Publications
DOVS publications appearing in PubMed over the February 2019 – August 2019 period.
Exercise and Glaucoma: Positive Steps Toward Finding Another Modifiable Risk Factor to Prevent Vision Loss.
Anderson AJ.
Ophthalmology. 2019 Jul;126(7):965-966
Commentary on recent work suggesting exercise might be beneficial in slowing the rate of vision loss in glaucoma.
Mapping flow velocity in the human retinal capillary network with pixel intensity cross correlation.
Bedggood P, Metha A.
PLoS One. 2019 Jun 25;14(6).
A new software algorithm applied to adaptive optics imaging data improves upon existing methods to track cellular movement across the retinal capillary network, rendering flow velocity patterns with micrometre resolution.
Psychosocial assessment of potential retinal prosthesis trial participants.
Bentley SA, O'Hare F, Murphy GC, Finger RP, Luu CD, Keeffe JE, Abbott CJ, Guymer RH, Ayton LN.
Clin Exp Optom. 2019 Sep;102(5):506-512.
Psychosocial questionnaires are useful for exploring patient suitability for a retinal prosthesis (bionic eye). However, currently validated questionnaires are not good at predicting a person’s interest in experimental clinical trials.
Optical coherence tomography: seeing the unseen.
Bui BV, Downie LE, Lindsay RG.
Clin Exp Optom. 2019 May;102(3):193-194.
This editorial highlight novel advances in optical coherence tomography imaging and its application to eye research and clinical practice.
A digital resource to assess clinical competency.
Cham KM, Cochrane AL.
Clin Teach. 2019 May 29. doi: 10.1111/tct.13030.
An iPad-based assessment and feedback resource has been developed to provide students with immediate written feedback after OSCEs. This innovation has also resulted in more effective staff administration.
Surgical interventions for infantile nystagmus syndrome
Cochrane Systematic Review - Intervention - Protocol Version published: 05 August 201)
Cham KM, Abel LA, Busija L, Kowal L, Bachar Zipori A, Downie LE
The aim is to assess the efficacy and safety of surgical interventions for infantile nystagmus syndrome since there is no consensus and guidelines regarding best surgical options for this condition.
Relating excitatory and inhibitory neurochemicals to visual perception: A magnetic resonance study of occipital cortex between migraine events.
Chan YM, Pitchaimuthu K, Wu QZ, Carter OL, Egan GF, Badcock DR, McKendrick AM.
PLoS One. 2019 Jul 10;14(7).
We were able to estimate the amount of excitatatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters in visual cortex using brain imaging. We did not find any difference in these neurochemicals between people with migraine and those without, when tested in between migraine events.
The Effects of Ageing on Corneal and Ocular Surface Homeostasis in Mice.
De Silva MEH, Hill LJ, Downie LE, Chinnery HR.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2019 Jun 3;60(7):2705-2715.
The clinical and histological features of the mouse ocular surface was examined in ageing. Compared to young mice, aged mice had epithelial thinning and fewer corneal nerves, but similar tear osmolarity and dendritic cell density.
Knowledge, perspectives and clinical practices of Australian optometrists in relation to childhood myopia.
Douglass A, Keller PR, He M, Downie LE.
Clin Exp Optom. 2019 Jun 30. doi: 10.1111/cxo.12936.
This survey-based study finds that current Australian optometric practices reflect the inconclusive nature of several key aspects of the evidence for childhood myopia management.
Analysis of a Systematic Review About Blue Light-Filtering Intraocular Lenses for Retinal Protection: Understanding the Limitations of the Evidence.
Downie LE, Wormald R, Evans J, Virgili G, Keller PR, Lawrenson JG, Li T.
JAMA Ophthalmol. 2019 Jun 1;137(6):694-697.
This commentary discusses that using blue light-filtering IOLs to impart benefits to the macula is currently not supported by the best available clinical research evidence.
Effects of age and visual attention demands on optokinetic nystagmus suppression.
Dyer RK, Abel LA.
Exp Eye Res. 2019 Jun;183:46-51.
While simple OKN suppression is easy for young and old alike, older subjects have greater difficulty when their attention is also directed to the detection of a feature of the moving background.
A Systematic Review of Interventions to Reduce the Effects of Cognitive Biases in the Decision-Making of Audiologists.
Galvin KL, Featherston RJ, Downie LE, Vogel AP, Hamilton B, Granger C, Shlonsky A.
J Am Acad Audiol. 2019 Jul 5. doi: 10.3766/jaaa.18096.
