Glaucoma Research Foundation receives $1.6 million gift

July 13, 2010

The Glaucoma Research Foundation has received the largest single gift in its 32 year history. The staggering $1.6 million gift from the Melza M. and Frank Theodore Barr Foundation and is to support the ongoing research of the Catalyst For a Cure consortium to discover a cure for glaucoma. “The Barrs have been very generous in their support of glaucoma research and their gift will have a major impact on the effort to find new treatments and eventually a cure for glaucoma,” said Thomas Brunner, president and CEO of Glaucoma Research Foundation.

The Catalyst For a Cure research consortium is in its ninth year and takes a unique approach to glaucoma research. Unlike conventional research, which often operates in isolation until results can be published, the Catalyst For a Cure was formed with the goal of real time collaboration to speed the process of discovery. Four principal scientists at four universities brought their experience in neuroscience, genetics, molecular biology and vision to curing glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness worldwide. Together the team has accelerated the pace of discovery and brought new understanding to vision loss from glaucoma. The principal scientists include Monica Vetter, PhD, University of Utah, Nick Marsh-Armstrong, PhD, Johns Hopkins University, Phil Horner, PhD, University of Washington, and David Calkins, PhD, Vanderbilt University.