Doheny Distinguished Lecture Series February 2024 — Lois Smith, MD, PhD

Can we prevent retinopathy by improving mitochondrial metabolism?

Our 2023-24 Doheny Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS) February lecture will be delivered by Lois Smith, MD, PhD, on Friday, February 16, 2024. Please refer to the lecture details below.

• Date: 2/16/24
• DLS Speaker: Lois Smith, MD, PhD
  Professor of Ophthalmology at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
• Time: 12:00 – 1:00 pm
• Location: Doheny Eye Institute, Conference Center, 150 North Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena, CA

Bio:
Dr Lois Smith is a renowned clinician scientist who has made seminal contributions to our understanding and treatment of blinding retinal diseases such as retinopathy of prematurity, age-related macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy. She pioneered the study of oxygen-induced retinopathy that affects many premature infants and identified crucial roles for VEGF, growth hormones, and IGF-1 in pathological neovascularization associated with this vision-threatening condition. Dr Smith’s research also identified a previously unrecognized role for the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in pathological neovascularization. More recently, she has been investigating the role of photoreceptor metabolism in ischemia-induced neovascularization. Her lab has been continuously supported by multiple NIH grants. For her seminal contributions to vision research, Dr Smith has received numerous awards including the Alcon Research Institute Award, the Friedenwald Award from ARVO, the Silverman Award, and the Bressler Prize in Vision Science from Lighthouse Guild. In 2023, she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Montreal. Dr Smith earned her PhD from Caltech and her MD from Boston University before doing her residency at Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary and a fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital, where she has remained since.