Glaucoma UK Professor interviewed on BBC Radio 4

Professor Ted Garway-Heath, Glaucoma UK Professor, appeared on BBC Radio 4’s In Touch programme to discuss his recent study which identified a new biomarker for glaucoma progression.

Speaking on 23 July 2024 about the paper published in Nature Medicine, Professor Garway-Heath described how the new findings may one day help clinicians know which patients are at greatest risk of sight loss.

“Mitochondrial function has emerged as a potential susceptibility factor,” he said.

The mitochondria are often known as the power house or the battery of a cell because they produce the energy needed for cells to function. There are a lot of mitochondria at the back of the eye by the optic nerve head because the nerve cells require a lot of energy. So researchers started looking into how the ability of these mitochondria to function properly affects glaucoma.

“We were able to measure the function of these mitochondria in white blood cells and found that it was lower in people with glaucoma and lowest in those who developed glaucoma with high pressure in the normal range. We also found that the rate of vision loss in people with glaucoma was correlated to that mitochondrial function.

“Eventually this will help us identify which patients in clinic need the greatest attention.

“Taking this new information into account, if it were developed as a clinical test, we would then be able to say which patients need closer follow up and which patients need more pressure-lowering treatment.”

The study was partly funded by Glaucoma UK and, if further research shows the relationship to be causative, it could offer the potential for mitochondria-targeted therapies in the future.

The full interview is available to listen to here.

Congratulations to all involved!

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