Keratoconus is a progressive disease which causes the cornea to change shape, lose mechanical strength, and disturb the passage of light to the retina. This causes distorted vision, increased sensitivity to light and glare, frequently changing eyeglass prescription, and can lead to sudden clouding of vision. Affecting 1 in 2000 people, this relatively common disease classically manifests around puberty and often affects both eyes.

Corneal transplant and collagen cross linking are currently the most common methods of treatment of the disease. 

Led by Dr. Uri Soiberman, the keratoconus research team at Wilmer Eye Institute includes a growing collaborative group of clinicians, basic scientists, engineers, and veterinarians. The goal of the keratoconus research group is to understand all aspects of the disease to prevent the loss of vision and reduce the need for surgical intervention. It seeks to understand the fundamental biology of the cornea, identify underlying causes of the disease, design advanced surgical treatments, and develop novel therapeutic strategies to prevent loss of visual acuity.

The team is based in the Robert H. and Clarice Smith Building at the Wilmer Eye Institute's location in Baltimore, Maryland.

We undertake several research programs that investigate both the fundamental biology of the cornea, and how these become affected in disease. Our current studies include:

• Cellular stress in the cornea – the keratoconus research team has identified the activation of a key cellular signal pathway indicating that keratoconus cells are unexpectedly stressed. Work in his lab is focusing on identifying the causes of this activation, as well as screening drugs which can relieve this stress to return the cells to normal
• Genetic basis of keratoconus – In around 10% of patients, there is a family history of keratoconus. The keratoconus research team lab coordinates the largest keratoconus research repository on the East coast. With blood samples, cell lines, and an international group of researchers. The “Baltimore cohort” is a world leading repository for keratoconus researchers (NA_00006544).
• Drug delivery for keratoconus – In collaboration with the center for nanomedicine, the keratoconus research team is developing and testing formulations of eye drops to deliver novel small molecules to the cornea in order to treat altered cell behavior in keratoconus
• The role of the corneal epithelium in progressive keratoconus – through collection of tissue samples obtained during corneal collagen crosslinking, Dr. Soiberman’s lab is evaluating how the outermost layer of the eye (the corneal epithelium) may cause progressive steepening of the cornea in keratoconus. This unique biobank, one of the largest in the United States, is used for gene and protein expression studies, as well as the creation of keratoconus epithelial cell lines. We hope that better understanding of the interaction between the keratoconus corneal epithelium and the underlying layers of the cornea will aid in the design of novel treatments for keratoconus.

Learn about participating in our studies