New York, Nov. 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lighthouse Guild, the leading not-for-profit vision and healthcare organization, and Bionic Sight, the developer of treatments and technologies for advanced stage blindness, announced today that they are entering into a partnership that will change the landscape of treatment for people who are blind.
Bionic Sight’s technology focuses on restoring sight to patients with advanced stage blindness due to retinal degenerative diseases, such as retinitis pigmentosa. The technology is based on discoveries by researcher and developer Sheila Nirenberg, PhD, a professor at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and the founder of Bionic Sight, who unraveled the neural code of the retina – that is, the code the retina uses to tell the brain what you’re seeing. Dr. Nirenberg has won numerous awards for this work, including a MacArthur Genius Award, and she and Bionic Sight are using it to develop a new approach for treating blindness. Calvin W. Roberts, M.D., President and CEO of Lighthouse Guild and Sheila Nirenberg, PhD, Founder of Bionic Sight
“Lighthouse Guild’s mission includes both providing exceptional services today for people who are visually impaired and creating a future of unlimited potential for our clients and patients. By investing in breakthrough technologies and therapies, Lighthouse Guild can help impact the direction of medical innovation,” said Calvin W. Roberts, MD, President and CEO of Lighthouse Guild. “Retinitis pigmentosa is a common condition among our clients and the discoveries by Bionic Sight may lead to significantly improved vision for people with this eye disorder.”
“Lighthouse Guild and Bionic Sight have a shared commitment to utilizing technology to transform the lives of people who are blind or visually impaired,” said Dr. Nirenberg. “Our goals are naturally aligned. Through this partnership, we will be able to continue exploring and implementing innovative approaches and treatments.”
“Game-changing developments in eye science are breaking down barriers for people who are blind or visually impaired,” said James M. Dubin, Chairman of the Board at Lighthouse Guild. “This partnership with Bionic Sight is a mission-driven initiative that furthers our commitment to providing the most advanced services and programs.”
About Bionic Sight
Bionic Sight is a biotech company that develops optogenetic gene therapy vectors and devices to treat retinal degenerative diseases. The company leverages the research of Dr. Sheila Nirenberg, the company’s founder and a professor at Weill Medical College of Cornell University. Her work focuses on neuroscience and its applications to brain/machine interfaces and computer vision. Her work on deciphering the retina’s neural code has been described in TED talks, an NBC documentary, a Bloomberg documentary, the Discovery Channel, Scientific American, as well as peer-reviewed journals and patents.
About Lighthouse Guild
Lighthouse Guild provides exceptional services that inspire people who are visually impaired to attain their goals, offering coordinated care for eye health, vision rehabilitation, technology, and behavioral health as well as related services. The Lighthouse Guild Technology Center provides people with vision loss access to the latest assistive devices and state-of-the-art technology. The Lighthouse Guild podcast series, “On Tech & Vision with Dr. Cal Roberts,” offers information and insights about technological innovations that are tearing down barriers for people who are blind or visually impaired.
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