Prof. Dr. Stephanie Joachim, Experimental Eye Research Institute, Faculty of Medicine
Research Programme:
Prof. Dr. Stephanie Joachim is the head of the Experimental Eye Research Institute (EERI), at the Department of Ophthalmology at the medical faculty, Ruhr-University Bochum.
The department engages in teaching of and life science students (Bachelor and Master).
The main fields of research are diseases of retina and optic nerve, especially glaucoma, retinal ischemia, age-related macular disease and optic neuritis.
Currently research areas focus especially on the relation of the immunological response and the progression of retina diseases using different in vivo and in vitro models.
We are investigating basic mechanisms that underlie the cell death and autoimmune mechanisms in different retinal explant and retinal degeneration animal models, like the Experimental Autoimmune Glaucoma Model (EAG) and other glaucoma models. We also work with the ischemia/reperfusion model (I/R) and other models of retinal damage, age-related macular degeneration models.
Currently, our research is focused on the cause for the cell death mechanisms in these models. Especially possible immunological alterations including the role of glia cells and the complement factors are of interest.
One of our goals is to find destroying factors to inhibit the neurodegeneration of retina and optic nerve in these diseases in the future.