/age-related-macular-degeneration-for-primary-eyecare-practitioners/ 

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This episode explores the intersection of eye health, technology and artificial intelligence with Professor Andrew Turpin, the Chair of Ophthalmic Data at the Lions Eye Institute jointly appointed at Curtin University. Andrew is a computer scientist with niche skills in eye health, whose research adds a unique perspective to eye care and the advancement of eye care technologies.

Together, we delve into the fusion of eye health and computer science, with an emphasis on AI-driven healthcare solutions.

Key topics include:

• Evolution of Visual Acuity Testing: Challenges and innovations in clinical practice.
• Advancements in Testing Technologies: Potential of virtual reality headsets and handheld OCT devices.
• Perimetry Testing: Improvements needed for efficiency and reducing unnecessary tests, with a focus on real-time eye tracking and head-mounted perimeters.
• Objective Testing Methods: Role of fundus imaging and AI analysis, highlighting deep learning applications and the importance of data quality.
• AI in Clinical Practice: Augmenting clinicians and automating tasks like fundus photography and OCT imaging. We highlight collaborations such as Google DeepMind and Lions Eye Institute's work on detecting diabetic retinopathy in remote communities.
• Data Privacy and Integration: Challenges in data protection, managing personal information, and legal responsibilities of AI technologies.
• Emerging Technologies: The future of AI and retinal imaging, including the use of VR headsets and advancements in both hardware and software.

Here are some of Andrew’s recommendations for interesting insights into AI:

Artificial Intelligence and Human Life: Five Lessons for Radiology from the 737 MAX Disasters: https://pubs.rsna.org/doi/10.1148/ryai.2020190111

Lessons learned from translating AI from development to deployment in healthcare: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02293-9

And an interesting diabetic retinopathy project: https://docs.aireadi.org/ because they have created a new license for data use that restricts sharing the data but also includes text about identifying individuals and sharing the data inadvertently. Anyone who is thinking of using/releasing data should look at it.

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In our inaugural introductory episode on the retina, we chat about historical perspectives on the role of the retina in vision, its important features, how we can see them, and things that might go wrong. We try not to blow your minds too much in this introductory episode, but my guest Lauren, just cannot help herself!

About our guest A/Prof Lauren Ayton: Lauren co-leads the Retinal Gene Therapy Unit and is the Head of the Vision Optimisation Unit at the University of Melbourne. Her research interests are inherited retinal disease (IRD), low vision, and interventions to assist people with IRD, including gene therapy. Trained as an optometrist, Lauren couldn’t help but continue asking all the hard questions and trying to find the answers! Learn more about Lauren here.

Show resources:

• A very interesting timeline of key events and developments in our understanding of the retina
• A fantastic interactive site to visualise the layers of the retina

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I’m Lien Trinh, your host of Talking Eyes, a groundbreaking Australian podcast dedicated to exploring the latest advancements in eye research. We’ll be translating these golden nuggets into tangible clinical practices, and help non-clinicians navigate your own interests in eye health and future possibilities.

You, may be a vision tester. You, may be experiencing vision impairment. You, may have a loved one losing their sight. For you, I am thrilled to launch Talking Retina, the first of our podcast series, to offer an inside look into the dynamic world of retinal research. Our guests are true visionaries, dedicated to bridging the gap between scientific discovery and real-world impact. Vision and vision research is complex, but there are endless possibilities.  

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