# 2020 Cornea and Ocular Surface Biology and Pathology GRC/GRS

> **NIH NIH R13** · GORDON RESEARCH CONFERENCES · 2020 · $39,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Vision depends on the integrity and functionality of ocular surface comprising cornea, conjunctiva, associated
glands and tear film. Alteration of this integrated unit can result in visual impairment or blindness across the
developed and developing world. Understanding the fundamentals of ocular surface homeostasis and disease
together with innovative therapeutic developments is vital for the health of aging population and the economy.
We seek support for a meeting of world leaders in vision research at the 2020 Gordon Research Conference on
Cornea & Ocular Surface Biology & Pathology (GRC-COSBP), February 16-21 2020, the Renaissance Tuscany
Il Ciocco, Lucca, Italy. Building on the success of previous GRC-COSBP we plan 9 scientific sessions on key
paradigm shifting innovations in ocular surface biology and pathology. Sessions will comprise main 20-minute
talks with 1-2 short talks invited from poster presentations and focused on young investigators to enable them to
present their findings to the community. The session titles are: 1. Intrinsic microbiome and influences of
microbiota from remote sites; 2. Exosomes in healthy and diseased ocular surface; 3. CRISPR/personalized
medicine – therapeutic gene editing in corneal dystrophies; 4. Identification and generation of corneal stem cells
and their use for transplantation; 5. Transcriptome and proteomics: corneal cell types and changes in disease;
6. Corneal neighbors affecting its function: conjunctiva, meibomian and lacrimal glands; 7. From discovery to
clinic: drug testing and regulatory issues; 8. Advances in ocular surface drug delivery: viruses vs. nanoconstructs;
and 9. Inflammation and immunity in ocular surface diseases. Early career scientists paired with established
researchers will co-moderate the sessions. We are inviting a diverse, gender-balanced selection of 36 speakers
focusing their talks on their unpublished data. Speakers include junior scientists and some outside of the vision
field whose important studies have parallels and application to eye research. The inclusion of speakers outside
of the eye field will foster discussions and collaborative opportunities across disciplines and between young
investigators and leaders in the field. We request that speakers stay for the GRC duration. We will also hold 4th
two-day Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) for graduate students and postdocs working in the ocular surface
field immediately before GRC-COSBP. GRS facilitates interactions and opportunities for early career scientists
to present data in a relaxed atmosphere and gain experience in conference organization and chairing sessions.
Previous GRS participants have continued active participation in the GRC and we fully expect this to be the case
in 2020. 2020 GRS and GRC-COSBP will continue the tradition of supporting future field leaders to interact with
each other at the GRS and with established scientists at the GRC. The formed relationships are likely to last and
be pr...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9913789
- **Project number:** 1R13EY031208-01
- **Recipient organization:** GORDON RESEARCH CONFERENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** Alexander V Ljubimov
- **Activity code:** R13 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $39,000
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2019-12-01 → 2020-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9913789

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9913789, 2020 Cornea and Ocular Surface Biology and Pathology GRC/GRS (1R13EY031208-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9913789. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*