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Luciano V. Del Priore, MD, PhD

Robert R. Young Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Science
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Additional Titles

Chair, Ophthalmology

Chief of Ophthalmology, Yale New Haven Hospital

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About

Titles

Robert R. Young Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Science

Chair, Ophthalmology; Chief of Ophthalmology, Yale New Haven Hospital

Biography

Lucian V. Del Priore, MD, PhD specializes in the surgical and medical treatment of retinal disease, including age-related macular degeneration, retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy, macular holes, epiretinal membranes, and ocular trauma.

He received his BS in Physics from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, an MD with Distinction in Research from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and an MS and PhD in Physics from Cornell University. He completed a residency in Ophthalmology and fellowships in Vitreoretinal Surgery and Glaucoma at the Wilmer Eye Institute of the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He has served on the faculty of Washington University School of Medicine and Columbia University, where he rose to the ranks of Professor and Robert L. Burch III Scholar in the Department of Ophthalmology and was a member of the Stem Cell Consortium. Prior to coming to Yale, he was the Pierre G. Jenkins Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Professor of Regenerative Medicine and Director of the Albert Florens Storm Eye Institute at MUSC in Charleston, SC.

Dr. Del Priore is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Macula Society, the Retina Society, the American Society of Retinal Specialists, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, and the International Society for Eye Research. Dr. Del Priore has published extensively in the peer-reviewed literature and has given numerous invited lectures throughout the world on the treatment of retinal diseases. He maintains an active research laboratory in the biology of retina in health and disease. He was recently elected to the New York Ophthalmological Society, and is a Life Fellow and Member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, having previously received a Senior Achievement Award in recognition of commitment to advancing the profession. He has also received a Senior Honor Award from the American Society of Retina Specialists, and is a Fellow of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. He has received an MA (honorary) from Yale University, and a Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Wilmer Ophthalmological Institute at Johns Hopkins in recognition of outstanding contributions to ophthalmology as a Wilmer Graduate. He has received the Lew R. Wasserman Award from Research to Prevent Blindness and a Teacher of the Year Award. He is listed consistently within the Castle Connolly Guide to America’s Top Doctors, as well as Connecticut Magazine Best Doctors.

Appointments

Other Departments & Organizations

Education & Training

Postdoctoral Fellow and Assistant Surgeon
The Wilmer Eye Institute and The Johns Hopkins Hospital (1989)
Postdoctoral Fellow
The Wilmer Eye Institute (1988)
Resident
The Wilmer Eye Institute (1987)
PhD
Cornell University (1984)
MD
The University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (1982)
MS
Cornell University, Physics (1977)
BS
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, Physics (1975)

Research

Overview

I have a long-standing interest in the cell biology of retinal degenerations, as well as the use of cell based therapy for the treatment of retinal degenerations, including retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt’s disease, and atrophic age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The early part of my career was devoted to understanding the role of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) in the maintenance of the choriocapillaris, and how retinal RPE-dependent changes in postoperative choriocapillaris perfusion limited visual recovery after submacular membrane removal. We made the important observation that absence or dysfunction of the native RPE leads to choriocapillaris atrophy in animal models. This was important, as we and others had noted that choriocapillaris atrophy develops after the removal of choroidal neovascularization in type 1 neovascularization (beneath the RPE, predominant in AMD) more frequently than type 2 choroidal neovascularization (internal to the RPE, in histoplasmosis and other diseases).

Due to this finding, efforts were directed at replacing the RPE in wet and atrophic macular degeneration. We demonstrated that atrophy of the choriocapillaris developed in patients after subretinal membrane removal in wet AMD and other disorders, and that this limited visual recovery after surgery. Simultaneously we demonstrated that native RPE was removed with the choroidal neovascular membrane in patients with exudative AMD; in animal models, removal of healthy RPE leads to atrophy of the subjacent choriocapillaris.

