The Iowa City VA Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Visual Loss has awarded a total of $279,526 for the following 2025 Pilot grants to Department of Ophthalmology faculty and researchers:

Edward Linton, MD
$59,526 for the project entitled “Refining choroid blood flow measurements to improve detection of low blood flow in age-related macular degeneration”. 

Mentors are Randy Kardon, MD, PhD and Elliot Sohn, MD, FASRS. Resident Matthew Hunt, MD, PGY3 is also working on the project with Dr. Linton.

Elliot Sohn, MD, FASRS
$50,000 for the project entitled “Immune Dysfunction in Diabetic Macular Edema: Identifying Pathways for Improved Therapeutic Response”

Ashutosh Mangalam, PhD (Pathology) and Oliver Gramlich, PhD (Ophthalmology)
$50,000 for the project entitled “Gut Microbiota and Phytoestrogen Diet: A novel therapeutic Approach for Attenuating MS-related experimental optic neuritis”

Michael Hayes, MD, PhD (PI), Oliver W. Gramlich, PhD, and Maria Valdes, PhD
$60,000 for the project entitled “Optimization and Validation of a Novel In Vitro Model of the Visual Pathway”
 

Catherine Lee, PhD, Markus Kuehn, PhD, Kanwal Matharu, MD, Ali Salem, PhD
$60,000 for the project entitled “3D Bioprinted Corneal Endothelial Grafts as a Renewable Source for Endothelial Keratoplasty Transplantations”