# Regulation of retinal neurogenesis

> **NIH NIH R01** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2021 · $369,812

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
During development of the retina, it is critical to precisely coordinate the balance between proliferation and
differentiation of progenitors to ensure that the appropriate complement of each cell type is generated. While
much has been learned about transcription factors and signaling pathways that regulate this process, there is
evidence that epigenetic mechanisms, including histone modifications, play a key role. The polycomb
repressive complex 2 (PRC2), catalyzes and maintains methylation of lysine 27 on histone H3, which promotes
gene repression. The goal of this proposal is to address the role of PRC2 in the developing retina. We
previously found that the PRC2 catalytic subunit EZH2 is critical during postnatal retinal development for
maintaining retinal progenitor proliferation, ensuring transcriptional integrity, and coordinating the timing and
balance of late retinal cell differentiation. However, it is unclear whether PRC2 plays a role during early retinal
neurogenesis, and whether it promotes the maintenance of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), which are born early
during retinal development. The first aim of the proposal will focus on addressing how PRC2 regulates the
differentiation and the maintenance of early born retinal cell types, particularly RGCs. The second aim will
determine how PRC2 activity and target gene selection is regulated by a key accessory protein, JARID2. This
work will advance our understanding of how histone modification governs gene expression during retinal
neurogenesis. In particular, addressing how a key repressive modification is regulated as RGCs are generated
and maintained will be a major step forward. This will help inform strategies for cell replacement in diseases
where RGCs degenerate and are lost. In addition, by determining how changes in histone modification
contribute to neurodegeneration, we may gain insight into fundamental mechanisms of blinding eye diseases
such as glaucoma and other diseases impacting RGCs.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10202606
- **Project number:** 5R01EY012274-20
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Monica L Vetter
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $369,812
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1998-07-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10202606

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10202606, Regulation of retinal neurogenesis (5R01EY012274-20). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10202606. Licensed CC0.

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