Our Crowdfunding Groups
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a disease of the macula, the most sensitive region of the retina in the eye. When damaged, the retinal cells involved in detecting light begin to lose their function and die. AMD eventually results in a gradual blurring of the person's sight and is the leading cause of vision loss in people over the age of 40. AMD manifests in two forms: wet and dry. Currently, the only available drugs are those that target the wet form. However, dry AMD affects a much larger population, and therefore we aim to address the onset of this dry form.
It has been shown through various research studies that prolonged oxidative damage to retinal cells can trigger the onset of AMD. Our project focuses on designing a treatment that can prevent this damage. Our potential treatment involves curcumin, an antioxidant found in the spice turmeric. However, curcumin is not well absorbed in the body, and as a result, treatments involving curcumin are very limited in their scope. We plan on encapsulating curcumin in a nanoparticle and delivering it via eyedrop so it can specifically travel to the retinal cells and protect the cells from damage.
The first part of our project involves creating our curcumin-nanoparticle complex. We will then analyze different properties of the complex, such as its size and composition, and view it under a microscope to see what the encapsulated curcumin physically looks like.
The second phase of the project involves the bulk of our experimentation - we will add our drug complex into retinal cells and observe the cells’ reactions. This is done through cell based assay kits, which can quantify indicators such as how toxic our drug complex is and how effective the drug is at preventing oxidative damage. We will also visually observe how the molecules are moving into the cell and where they travel to in the cells.
The final part of our project will look at how the drug complex will act when applied to the eye. We plan on determining what path the eyedrop takes and whether our treatment reaches the area of interest, the retina, using an animal eye model.
In order to successfully complete all three phases of our projects, we need your support! Throughout the course of our project, we will need to buy various lab materials and equipment that will allow us to conduct our research. For the first part of our project, we will need to buy lipids and curcumin in order to create our nanoparticles. Phase two requires us to purchase different types of cell-based assays and fluorescent dyes in order to properly test our drug complexes. Finally, for the third part of our project, we will need buy chemical reagents and dissection tools to carry out our testing. However, buying all these materials is very expensive, and to do so, we need your help! Your contribution would greatly help our research and allow us to move one step closer to achieving our goal. Thank you for your support!
Gifts in support of the University of Maryland are accepted and managed by the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, Inc., an affiliated 501(c)(3) organization authorized by the Board of Regents. Contributions to the University of Maryland are tax deductible as allowed by law. Please see your tax advisor for details.
This contribution will go towards purchasing laboratory notebooks and other logistical materials in order to help us record, compile, and refine our data and results
This contribution will go towards crucial lab materials such as pipette equipment and flasks.
This contribution will go towards specialized reagents for treating and maintaining our ARPE-19 retinal cells. You will also receive a personal shout-out on our team website!
This contribution will go towards buying chemicals that would allow us to visualize our nanoscale drug complex. You will also receive recognition at our Junior Colloquium presentation!
This contribution will go towards buying nanoparticle components, such as lipids and chloroform. You will also receive a handwritten note from our team members.
Your contribution will go towards buying materials, such as cell-based assay kits, that will allow us to measure how effective our proposed treatment is within cells. You will also receive a personal invitation to our thesis conference.
Your contribution will go towards funding our conferences and helping us reach 1/5 of our total goal. You will also receive an INJECT team picture, as well as a hard copy of our final senior thesis at our thesis conference.