Hope for young children with impaired eye sight caused by Albinism
Date:
The University of Southampton has been awarded over half a million pounds for groundbreaking research aimed at improving the vision of children born with Albinism.
Albinism affects the production of melanin – pigment which colours eyes, skin and hair. It can also affect the development of retinas in babies, making their eyes very sensitive to light and leaving them with severe sight problems as they grow up.
Dr Helena Lee , of the University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton (UHS), leads a research project called ‘OLIVIA’, which investigates this problem. She’s now been granted £542,000 from the Medical Research Council to take her research a step further and work towards a clinical trial involving babies, to test a potential treatment.
