A Winning Team
From the Morris S. Pynoos Eye Research Laboratory at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, UC Irvine School of Medicine, our scientists conduct innovative, ground-breaking research involving keratoconus, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, ocular herpes, glaucoma, and other sight-robbing eye diseases.
Play this video to learn more about their research projects:
Anthony B. Nesburn, MD, FACS
For more than 30 years, Dr. Anthony B. Nesburn has served as the Medical Director of the Discovery Eye Foundation. An internationally respected eye surgeon, educator, lecturer and researcher, Dr. Nesburn served as the director of ophthalmology research at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for 17 years. He is now an adjunct professor and vice chair for research at UC Irvine, Department of Ophthalmology. Read more…
M. Cristina Kenney, MD, PhD
Dr. Cristina Kenney is a Professor and Director of the Mitochondria Research Laboratory at Gavin Herbert Eye Institute in UC Irvine, Department of Ophthalmology, overseeing the various eye-related research projects at that institution. She is a highly accomplished clinician scientist and is recognized as a leader in the fields of genetic and biological research related to disorders of the retina and cornea. Read more…
Henry J. Klassen, MD, PhD
Dr. Henry Klassen is the Professor and Director of the Stem Cell & Retinal Regeneration Program in UC Irvine, School of Medicine, Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Klassen is the principal investigator of a multi-university collaboration studying retinal reconstruction using stem cells. Read more…
Jing Yang, MD, PhD
Dr. Jing Yang is an Assistant Professor at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute in UC Irvine, Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Yang has been collaborating with Dr. Klassen, studying retinal reconstruction using stem cells. Read more…
Dr. Lbachir BenMohamed is a Professor of Immunology, the founder and the head of the Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology in the Department of Ophthalmology at UC Irvine. He also holds a joint appointment with the Center of Immunology at UC Irvine. He is an independent immunologist, with a strong expertise in vaccine development against both infectious diseases and cancer. Read more…
James V. Jester, PhD
Dr. James Jester, a professor in UC Irvine’s Department of Ophthalmology. He is a recognized international leader in the cell biology of corneal wound healing and scarring. He has had a major impact in this field of research. Read more…
Donald J. Brown, PhD
Dr. Donald Brown is an Associate Professor at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, UC Irvine School of Medicine and an outstanding molecular biologist with research experience in corneal and retinal diseases. Dr. Brown’s primary research now deals with the glaucoma, a major cause of blindness worldwide. Read more…
Kevin Schneider, PhD
Dr. Schneider is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute in UC Irvine, Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Schneider works in the laboratory of Dr. Cristina Kenney and they are currently focusing on the role of mitochondria in the development and progression of AMD. Read more…
Jeffrey J. Yu
Jeffrey Yu is a Research Fellow at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute in UC Irvine, Department of Ophthalmology. He works in the laboratory of Dr. Cristina Kenney and they are currently focusing on the role of mitochondria in the development and progression of AMD. Read more…
Thomas Vo
Thomas Vo is a researcher in the lab of DEF Research Director Dr. Cristina Kenney. It proved so fulfilling that he again worked in Kenney’s lab after his third year of medical school at UC Irvine, part of a trend among students in “research-heavy specialties” of taking a year off during medical school to be part of in-depth research. Read more…
Anderson Vu, MD
While Southern California native Anderson Vu wasn’t doing so well in his college economics and accounting classes, he was doing well in general chemistry. So well, in fact, that he changed his focus to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). Read more…