Exploring exosomal therapeutics delivery strategies for macular disease
Dr. Sushma Anand is a research scientist on a mission to stop blindness. As a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA), Dr Anand works at the forefront of vision science, developing new ways to treat retinal diseases that currently have no cure such as Macular Telangiectasia Type 2 (MacTel) and Stargardt disease. For people slowly losing their sight, her research offers the possibility of preserving or even regaining their vision.
Dr. Anand and her team aim to explore how exosomes – tiny, naturally occurring “delivery vehicles” – can be used to transport medicines and genes directly to the cells in the eye that need them.
The team will use exosomes to treat two eye conditions that affect the macula and cause vision loss: Stargardt disease, an inherited eye condition that affects about 1 in every 10,000 people in Australia, and Macular Telangiectasia Type 2 (MacTel) which is caused by abnormal blood vessels around the fovea at the centre of the macula.
Dr. Anand is planning to use exosomes to deliver DNA to retinal cells to correct the genetic defect that causes Stargardt disease.
Published: 11 August, 2025
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2025 Grant Family Fund Award Recipient
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