About
Scientific Advisory Board
Meet our Team
Pedram Hamrah, MD, FRCS, FARVO
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Pedram Hamrah, MD is an interim chair of ophthalmology, cornea specialist, and clinician-scientist at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, with a focus on corneal immunology and neuroscience, ocular imaging (immuno-imaging), ocular surface diseases and corneal neuropathic pain. He is currently on faculty at the departments of Ophthalmology and Bioengineering at Tufts University, where he is the director of clinical research and director of the Center for Translational Ocular Immunology. In addition, he is a faculty member at the immunology, neuroscience, and cell, molecular and developmental biology graduate programs at the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts. Throughout his career, he has focused on discovery, patient care and teaching. Dr. Hamrah currently serves on over a dozen editorial boards, is the associate editor for The Ocular Surface and TVST, section editor for Eye and assistant editor at Ocular Immunology and Inflammation.
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Raj also held a number of leadership roles at Alcon/Novartis Institute of Biomedical Research, including Associate Director of Research and Head of Molecular Pharmacology glaucoma and retina research. Prior to joining the business world, Dr. Patil served as an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, Cell Biology & Genetics at University of Nebraska Medical Centre in Omaha and as an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Molecular Biology & Pharmacology at Washington University in St. Louis.
Raj received his PhD in Biochemistry from National Chemical Laboratory/University of Pune, India and completed his postdoctoral training in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. He is the recipient of Olga Keith Wiess Special Scholar Award from Research to Prevent Blindness Foundation and NIH Director’s New Innovator Award. Dr. Patil has authored over 50 peer-reviewed research articles and serves as reviewer and editorial board member for numerous journals and is frequently invited to lecture at academic and industry events.
Jay S. Pepose, MD, PhD, FARVO
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Dr. Pepose, a specialist in refractive surgery and corneal and external diseases, is the founder and Medical Director of the Pepose Vision Institute and held the Bernard Becker Chair in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He is a consultant to numerous ophthalmic drug and device companies and serves as a Director and Chief Medical Advisor for Ocuphire Pharma. Dr. Pepose has been involved in over 40 clinical research trials, including registration trials for dry eye drugs, and has been the recipient of R-01 grant support from the National Eye Institute. He has served on the editorial boards of numerous prestigious journals, including the American Journal of Ophthalmology, Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), Cornea, and The Journal of Refractive Surgery and has over 200 peer reviewed publications. Dr. Pepose, an ARVO Gold Fellow, is a recipient of the Cogan Award from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and the Life Achievement Honor Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Dr. Pepose received an A.B. and M.A. in neurophysiology from Brandeis University and completed the M.D.-Ph.D. program at UCLA School of Medicine. He completed ophthalmology residency at the Wilmer Institute at the Johns Hopkins Medical Center and fellowship training at Georgetown University Medical Center.
Victor Perez, MD
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Dr Victor Perez is a Director of Cornea Research at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is a clinician-scientist investigator in the field of ocular immunology and ocular surface diseases and served as Director of Duke Eye Center’s Ocular Immunology Center before joining Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.
Anat Galor, MD
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Dr. Anat Galor is a cornea and uveitis trained specialist with dual appointments at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and the Miami VA medical center. Dr. Galor completed an ophthalmology residency at the Cole Eye Cleveland Clinic, a uveitis fellowship at the Wilmer Eye Institute, and a cornea and external diseases fellowship at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. Dr. Galor currently runs the ocular surface pain program at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and the Miami VA and has focused her research on understanding mechanisms of pain in dry eye, with an emphasis on studying new diagnostic and treatment modalities.
Mark Milner, MD
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Dr. Mark Milner is Director of Cornea at Goldman Eye in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida with a focused interest in dry eye disease and dysfunctional tear syndrome. Dr. Milner completed his ophthalmology residency at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary and his fellowship in cornea, external disease and uveitis at Francis I. Proctor Foundation at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Milner served as an Associate Clinical Professor at Yale University Medical School, Department of Ophthalmology, and was previously the Director of the Cornea Clinic at The Veterans Administration Medical Center in West Haven, CT.
Napoleone Ferrara, MD
Member of the Scientific Advisory Board
Dr. Ferrara is a Professor at the University of California San Diego Medical Center and a member of The National Academy of Sciences and has received numerous prestigious awards, including the Lasker Award and the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences. His research on understanding the role of angiogenesis and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in cancer development, led to the discovery that VEGF is a key mediator of angiogenesis associated with intraocular neovascular syndromes. This pioneering research led to the clinical development of a humanized anti-VEGF Fab (Ranibizumab, Lucentis®), which has also been approved as a therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD), retinal vein occlusion and diabetic macular edema. Ranibizumab and other anti-VEGF agents have had a dramatic impact on the development of therapies for these blinding disorders. When Lucentis® (Ranibizumab) received FDA approval in late June 2006, the new macular degeneration drug was celebrated as a major medical breakthrough. Dr. Ferrara’s research also led to the development and approval of humanized anti-VEGF mAbs (Bevacizumab; Avastin®) for cancer treatment, with Avastin® being one of the bestselling cancer drugs over the last two decades. Lucentis® and Avastin® collectively achieved over $9 billion in sales last year.