This systematic review identifies a lack of peer-reviewed scientific studies that have investigated strategies to reduce the impact of cognitive biases on the clinical decision-making of audiologists.
Topographical and Morphological Differences of Corneal Dendritic Cells during Steady State and Inflammation.
Jiao H, Naranjo Golborne C, Dando SJ, McMenamin PG, Downie LE, Chinnery HR.
Ocul Immunol Inflamm. 2019 Aug 20:1-10.
Mouse corneal dendritic cells alter their morphology during acute and chronic inflammation caused by injury and/or exposure to microbial products. This effect also occurred in response to systemic and contralateral eye challenge.
Corneal Epithelial Dendritic Cell Response as a Putative Marker of Neuro-inflammation in Small Fiber Neuropathy.
Kamel JT, Zhang AC, Downie LE.
Ocul Immunol Inflamm. 2019 Aug 14:1-4.
This case report, involving a 41-year old with systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjögren's syndrome, identifies corneal dendritic cell density as a potential non-invasive marker of symptomatic small fibre neuropathy due to inflammation.
Nutrition and Eye Health.
Lawrenson JG, Downie LE.
Nutrients. 2019 Sep 6;11(9).
This Guest Editorial, with a particular focus on diet and age-related macular degeneration, provides an overview of studies in a Special Issue of ‘Nutrients’ relating to nutrition and eye health.
A Critical Appraisal of National and International Clinical Practice Guidelines Reporting Nutritional Recommendations for Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Are Recommendations Evidence-Based?
Lawrenson JG, Evans JR, Downie LE.
Nutrients. 2019 Apr 11;11(4).
This paper identifies scope to improving current Clinical Practice Guidelines for AMD, and emphasises the importance for guideline developers to use evidence from existing high quality systematic reviews to inform clinical recommendations.
Utility of self-destructing CRISPR/Cas constructs for targeted gene editing in the retina.
Li F, Hung SSC, Mohd Khalid MKN, Wang JH, Chrysostomou V, Wong VHY, Singh V, Wing K, Tu L, Bender JA, Pebay A, King AE, Cook AL, Wong RCB, Bui BV, Hewitt AW, Liu GS.
Hum Gene Ther. 2019 Aug 2. doi: 10.1089
in vivo genome editing can have unwanted “off-target” effects if left unchecked. This study shows that it is possible to engineer a gene editing construct that self-destructs without compromising on-target effects.
Hypercapnia Impairs Vasoreactivity to Changes in Blood Pressure and Intraocular Pressure in Rat Retina.
Liu G, Cull G, Wang L, Bui BV.
Optom Vis Sci. 2019 Jul;96(7):470-476.
This study shows that high carbon dioxide levels (hypercapnia) makes retinal blood vessel less able to autoregulate; that’s is to maintain blood flow in the face of increased intraocular pressure and decreased blood pressure.
Robot Assistants for Perimetry: A Study of Patient Experience and Performance.
McKendrick AM, Zeman A, Liu P, Aktepe D, Aden I, Bhagat D, Do K, Nguyen HD, Turpin A.
Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2019 Jun 28;8(3):59.
This study showed that like having support during visual field assessment. If a human is not available, a humanoid robot may suffice. People do not like being left alone and also preferred the robot to automated voice commands delivered via speakers.
Tear Film Extensional Viscosity Is a Novel Potential Biomarker of Dry Eye Disease.
McDonnell A, Lee JH, Makrai E, Yeo LY, Downie LE.
Ophthalmology. 2019 Aug;126(8):1196-1198.
This paper describes a highly novel approach to diagnosing dry eye disease, through characterisation of the extensional viscosity of a microliter tear sample.
Diversity of Feature Selectivity in Macaque Visual Cortex Arising from a Limited Number of Broadly Tuned Input Channels.
Mohan YS, Jayakumar J, Lloyd EKJ, Levichkina E, Vidyasagar TR.
Cereb Cortex. 2019 Apr 10. pii: bhz063. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhz063.
This paper shows that the preference of visual cortical cells for a range of stimulus orientations is built from a limited number of orientations that cells in retina and geneiculate prefer.
The influence of perceptual stabilisation on perceptual grouping of temporally asynchronous stimuli.
Park ASY, Bedggood PA, Metha AB, Anderson AJ.
Vision Res. 2019 Jul;160:1-9.
Our eyes are constantly in motion, yet perceptual stabilization mechanisms prevent our perceiving a constantly jiggling world. The current study indicates such mechanisms can also measurably influence visual function.
The influence of retinal image motion on the perceptual grouping of temporally asynchronous stimuli.
