Understanding why people go blind: new research into macular degeneration
Freiburg, 15.05.2025
New Emmy Noether group headed by Dr. Julian Wolf, member of the Medical Faculty at the University of Freiburg and research group leader at the Eye Center, University Medical Center Freiburg, is researching the causes of age-related macular degeneration.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the commonest cause of loss of sight in elderly people worldwide. As yet there is no effective treatment for most sufferers. To improve understanding of the disease, the German Research Foundation (DFG) is now funding an Emmy Noether junior research team headed by Dr. Julian Wolf, member of the Medical Faculty at the University of Freiburg and research group leader at the Eye Center, University Medical Center Freiburg. The project will receive a total of about 1.6 million euros over six years. A combination of high resolution molecular analyses and machine learning will be used to decode the previously unknown disease mechanisms of AMD for the first time.
“I’m delighted about the funding, because we urgently need a deeper understanding of this complex disease in order to treat AMD effectively,” says Dr. Julian Wolf. “We can only develop targeted new treatments when we understand precisely how the disease progresses through various stages.”
Hope for millions of sufferers worldwide
Around 200 million people worldwide suffer from age-related macular degeneration, often also known simply as macular degeneration. By 2040 it is forecast that the number of people with AMD worldwide will rise to around 300 million. Many gradually lose central vision, with huge effects on their independence and quality of life. “We hope in future we’ll be able to make a contribution with this project to helping sufferers at the earliest possible stage – ideally even before serious visual impairments arise,” says Wolf.
Fluid biopsies from the eye yield new insights
A key problem in AMD research is that classic tissue samples cannot be taken from the light-sensitive retina without risking harm to eyesight. So Wolf’s team is using fluid biopsies from the aqueous fluid in the eye, obtained during eye operations. The researchers are studying the composition of the proteins and the activity of surrounding cells in this clear liquid. Using machine learning, they can draw initial conclusions about which cell types and signalling pathways are changed in early and late stages of the disease.
“The project is an outstanding example of the close interlinking of basic and clinical research that is typical of medical research in Freiburg,” says Prof. Dr. Lutz Hein, Dean of the Medical Faculty of the University of Freiburg. “The biological principles are studied in human samples – and in turn the patients benefit from these findings in the long term. Freiburg is the ideal setting for this, especially for young, ambitious scientists.”
“I’m very pleased that this pioneering research project is taking place at our Eye Center and receiving such generous support from the German Research Foundation,” adds Prof. Dr. Thomas Reinhard, Managing Medical Director of the Eye Center at University Medical Center Freiburg.