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Thomas Vincent Johnson III, M.D., Ph.D.

Thomas Vincent Johnson III, M.D., Ph.D.

Headshot of Thomas Vincent Johnson III
  • Shelley and Allan Holt Rising Professor of Ophthalmology
  • Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology
Male

Expertise

Cataract Surgery, Cataracts, Glaucoma, Ophthalmology ...read more

Research Interests

Glaucoma; Optic Nerve Neurodegeneration and Neuroprotection; Stem Cell Transplantation; Retinal Ganglion Cell Regeneration ...read more

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Insurance Information

Main Phone

Outside of Maryland & Washington D.C.

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International Patients

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Locations

The Johns Hopkins Hospital

Appointment Phone: 410-955-6052
600 N. Wolfe Street
Wilmer Eye Institute
Baltimore, MD 21287 map

Background

Thomas V. Johnson III, M.D., Ph.D. is a glaucoma specialist and the Shelley and Allan Holt Rising Professor of Ophthalmology at Wilmer Eye Institute. He received his BA (summa cum laude) in Biological Sciences from Northwestern University in 2005.  As a Gates-Cambridge Scholar and an NIH-OxCam Scholar, he earned his PhD in Clinical Neuroscience from the University of Cambridge (UK) in 2010.  He completed his medical training (AOA) at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 2014 and served as an intern on the Johns Hopkins Osler Medical Service prior to completing his ophthalmology residency and glaucoma fellowship at the Wilmer Eye Institute.

His research interests are focused on understanding the pathophysiology of retinal and optic nerve neurodegenerative disorders, and on the development of neuroprotective and neuroregenerative therapies for these conditions.  His doctoral thesis work evaluated intraocular stem and progenitor cell transplantation as a possible neuroprotective therapy for glaucoma. His research contributions have been recognized with a World Glaucoma Association Award nomination, the National Eye Institute’s Scientific Director’s Award, and the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology’s Merck Innovative Ophthalmology Research Award.  He also founded and served as director of the Student Sight Savers Program, a program that provides vision screening services to low-income residents of Baltimore, and helps them obtain access to clinical ophthalmological care.

Presently, he is interested in the neurobiological processes that lead to retinal ganglion cell death and dysfunction in glaucoma and other optic neuropathies.  In particular, he seeks to better understand the molecular mechanisms underlying axonal degeneration, dendrite retraction and afferent synapse loss, and cell body death in glaucoma.  His goal is to utilize knowledge of these processes to develop targeted neuroprotective strategies to slow or halt RGC death and preserve vision for patients with glaucoma.  He is also leading new investigations into the use of stem cell transplantation to achieve retinal ganglion cell placement, as a potential regenerative treatment for optic nerve disease, with a focus on anatomic incorporation of cell grafts, neurite growth and synapse formation, and electrophysiological retinal circuit integration.

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Titles

  • Shelley and Allan Holt Rising Professor of Ophthalmology
  • Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology

Departments / Divisions

Education

Degrees

  • MD; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (2014)

Residencies

  • Ophthalmology; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (2018)

Board Certifications

  • American Board of Ophthalmology (Ophthalmology) (2020)

Additional Training

  • Advanced Specialty Training Program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine / Glaucoma (2019)

Research & Publications

Selected Publications

View all on PubMed

Johnson TV, Martin KR. Development and characterization of an adult retinal explant organotypic tissue culture system as an in vitro intraocular stem cell transplantation model. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2008 Aug;49(8):3503-12. doi: 10.1167/iovs.07-1601. Epub 2008 Apr 11. PubMed PMID: 18408186.

Johnson TV, Oglesby EN, Steinhart MR, Cone-Kimball E, Jefferys J, Quigley HA. Time-Lapse Retinal Ganglion Cell Dendritic Field Degeneration Imaged in Organotypic Retinal Explant Culture. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2016 Jan 1;57(1):253-64. doi: 10.1167/iovs.15-17769. PubMed PMID: 26811145; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4736988.

Johnson TV, DeKorver NW, Levasseur VA, Osborne A, Tassoni A, Lorber B, Heller JP, Villasmil R, Bull ND, Martin KR, Tomarev SI. Identification of retinal ganglion cell neuroprotection conferred by platelet-derived growth factor through analysis of the mesenchymal stem cell secretome. Brain. 2014 Feb;137(Pt 2):503-19. doi: 10.1093/brain/awt292. Epub 2013 Oct 30. PubMed PMID: 24176979; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3914467.

Johnson TV, Bull ND, Hunt DP, Marina N, Tomarev SI, Martin KR. Neuroprotective effects of intravitreal mesenchymal stem cell transplantation in experimental glaucoma. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2010 Apr;51(4):2051-9. doi: 10.1167/iovs.09-4509. Epub 2009 Nov 20. PubMed PMID: 19933193; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2868400.

Johnson TV, Bull ND, Martin KR. Identification of barriers to retinal engraftment of transplanted stem cells. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2010 Feb;51(2):960-70. doi: 10.1167/iovs.09-3884. Epub 2009 Oct 22. PubMed PMID: 19850833; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2868445.

Activities & Honors

Honors

  • Artemis Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology, 2021
  • Dr. David L. Epstein Award, ARVO, 2019
  • Tuggle Community Excellence Award, Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2018
  • Heed Society Fellowship, Heed Society of Fellows, 2018
  • Innovative Ophthalmology Research Award, AFER/ARVO - Merck, 2015
  • David E Rogers Award, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 2014
  • Stephen J Ryan Prize, Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University, 2014
  • NEI Scientific Director's Award, National Institutes of Health, 2009
  • NC3Rs Prize, National Centre for Replacement, Refinement, and Reduction of Animals in Research, 2009
  • Gates-Cambridge Scholarship, Gates-Cambridge Trust, 2006
  • Imogen Rose Prize in Brain Repair, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, 2008

Memberships

  • Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology

    https://www.arvo.org/

  • American Medical Association

    https://www.ama-assn.org/

  • American Academy of Ophthalmology

    https://www.aao.org/

  • American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery

    http://www.ascrs.org/

  • American Glaucoma Society

    https://www.americanglaucomasociety.net/

Professional Activities

  • Founder, Director, Faculty Mentor/Supervisor, Student Sight Savers Program - Johns Hopkins University

Videos & Media

Recent News Articles and Media Coverage

Student-led Volunteer Group Gives Free Vision Screenings and Follow-up Care to Baltimore Residents, Johns Hopkins Medicine (Oct. 2021)

A Rift in the Retina May Help Repair the Optic Nerve, JHM Newsroom (Jan. 2021)

Home Monitoring of Eye Pressure Comes of Age, Johns Hopkins Clinical Connection

IOP increase consistent with dose after glaucoma medication washout, Helio (Jun. 2020)

Students Inspired to Save Sight, Wilmer (Summer 2020)

Moonshot: Collaborative Effort Targets Irreversible Blindness, Johns Hopkins Medicine (Apr. 2020)

Sight saving from a grassroots to a global level, Gates Cambridge (Jan. 2019)

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