Liying Low, NIHR Academic Lecture in Ophthalmology added “The study will enable us to produce the definitive catalogue of the micro-organisms found in the human eye including the viruses and phages that call it home. We anticipate that these data will be of tremendous use for future studies into the relationship between the microbiome, eye disease and how we treat them.”
Christopher Hammond, Frost Professor of Ophthalmology, King’s College London, stated “TwinsUK has been studying healthy aging for over 30 years. With our fantastic twin volunteers from all over the UK. The detailed information we have for them including genetic, dietary and even pollution data will allow us to find out what influences the normal eye microbiome. This will help us study disabling dry eye which a common problem, particularly in women after the menopause.”
Russell Van Gelder, Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Washington School of Medicine and Project lead concluded “Appreciation of the role of our microbiome in health and disease has been one of the great advances of 21st century medical research. We have reason to believe the ocular surface microbiome similarly affects the health of the eyes. We are grateful to the US National Institutes of Health for funding and truly excited for the opportunity to collaborate with our colleagues at University of Birmingham and King’s College London on this important project.”
