How light-sensing cells build their outer, light-catching discs
Official title: Mechanisms of photoreceptor outer segment assembly
Funded at Upstate Medical University · NIH-11285237 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work watches how photoreceptor cells move the rhodopsin protein to make and maintain the light-detecting discs that keep vision working, with implications for people with inherited or degenerative retinal disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Upstate Medical University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Syracuse, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2024 |
| Project end | January 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $571,462 |
| NIH project number | 5R01EY035899-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11285237 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with inherited rod-dominant retinal degenerations (for example, forms of retinitis pigmentosa) or progressive photoreceptor-related vision loss would be most relevant to benefit from this line of work.
✕Less likely to help
People whose vision loss is due to optic nerve or brain disorders, or to non-photoreceptor causes, are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
Scientists will use an advanced 3D live-cell super-resolution microscope to follow single rhodopsin molecules as they move inside photoreceptor cells. They will study normal mice and a retinal degeneration (rds) mouse model that changes outer segment structure to see how disc assembly differs. The team tracks rhodopsin entry into the cilium, transport along the cilium, and unexpected exits back to the inner segment in real time. Findings are intended to pinpoint specific steps in disc formation that break down in disease and might be targeted by future therapies.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could reveal specific molecular steps to target so new treatments can prevent or slow photoreceptor-related vision loss.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work has mapped rhodopsin synthesis and delivery, but this real-time 3D single-particle tracking approach is novel and has already revealed rhodopsin movements that were not seen before.
Where this research is happening
-
Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Calvert, Peter Deane — Upstate Medical University
- Study coordinator: Calvert, Peter Deane
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.