Dr. Dorota Skowronska-Krawczyk awarded BrightFocus Foundation National Glaucoma Research grant

Dr. Dorota Skowronska-Krawczyk has been awarded a BrightFocus Foundation National Glaucoma Research grant for a project entitled, “The cumulative role of repeated IOP elevations in epigenetic reprogramming and aging.” Her proposal was enthusiastically received by the BrightFocus Scientific Review Committee, following a very competitive review process. Her lab has recently shown that the aging process can be accelerated in young tissue through repeated exposure to mild intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation, which mimics the changes occurring over a lifetime. Their epigenetic analysis indicates that changes in chromatin and DNA methylation levels in young tissue exposed to repetitive stress resemble those that occur during aging, coinciding with increased susceptibility to stress, as measured by the loss of neuronal function and neuronal degeneration. She proposed to use mouse models to study the molecular mechanisms underlying age-related neuronal changes caused by mild stress, specifically the accumulation of transcriptional and epigenetic changes. Using the mouse model developed in her laboratory, she proposes to: i) characterize the transcriptional program of resilience to mild stress in young tissue; ii) measure the transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms underlying the induced programs of susceptibility to stress; and iii) uncover the stepwise mechanisms of aging by measuring DNA methylation as the final step in the accelerated aging process. The proposed experiments should elucidate the sequential changes in transcriptional ability to respond to repetitive stress and suggest novel, transcriptionally or epigenetically defined therapeutic strategies aimed at restoring resilience to stress and maintaining health in aging neuronal tissue.

The BrightFocus Foundation funds exceptional scientific research worldwide to defeat Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma and provides expert information on these heartbreaking diseases. Their funding has helped blaze new trails of discoveries and breakthroughs, supporting distinguished scientists holding two Nobel Prizes, as well as 49 MetLife Foundation Awards, 34 Potamkin Prizes, and many others.