The National Eye Research Centre has received an award of £255,000 from the Bristol-based charity, James Tudor Foundation, to fund research into the causes of eye diseases and the prevention of blindness.

Sam Gaussen, Director of the National Eye Research Centre said: “We are very excited about what this funding will mean for research. The National Eye Research Centre, with its close working relationship with the Academic Unit of Ophthalmology in the University of Bristol, is ideally placed to advance eye research.

“Furthermore, it can take advantage of the presence of the Corneal Transplant Service Eye Bank in the Bristol Eye Hospital and the excellent facilities in the School of Medical Sciences.”

Many people do not respond to standard treatments for inflammatory eye disease, so new treatments need to be developed.  This condition effects 2% of the population in the UK, and 40% per cent of these sufferers go on to develop severe visual impairment.

The funding will provide one researcher to investigate the role of immune cells that regulate the immune response. Another researcher will carry out advanced research with the potential to develop new treatments for this debilitating disease.

The first student award will be for carrying out a comparative study of retinal stem cells in the Unit of Ophthalmology at the University of Bristol. Part of the research aims to transfer cells from donated eyes to the living eyes of those who suffer from currently untreatable causes of sight loss.

The James Tudor Foundation is a grant-giving charitable organisation established for the relief of sickness. The Foundation makes grants, gifts or loans within its area of benefit, principally to organisations that can maximise the effectiveness of its donations.