Park ASY, Metha AB, Bedggood PA, Anderson AJ.
J Vis. 2019 Apr 1;19(4):2.
Small retinal image shifts from small, random eye movements have been previously exploited in a perceptual grouping task. We find that grouping performance also improves with concurrent smooth pursuit movement producing larger, known shifts.
High-definition transcranial direct current stimulation in anorexia nervosa: A pilot study.
Phillipou A, Kirkovski M, Castle DJ, Gurvich C, Abel LA, Miles S, Rossell SL.
Int J Eat Disord. 2019 Aug 21. doi: 10.1002/eat.23146.
Recent studies of abnormal fixational eye movements in anorexia nervosa implicate specific neural pathways. This pilot study examines the effects of TDCS in modifying activity there.
Insights into Australian optometrists' knowledge and attitude towards prescribing blue light-blocking ophthalmic devices.
Singh S, Anderson AJ, Downie LE.
Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2019 May;39(3):194-204.
Our survey suggests blue light-blocking lens prescribing has increased, despite practitioners acknowledging the lack of high-quality evidence for their use and the common belief that patient responses may, in part, be placebo effects.
Head and Gaze Behavior in Retinitis Pigmentosa.
Titchener SA, Ayton LN, Abbott CJ, Fallon JB, Shivdasani MN, Caruso E, Sivarajah P, Petoe MA.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2019 May 1;60(6):2263-2273.
To compensate for peripheral vision loss in retinitis pigmentosa (RP), RP patients generally use more head movement than eye movement. This is correlated with the severity of their vision loss.
Visual attention and neural oscillations in reading and dyslexia: Are they possible targets for remediation?
Vidyasagar TR.
Neuropsychologia. 2019 Jul;130:59-65.
Based upon the role of cortical oscillations in enabling the attentional system to parse the letters and words of a text, possible ways of treating dyslexia are discussed.
An Integrated Neuronal Model of Claustral Function in Timing the Synchrony Between Cortical Areas.
Vidyasagar TR, Levichkina E.
Front Neural Circuits. 2019 Feb 5;13:3.
Based on the pattern of functional connections, we suggest a mechanism whereby the claustrum synchronizes oscillations between cortical areas to aid sequential processing of sensory information.
Optical coherence tomography angiography findings in a case of adult-onset vitelliform dystrophy.
Wang J, Tan J, Snibson K, Cham KM.
Clin Exp Optom. 2019 May;102(3):341-342.
Adult-onset vitelliform dystrophy is characterised by progressive vision loss due to sub-macular deposition of drusenoid material. Genetic testing and imaging may help to clarify the diagnosis and reveal choroidal neovascularisation.
Electroretinogram Recording in Larval Zebrafish using A Novel Cone-Shaped Sponge-tip Electrode.
Xie J, Jusuf PR, Goodbourn PT, Bui BV.
J Vis Exp. 2019 Mar 27;(145).
The zebrafish has emerged as a useful model of ocular development and disease. A new simpler method is described for objectively measuring visual function (or electroretinography) in zebrafish larvae.
Synaptic Basis for Contrast-Dependent Shifts in Functional Identity in Mouse V1.
Yunzab M, Choi V, Meffin H, Cloherty SL, Priebe NJ, Ibbotson MR.
eNeuro. 2019 Apr 9;6(2).
Cells with nonlinear spatial summation in visual cortex summate linearly at low contrasts. We show that this is due to a synaptic mechanism, not a threshold mechanism.
Comparison of contrast-dependent phase sensitivity in primary visual cortex of mouse, cat and macaque.
Yunzab M, Cloherty SL, Ibbotson MR.
Neuroreport. 2019 Oct 9;30(14):960-965.
We repeated the same measures of phase sensitivity in visual cortex of mouse, cat and monkey – all three had similar characteristics, making the mouse a reasonable model for future work.
Pattern Motion Processing by MT Neurons.
Zarei Eskikand P, Kameneva T, Burkitt AN, Grayden DB, Ibbotson MR.
Front Neural Circuits. 2019 Jun 21;13:43.
MT is the motion-processing centre of the primate brain. This model shows how its unique properties arise by cleverly combining inputs from several types of precursor neurons.
Preliminary Validation of a Food Frequency Questionnaire to Assess Long-Chain Omega-3 Fatty Acid Intake in Eye Care Practice.
Zhang AC, Downie LE.
Nutrients. 2019 Apr 11;11(4).
This study describes and validates a new questionnaire, the Clinical Omega-3 Dietary Survey (CODS), for rapidly estimating a patient’s long-chain omega-3 intake in clinical practice.