In 2015 the band X Ambassadors released a music video for their song, "Renegades" that features people with physical challenges doing extraordinary things. This really touched a chord, because it is what I hope for all of my patients. We made a video for a contest X Ambassadors ran on Twitter, and although we never actually entered the contest we were able to show it to the band when they played in Des Moines, Iowa.
Recent News
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Friday, July 29, 2016 - 08:45
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Tuesday, July 26, 2016 - 18:00
Arlene Drack, MD, presented data from the Phase III gene replacement trial for RPE65 associated Leber Congenital Amaurosis at the annual meeting of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus held in Vancouver, BC, Canada on April 9, 2016. Results of the trial, carried out at the University of Iowa and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (sponsored by Spark Therapeutics), showed statistically significant improvement in navigating a mobility course in treated patients. Many patients could navigate even in very dim light after the treatment.
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Sunday, July 10, 2016 - 11:30
On Friday, August 5th, the 9th annual Midwest Eye Research Symposium (MERS) brought together some of the leading researchers in ophthalmology in the Midwest. Drack lab members attended research talks from notable speakers, including Dr. Terri Young, M.D, M.B.A. (pictured), Dr. Rudolf Fuchshofer, Ph.D, and Dr. Simon Petersen-Jones DVet Med, Ph.D, DECVO, among others. Dr. Young gave the keynote speech, as well as a clinical talk on potential environmental factors that influence the development of Myopia in children.
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Monday, June 27, 2016 - 16:30
A girl develops progressive hearing loss, and then notices trouble seeing in the dark. Her grandmother had slowly lost most of her vision as a child and later developed hearing loss. What is the connection? Dr. Drack made the diagnosis in this family using clinical and molecular genetic testing not available in the past, and is able to give the family detailed information about their condition, and the hope that research today will improve their lives in the future.
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Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - 10:15
Arlene Drack, MD, presented a poster on data collected and analyzed over the past several years on multifocal ERG in patients with albinism. The poster generated excellent discussions with researchers from around the world with the unexpected and interesting finding that many albinism patients have a normal central multifocal ERG electrical spike despite having no visible fovea on OCT. This suggests that the cause of visual impairment in albinism patients is more posterior in the visual system, knowledge that is important to developing methods of improving vision in patients.
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Friday, May 20, 2016 - 08:30
Research laboratories cannot exist without support. If you are interested in supporting our laboratory, please contact Mitch Beckman at the University of Iowa Foundation at (319) 467-3402, email: mitch-beckman@uiowa.edu. Support comes from patients, families and others who volunteer to participate in research studies—thank you all! Important financial support is provided by grant agencies and foundations and the National Institutes of Health.