# Macrophage miR146B and Ocular Neovascularization

> **NIH NIH R01** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $394,157

## Abstract

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in people over
50 years of age in the industrialized world. Vision loss in advanced AMD is either due to
pathologic angiogenesis called choroidal neovascularization (CNV) or from loss of the
retinal pigmented epithelium and overlying photoreceptor neurons in geographic atrophy.
CNV tends to be catastrophic and accounts for about 80-90% of severe vision loss in
AMD. Macrophage-mediated inflammation plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of CNV
in AMD. The aging macrophage manifests its dysfunction in AMD by altered activation
and polarization. The regulatory mechanisms that govern gene expression changes
within macrophages are poorly characterized. MicroRNAs regulate gene expression at a
global level but with cellular specificity and do so by mRNA degradation and translational
repression.
We propose to examine which miRNAs are altered in the aging macrophage, identify the
specific gene targets that they regulate and assess the effects of modifying both the
miRNA and genes in macrophages on their fate, function and ability to regulate CNV. This
could be especially insightful as it might confirm age as a continuous variable that can be
quantitatively regulated at an intrinsic level. We hope to identify novel miRNA, genes and
molecular pathways that could be therapeutically targeted in AMD to prevent vision loss
in this devastating disease.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10231124
- **Project number:** 5R01EY019287-09
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** RAJENDRA S APTE
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $394,157
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2010-09-30 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10231124

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10231124, Macrophage miR146B and Ocular Neovascularization (5R01EY019287-09). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10231124. Licensed CC0.

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