Crystallins against environmental insult

The goal of this project is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which two aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDH3A1 and ALDH1A1) maintain ocular transparency by protecting against ultraviolet radiation. Our working hypothesis is that these crystallins protect the eye via non- enzymatic (light filtering) and enzymatic (detoxification) modalities. To delineate these molecular mechanisms, Aldh3a1 and Aldh1a1 knockout mouse models and state-of-the-art approaches (including metabolomics, RNA-seq, and tissue imaging mass spectrometry) are used.