Pitt Researcher Develops New Way to “See” Retina

March 15th, 2017

A University of Pittsburgh researcher and colleagues have developed a new method to noninvasively image the human retina, a thin layer of tissue at the back of the eye that is essential for vision. The method—developed by Ethan A. Rossi, PhD (Ophthalmology)—is the first to allow researchers to visualize individual retinal ganglion cells (RGCs).  These cells are found in the back of the eye and are involved in vision loss in diseases like glaucoma. Despite great efforts, no one before has successfully captured images of individual human RGCs, in part because they are nearly transparent. The research team hopes this new technique will prevent vision loss by enabling earlier diagnosis and treatment of disease.