Role of photoreceptors in local inflammation and pathological angiogenesis in diabetic retinopathy

Project TitleRole of photoreceptors in local inflammation and pathological angiogenesis in diabetic retinopathy

Dr. De la Huerta obtained her undergraduate degree magna cum laude from Harvard University.  Following her medical degree, she received her PhD in Neuroscience from Harvard.  She completed her ophthalmology residency at the University of California, San Francisco, and her two-year specialty fellowship in adult and pediatric vitreoretinal surgery at the William Beaumont Hospital.  Dr. De la Huerta is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Hogan-Garcia Award for best scientific paper at UCSF, the John Harvard Scholar Award, and the Harvard University Certificate of Distinction in Teaching.  In 2019, Dr. De la Huerta was honored as an Emerging Vision Scientist at AEVR’s (Association for Eye and Vision Research) 5th Annual reception on Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C.  She is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and the American Society of Retina Specialists.  

Dr. De la Huerta’s IRRF-supported study will utilize a novel photoreceptor primary dissociated culture system to investigate the hypothesis that photoreceptors under hyperglycemic conditions contribute to local inflammation and pathological angiogenesis.  

Dr. De la Huerta presented her work at the 2019 National Association for Eye and Vision.