HMS Ophthalmology Annual Meeting and Alumni Reunion

July 15, 2025

OGI investigator  Constance Cepko, PhD, the Bullard Professor of Genetics and Neuroscience and Professor of Ophthalmology at HMS, presented the 2025 Distinguished Research Achievement Award lecture. Dr. Cepko has made significant scientific contributions throughout her career, including designing some of the earliest retroviral vectors for gene insertion into cells. More recently, she has been a pioneer in gene-agnostic strategies for treating inherited retinal degenerations, and her groundbreaking work continues to push forward the frontiers of retinal disease therapy.

Faculty member Luk Vandenberghe, PhD, OGI member,  Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and the Grousbeck Family Chair in Gene Therapy and Director of the Grousbeck Gene Therapy Center at Mass Eye and Ear,presented the Distinguished Innovator Award lecture. Dr. Vandenberghe joined our department in 2012 and established a leading viral vector program for gene-based therapies at Mass Eye and Ear. In addition to his incredible work at Mass Eye and Ear, he has also been highly successful in the industry and innovation sphere, including developing viral vector and gene therapy technology currently used in more than 20 clinical programs, founding several for-profit gene therapy startups: Affinia Therapeutics; GenSight Biologics; Akouos; and Ciendias Bio, and one non-profit biotech company, Odylia Therapeutics. He has also had successful partnerships with GSK, Novartis, Lonza, and numerous small biotech companies.