Publications by authors named "Aleman T"

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the natural history of the photoreceptor disease in a large group of pediatric patients with RHD12-associated Leber congenital amaurosis (RDH12-LCA), to estimate the changes expected over the duration of a clinical trial, and to define the relationship between the photoreceptor loss and visual dysfunction.

Methods: Forty-six patients representing 36 families were included. The great majority of patients were under the age of 18 years.

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Purpose: Choroideremia (CHM) is an X-linked inherited retinal degeneration causing loss of photoreceptors, retinal pigment epithelium, and choriocapillaris. Structural abnormalities of the cone photoreceptor mosaic have been reported even within the retained island of functioning retina. Here, we describe the relationship between cone density and visual sensitivity within the retained central retina in CHM.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study explores gene therapy targeting L-cone opsin expression as a treatment for blue cone monochromacy (BCM), a condition caused by the lack of long- and middle-wavelength-sensitive cone function.
  • Eight patients with BCM underwent various assessments, including optical coherence tomography and chromatic perimetry, revealing outer retinal changes and significant deficiencies in color vision and visual acuity.
  • The research emphasizes the need for specialized outcome measures, such as dark-adapted microperimetry and specific visual acuity tests, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of potential future treatments in clinical trials.
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Background: Leber congenital amaurosis 1 (LCA1), caused by mutations in GUCY2D, is a rare inherited retinal disease that typically causes blindness in early childhood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy of ascending doses of ATSN-101, a subretinal AAV5 gene therapy for LCA1.

Methods: 15 patients with genetically confirmed biallelic mutations in GUCY2D were included in this phase 1/2 study.

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A multi-stakeholder, patient centric approach will be critical to the design of future successful clinical trials with outcome measures relevant to the RDH12-IRD population.

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Purpose: To describe the retinal phenotype of an unusual case of anti-TRPM1 autoantibody-positive unilateral melanoma-associated retinopathy (MAR) triggered by nivolumab therapy and compare with the phenotype of -associated Congenital Stationary Night Blindness (-CSNB).

Observations: Unilateral MAR was diagnosed 3 months after starting nivolumab therapy for consolidation of a successfully treated melanoma. Retinal autoantibodies against TRPM1 were identified.

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  • Congenital stationary night blindness (CSNB) is a genetic eye condition often linked to high myopia, which can lead to serious retinal issues, making understanding myopic progression crucial for potential treatments.
  • The study analyzed cases of CSNB associated with specific genetic variants in patients under 18 who had multiple eye measurements, using a mixed-effect model to track changes in myopia over time.
  • Results showed that individuals with CSNB are significantly myopic from birth and continue to experience worsening myopia as they grow, suggesting they may benefit from treatments aimed at slowing down myopia progression.
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  • A case study discusses a 66-year-old woman diagnosed with pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) who displayed uncommon symptoms, possibly linked to a mild gene variant.
  • Despite her limited skin symptoms, the patient exhibited significant eye complications, such as retinal disruptions indicating angioid streaks and impaired vision, stressing the need for detailed ophthalmic assessments.
  • Genetic testing revealed two variants in the ABCC6 gene, confirming the connection to PXE and suggesting a complex interaction of these genetic changes in her condition.
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Purpose: To explore patterns of disease expression in Alagille syndrome (ALGS).

Methods: Patients underwent ophthalmic examination, optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging, fundus intravenous fluorescein angiography (IVFA), perimetry and full-field electroretinograms (ffERGs). An adult ALGS patient had multimodal imaging and specialized perimetry.

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Purpose: To gain an insight into the pathophysiology of associated inherited retinal degeneration through detailed phenotyping and long-term longitudinal follow-up.

Methods: The patient underwent complete ophthalmic examinations. Visual function was assessed with microperimetry, full-field electroretinography (ffERG), imaging with optical coherence tomography (OCT), short-wave (SW), and near-infrared (NIR) fundus autofluorescence (FAF).

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  • The study focuses on EDIT-101, a CRISPR-based gene-editing treatment aimed at inherited retinal degeneration originating from a specific harmful genetic variant.
  • Conducted on individuals aged 3 and older, the phase 1-2 trial administered different dosages of EDIT-101 via subretinal injection to assess safety and efficacy, with a primary focus on adverse events and secondary outcomes related to visual acuity and quality of life.
  • Results indicated that no serious side effects were linked to the treatment, with notable vision improvements observed in 64% of participants, suggesting potential benefits of the gene-editing approach for those with this form of retinal degeneration.
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Purpose: Choroideremia is an X-linked inherited retinal degeneration involving the choriocapillaris, retinal pigment epithelium, and photoreceptors. Adaptive optics scanning light ophthalmoscopy allows visualization of retinal structure at the level of individual cells and is well poised to provide insight into the pathophysiologic mechanisms underpinning the retinal degeneration in choroideremia.

Methods: Foveal adaptive optics scanning light ophthalmoscopy images of 102 eyes of 54 individuals with choroideremia were analyzed.

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Neurovascular coupling is a vital mechanism employed by the cerebrovascular system, including the eye, to regulate blood flow in periods of neuronal activation. This study aims to investigate if laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG) can detect coupling response elicited by flickering light stimuli and how variations in stimulus type and duration can affect the magnitude and evolution of blood flow in the optic nerve head (ONH) and peripapillary vessels. Healthy adults were exposed to two types of 10-Hz flicker stimuli: a photopic negative response-like stimulus (PhNR-S) or a visual evoked potential-like stimulus (VEP-S)-each presented in separate 10- and 60-s epochs.