Our lab performed some of the important early studies to evaluate the effects of Bruch’s membrane disease on the initial attachment, survival and proliferation of transplants placed in the subretinal space. We made the important observation that the survival and proliferation of RPE transplants was limited by the status of the host Bruch’s membrane, and showed that Bruch’s membrane can be reengineered to ensure graft survival.

I was involved in early studies on RPE and photoreceptor transplants in humans and have been part of the recent publication of a phase 1 / 2 clinical trial showing the safety and possible efficacy of embryonic stem cell-derived RPE transplants for atrophic AMD and Stargardts disease. Our efforts in this area are continuing. In addition, we have focused on recent work on attempting to prevent some of the early damage that occurs in age-related macular degeneration, by identifying some of the early oxidative stress pathways in this disease, as well as identifying molecular targets for preventing disease progression.

Over the last few years, we have developed a new research interest on using statistical techniques to determine the natural history of retinal degenerations. This has been a fruitful area of investigation, that has led to a better understanding disease progression in a wide range of disorders that include geographic atrophy in age-related macular degeneration, central atrophy in Stargardts disease, and disease progression in choroideremia. Our long term goal is to use meta analysis techniques to improve our understanding of drug efficacy in clinical trails for these disorders.

Research at a Glance

Yale Co-Authors

Frequent collaborators of Luciano V. Del Priore's published research.

Publications

2024

Clinical Trials

Current Trials

Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

  • honor

    America's Top Doctors

  • honor

    Life Fellow

  • honor

    Senior Achievement Award

  • honor

    Distinguished Alumnus Award

  • honor

    Lew R. Wasserman Award

Clinical Care

Overview

Luciano V. Del Priore, MD, PhD, is chair of the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, leading a sophisticated group of eye specialists. He also is a highly skilled retinal surgeon who cares for patients with age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, macular holes and pucker, eye trauma, and many other conditions.

Eye problems that are diagnosed early are often very treatable, especially at an academic medical center, where ophthalmologists have access to the latest tools and techniques for any condition that arises, Dr. Del Priore says. “Ophthalmology sort of reinvents itself every five to 10 years,” he says. “The current trend is something I would call micro-miniaturization, where surgical instruments we use just keep getting smaller and smaller.” Since much of the discomfort people feel after eye surgery is related to the instrument size and surgical incisions, smaller instruments result in less pain and a quicker recovery, he says.

Dr. Del Priore, who is the Robert Young Professor of Ophthalmology & Visual Science at Yale School of Medicine, says one of his favorite memories is from early in his career when he assisted with surgery to treat a patient who had retinal detachments in both eyes. “The patient was from fairly far away—about four hours by car to the medical center,” Dr. Del Priore says. “He was led by the hand into the examination room because he could not see out of either eye. We operated on both eyes, but because he lived so far away, he didn’t come back until a few months after surgery. I still remember him coming into the room three months later. I introduced myself and the attending physician introduced himself, and the patient said, ‘I was wondering what you all looked like.’"

Since then, Dr. Del Priore has seen his field change with improvements in care that have led to better outcomes for more and more patients. “Yale has been at the forefront of many changes over the last 10 years, and has both pioneered and implemented a variety of new surgical techniques,” he says. For instance, Yale researchers’ efforts have led to the identification of genes for macular degeneration.

Because early intervention is important for cataracts, macular degeneration, glaucoma and other eye diseases, the challenge, in many cases, is getting people into the office for an early diagnosis, Dr. Del Priore says. This can be difficult considering many people either don’t have symptoms or don’t notice them, especially if the changes in their vision occur gradually. So the best strategy, Dr. Del Priore says, is to schedule a dilated eye exam once a year with an ophthalmologist, and, if anything unusual comes up in between, visit the eye doctor right away. “Eyesight is extremely important,” he says, adding that surveys show that when it comes to preserving health and function, most people rank loss of eyesight second only to life-threatening illness. “We only get one set of eyes,” he says.

Clinical Specialties

Ophthalmology

Fact Sheets

Board Certifications

  • Ophthalmology

    Certification Organization
    AB of Ophthalmology
    Original Certification Date
    1989

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