This Year's Sponsored Research Program

Every year, proceeds from March Madness Against Blindness are dedicated to a specific research program at Kellogg Eye Center. The research program is chosen for it's cutting edge approach and reflects the spirit of the MMAB event.

I am very happy to announce this year's proceeds will be donated to support the research of David N. Zacks, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the U-M Kellogg Eye Center. Dr. Zacks currently is studying apoptosis, or programmed cell death, of photoreceptors.

It takes millions of cells for people to see clearly. These cells are called photoreceptors and are made up of rods - which are light-sensitive and allow people to see in dim light - and cones - which help people distinguish color. When these cells die, either naturally or from a disease, vision is compromised and, at this time, nothing can be done about it. This death is controlled by an orderly sequence of biological events that will ultimately cause the cells' demise, even if the underlying disease that started this process is being treated successfully.

If Dr. Zacks can understand how apoptosis works, he will be able to target a vulnerable step, interrupt the process and rescue these photoreceptors. Rescuing these cells then will allow people to keep their precious sense of sight.

To learn more about this exciting line of research, Click Here.

This picture is a slice through the
human eye and shows the tightly
packed photoreceptor cells.

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