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Mutations in BEST1 cause an autosomal recessive disease in dogs where the earliest changes localize to the photoreceptor-RPE interface and show a retina-wide micro-detachment that is modulated by light exposure. The purpose of this study was to define the spatial and temporal details of the outer retina and its response to light with ultra-high resolution OCT across a range of ages and with different BEST1 mutations. Three retinal regions were selected in each eye: near the fovea-like area, near the optic nerve, both in the tapetal area, and inferior to the optic nerve in the non-tapetal area.

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Article Synopsis
  • Genome editing might help treat a serious eye disease called late-onset retinal degeneration (L-ORD).
  • Scientists studied 25 patients with this disease to find the best times and places in the eye to test new treatments.
  • They discovered that changes in the eye's structure start before serious problems occur, meaning treatments could work at different stages of the disease.
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Purpose: To describe a patient with acute myelogenous leukemia who presented with a recurrent, bilateral, outer retinopathy, before and after consolidative peripheral blood stem cell transplantation complicated by chronic graft-versus-host disease.

Methods: This is a retrospective review of records from a 23-year-old woman with acute myelogenous leukemia who underwent comprehensive ophthalmic evaluations for over a year including chromatic perimetry and multifocal electroretinograms, imaging with spectral domain optical coherence tomography, near-infrared and short-wavelength fundus reflectance and autofluorescence, fluorescein and optical coherence tomography angiography.

Results: The patient presented with recurrent, unilateral paracentral scotomas.

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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe a case of bilateral peripapillary choroidal neovascular membranes in the setting of a patient with papillitis associated with pembrolizumab for Stage IIIA adenocarcinoma of the lung.

Methods: This was a retrospective case report with fundus photography, fluorescein angiography, optical coherence tomography, and optical coherence tomography angiography.

Results: A 59-year-old woman with Stage IIIA adenocarcinoma of the lung on pembrolizumab therapy presented with symptoms of blurry vision.

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Article Synopsis
  • A 20-year-old female patient from India, who was adopted, exhibited multiple health issues including intellectual disability, ataxia, schizophrenia, and progressive sensorineural hearing loss, among others.
  • Genetic analysis revealed three pathogenic variants in nuclear genes that contributed to her condition, including variants linked to Bardet-Biedl syndrome and nonsyndromic deafness, as well as congenital hypothyroidism.
  • The findings suggest the importance of investigating diverse genetic causes for complex health conditions, especially in patients with a family history of consanguinity, rather than assuming known disorders are solely responsible.
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Background: In RAS-mutant tumors, combined MEK and autophagy inhibition using chloroquine demonstrated synthetic lethality in preclinical studies. This phase II trial evaluated the safety and activity of the MEK inhibitor binimetinib combined with hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in patients with advanced KRAS-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: Eligibility criteria included KRAS-mutant NSCLC, progression after first-line therapy, ECOG PS 0-1, and adequate end-organ function.

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Choroideremia (CHM) is an X-linked recessive form of hereditary retinal degeneration, which preserves only small islands of central retinal tissue. Previously, we demonstrated the relationship between central vision and structure and population receptive fields (pRF) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in untreated CHM subjects. Here, we replicate and extend this work, providing a more in-depth analysis of the visual responses in a cohort of CHM subjects who participated in a retinal gene therapy clinical trial.

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While Alzheimer's disease (AD) is associated with inner retina thinning (retinal nerve fiber layer and ganglion cell layer), we have observed photoreceptor outer nuclear layer (ONL) thinning in patients with frontotemporal lobar degeneration tauopathy (FTLD-Tau) compared to normal controls. We hypothesized that ONL thinning may distinguish FTLD-Tau from patients with biomarker evidence of AD neuropathologic change (ADNC) and will correlate with FTLD-Tau disease severity. Predicted FTLD-Tau (pFTLD-Tau; n = 21; 33 eyes) and predicted ADNC (pADNC; n = 24; 46 eyes) patients were consecutively enrolled, underwent optical coherence tomography macula imaging, and disease was categorized (pFTLD-Tau vs.

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Purpose: To optimize a virtual reality (VR) orientation and mobility (O&M) test of functional vision in patients with inherited retinal degenerations (IRDs).

Methods: We developed an O&M test using commercially available VR hardware and custom-generated software. Normally sighted subjects (n = 20, ages = 14-67 years) and patients with IRDs (n = 29, ages = 15-63 years) participated.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aims to describe the eye-related characteristics of patients with Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA), specifically focusing on the yellow-white lesions seen in about 30% of them.
  • - Five patients underwent detailed eye exams, including tests assessing visual function and advanced imaging techniques to identify retinal abnormalities and the condition of photoreceptors.
  • - The findings suggest that the yellow-white lesions may represent degenerated photoreceptor segments, providing insights that could help develop future genetic treatments for LCA.
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Purpose: To describe in detail the retinal phenotype of LAMP2-associated Danon disease.

Methods: Three LAMP2-positive patients from two unrelated families were studied with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and with short-wavelength and near-infrared fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging. Visual function was measured with full-field electroretinography and chromatic perimetry.

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