March 2025
Reminder: Join Us This Saturday for the Annual CME Conference and Distinguished Alumnus Dinner!
Doheny has two exciting events coming up this Saturday, March 29: the Annual CME Conference and the Doheny Distinguished Alumnus Dinner. It’s not too late to register!
The Annual CME Conference will take place from 9:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. at the Doheny campus. The conference features Doheny alumni as well as Doheny-UCLA faculty who will present state-of-the-art research findings to improve clinicians’ ability to better diagnose diseases in ophthalmology. Highlights of the day will be the prestigious Irvine Memorial Lecture delivered by Dr. Baruch Kuppermann, Chair of the UC Irvine Department of Ophthalmology, and the Doheny Distinguished Alumnus Lecture delivered by David G. Hwang, MD, FACS. This course is open to ophthalmologists of all specialties.
That evening, from 5:30 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., join us at the beautiful Valley Hunt Club in Pasadena to celebrate Dr. Hwang as the 2025 Doheny Distinguished Alumnus. A renowned ophthalmologist, researcher, and educator at UCSF, Dr. Hwang has made extraordinary contributions to corneal surgery, refractive surgery, and ocular surface disorders. His dedication to advancing ophthalmology through innovation, mentorship, and patient care embodies the values of Doheny Eye Institute.
Deming Sun, MD, Named Professor Emeritus
We are thrilled to announce that Deming Sun, MD, has been named Professor Emeritus, Doheny Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA. In this role, Dr. Sun will serve as a scientific advisor to the Doheny research team on a part-time basis.
Dr. Sun served as a highly respected clinician-scientist at Doheny for more than 17 years, studying the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases and inflammation. His more recent research studied the mechanism for tissue remodeling and contractility during disease pathogenesis and its application for biomarkers of disease and real-time monitoring with in vivo tissue imaging.
Dr. Sun made a number of important findings in his over 30 years of research. He was the first to discover the cytolytic potential of CD4+ autoimmune effector cells (published in Nature, 1986), and he was one of the first authors to start a T cell vaccine study in autoimmune treatment (published in Nature, 1988). Dr. Sun was one of the early researchers who discovered the importance of CD8 autoreactive T cells in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, a finding which has been celebrated as a spectacular breakthrough of (brain) autoimmune research (Steinman, J.Exp.Med., 2001).
“Dr. Sun has been a highly valued member of our Doheny research team for many years, and has made numerous contributions to his field,” said Marissa Goldberg, CEO of Doheny. “While we are highly supportive of his decision to retire from his research investigations, we are honored he will remain an advisor to our scientists. His insights and knowledge will be immense assets as Doheny continues to push forward on innovative vision research.”
Dr. Ferrington, Dr. Sadun, and Dr. Sadda Invited to Speak at Several Scientific Engagements
As recognized leaders in vision research, scientists at Doheny Eye Institute are regularly invited to speak at conferences, symposiums, and events around the globe.
On February 27, Chief Scientific Officer Deborah Ferrington, PhD, spoke at the inaugural European Complement Network Online Symposium. The event focused on age-related macular degeneration, and as a world-renowned expert on the topic, Dr. Ferrington was invited to give a talk with an emerging science focus, speaking on “Complement Factor H in RPE Cell Metabolism.”
Dr. Ferrington also spoke at Emory Eye Center on March 14, sharing further insights into her research on age-related macular degeneration. She gave a talk on “Evidence of a Bioenergetic Crisis in Age-Related Macular Degeneration – Implications for Therapy” and led a seminar on “Alterations in the Retinal Pigment Epithelium Expressing the Complement Factor H Risk Factor for Age-related Macular Degeneration.”
On March 19, Alfredo Sadun, MD, PhD, the Flora L. Thornton Endowed Chair at Doheny Eye Centers-UCLA and Chief of Ophthalmology, Doheny Eye and Vice Chair of Ophthalmology at UCLA, was invited to give the Jacobson Lecture at North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society (NANOS) Annual Meeting. Dr. Sadun’s lecture was titled, “From Castro to Quantum Mechanics: A Tunnel of Love.”
Earlier this month, SriniVas Sadda, MD, FARVO, Director of Artificial Intelligence & Imaging Research at the Doheny Eye Institute, and Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of California – Los Angeles (UCLA) Geffen School of Medicine, spoke at two different events. On March 6 he gave the John H. Dunnington, MD, Lectureship at Columbia University on “AI in Clinical Practice: Opportunities and Challenges.” On March 14, he spoke at the San Raffaele OCT & Retina Forum in Milan, Italy, on “Predicting OCT Outcomes from Anti-VEGF Therapy Using Generative AI.”
We are appreciative of the important leadership roles Dr. Ferrington, Dr. Sadun, and Dr. Sadda have each carved in their fields, for their stellar representation of Doheny, and for their continued work to advance knowledge sharing and collaboration in the scientific community.
Graduates of the Young Presidents’ Organization Los Angeles Chapter Visit Doheny
Doheny Eye Institute was honored to welcome graduates of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) Los Angeles chapter to our campus on March 18. The YPO is a global leadership community of more than 34,000 chief executives who exchange ideas, pursue learning, and share strategies for personal and professional growth.
Attendees included retired Presidents, Chairmen, and CEOs from Los Angeles area companies such as Decorative Carpets, Advanstar Trade Shows, Evy Clothing, KT Kitchens, Punch Studios, Guitar Center, and Allstar Fire Equipment.
This was a wonderful opportunity for these esteemed visitors to tour our campus and learn more about the important research conducted at Doheny.
