Endowments
The Knights Templar Eye Foundation has established endowed professorship programs and research endowments at leading research universities and teaching hospitals.
The Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. is committed to support research that can help launch the careers of clinical and basic researchers focused on the prevention and cure of potentially blinding diseases in infants and children. Grants supported by the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. are awarded to impact the care of infants, children, and adults. Clinical and basic research on conditions that may be potentially preventable or correctable such as amblyopia, cataract, glaucoma, optic nerve hypoplasia, nystagmus, retinopathy of prematurity, and hereditary diseases that occur at birth or within early childhood, such as retinoblastoma, is encouraged. Proposals for support of basic research on eye and visual system development also are welcome.
Each year the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc., invites eligible investigators to submit applications for pediatric ophthalmology research grants:
Career-Starter Research Grants - up to $90,000 per grant. Applicants for these grants must be at the beginning of their academic careers and must have received M.D., Ph.D. or equivalent degree.
Competitive Renewal Grants - up to $90,000 per grant to extend the original grant project for one additional year when the data collected from the original grant is compelling enough to apply.
Dr. Manohar’s goal is to determine how CHD7 functions to regulate cell type differentiation in the retina, by utilizing single cell transcriptomic and chromatin binding assays in the zebrafish model. Results of these experiments will provide critical information on how CHD7 regulates retinal development, which could lead to development of new therapeutic approaches for the vision impairment associated with CHARGE syndrome.
He hopes to get fresh insight into the therapeutic approaches for RP and STGD by targeting three different nodes of ceramide metabolism - inhibiting two key enzymes generating ceramide and stimulating AdipoR1 ceramide-degrading activity to lower pathologically increased ceramides.
Dr. Krusnauskas will use RP1 gene as an example to evaluate the therapeutic potential of twinPE approach for treating inherited retinal degenerations.
Dr. Jalligampala hopes to refine the Wave1 dose/response curve; define the temporal window of efficacy using the optimal dose and evaluate its safety in intravitreal injections. To do so, she will quantify and compare across treated and untreated conditions how many rods and how much rod function is retained/recovered. The data will define key features of Wave1 administration, and issues relevant to its clinical use.
Juvenile X-linked retinoschisis is an eye disease that primarily affects male children and causes them to lose vision. In this disease, the connected layers of cells in the eye responsible for forming vision are separated by abnormal, fluid-filled pockets. This is because the function of the RS1 gene is disrupted. This disease can potentially be treated by gene therapy, which involves the delivery of the RS1 gene into the eye using engineered viruses as carriers. However, sometimes, the injections can cause undesirable side effects due to the immune system. Dr. Hsu is investigating the effect of the immune system after treatment in order to better the design of this therapy.
Dr. Holubowicz is working towards delivery of a prime editor as a purified protein-RNA complex to accomplish precise and efficient repair of a blindness-causing mutant gene. His approach will facilitate the development of therapies that would restore vision after single administration.
By the end of this project, she will have new in vivo biomarkers for the developmental damage in the retina, which will profoundly impact broader pediatric ophthalmology. This work will represent the first vis-OCT application to pediatric diseases; and the findings of this research can be translated to human studies by using the same technology platform.
This will lead to improved screening, monitoring, and treatment of inflammation in children, resulting in better long-term vision outcomes and preventing vision loss.
Dr. Young aims to precisely define the rate of vessel growth in prematurity and ROP, as well as characterize microvascular changes at the edge of ROP, with the goal to provide novel avenues to predict disease.
We would like to recognize the Grand Commandery of Kentucky for the hard work they have done over these past few years in achieving the goal of 100% Life Sponsorship participation where all Sir Knights of their Grand Commandery have now received a Life Sponsor.
A message from the John S. Penn Ph.D. former chair of the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. Scientific Advisory Committee.
The original mission of the Foundation was "to provide assistance to those who face loss of sight due to the need for surgical treatment without regard to race, color, creed, age, sex or national origin provided they are unable to pay or receive adequate assistance from current government agencies or similar sources and to provide funds for research in curing diseases of the eye."
On December 31, 2010, the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc., by direction of the board, shifted the Foundation's focus and adopted a new mission statement "to improve vision through research, education, and supporting access to care." The Foundation now only participates in direct patient care through the Seniors Eye Care Program in partnership with EyeCare America and the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. With this change, the Foundation is benefitting untold millions in generations to come through grants that support research and education.
Since its inception, the Foundation has expended over $178 million on research, patient care, and education.
Research grants totaling in excess of $39 million have been awarded to researchers working in the fields of pediatric ophthalmology and ophthalmic genetics.
All endowed professorships and research endowments are awarded $2 million, matched dollar for dollar by the institution.
The Knights Templar Eye Foundation has established endowed professorship programs and research endowments at leading research universities and teaching hospitals.
Funds for the operation of the Knights Templar Eye Foundation are obtained from an annual assessment of each Knight Templar, contributions made by Masons from throughout the Masonic Family, fund-raising activities, memorials, wills and bequests, and donations from endowment funds or similar sources. See how you can help support us below.
Click below to see the various ways you can donate to the Knights Templar Eye Foundation right now.
There are creative ways in which the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, you and your loved ones all benefit at the same time.
In addition to donations, we also offer a variety of Knights Templar Eye Foundation Items that you can receive for a donation.