Ophthalmologist awarded $2.3M NIH grant

Ashok Kumar, PhD, a professor of ophthalmology, visual and anatomical sciences at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine in Detroit, was awarded $2.3 million to study cell death mechanisms during ocular infections. 

The grant was awarded by the National Eye Institute and the National Institutes of Health, according to a July 8 news release from Wayne State University. Dr. Kumar’s will research ferroptosis, a type of regulated cell death. Ferroptosis damages the retina during bacterial endophthalmitis, a severe type of intraocular infection that can occur after surgery or trauma. 

The research will incorporate microbiology, immunology, cell biology and nanotechnology to increase understanding of ferroptosis and develop new clinical therapies for bacterial endophthalmitis.