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º£½ÇÉçÇø — CLEVELAND—Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which affects about 200 million people worldwide and can result in legal blindness, impairs an area of the eye (retina) used for reading, driving and many other critical daily tasks. 

A new study of large existing patient datasets indicates genetic and demographic factors that increase the risk for developing AMD.  

In the study, recently , a team of scientists worked with the Million Veteran Program (MVP) of the VA Office of Research and Development, a large biobank of veterans recruited at more than 60 (VA) medical centers nationally, to examine demographic, lifestyle, clinical and genetic risk profiles for AMD. 

Their study focused on more than 287,000 veterans enrolled in MVP and integrated findings with results from several other independent biobanks to define the largest study of genetic risk for AMD and the first to include populations of diverse ancestry. 

“An important aspect of our study is the inclusion of veterans of African or Hispanic ancestry in the MVP—groups that have not been well-studied in prior genetic studies of AMD,” said , a professor and vice chair of research in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at the . “This diverse population is a unique resource to identify clues to develop therapeutics for AMD, a condition for which few effective treatments are available.” 

The collective human genome shared by all ancestral groups worldwide contains discrete signatures for higher AMD risk in those of European descent, compared to those of African or Hispanic ancestry.

“By increasing the size of the study population,” Sudha said, “the research provided additional information to identify genetic markers with more modest but potentially important biological contributions to the likelihood that an individual will—or won’t—develop AMD. The study also found an increased number of genes linked to AMD, from 34 that were identified previously, to 60.” 

They also confirmed earlier beliefs that a history of smoking or alcohol use increases the likelihood of developing AMD. Although about 90% of the MVP are male enrollees, the researchers were able to confirm prior observations that women are more susceptible to AMD than men. 

Sudha co-led the research with the late Robert Igo Jr., Dana Crawford and Jessica Cooke Bailey at the School of Medicine. They collaborated with , associate chief of staff for research of the VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System and professor of ophthalmic research at . The work was supported by grants to Peachey from the VA Office of Research and Development.  

The study involved scientists from several VA medical centers, including Bryan Gorman and Saiju Pyarajan (both from VA Boston Healthcare System), Christopher Halladay and Wun-Shieh Wu (both from Providence VA Medical Center) and Pannos Roussos and Georgios Vodulakis (both from Mt. Sinai and Bronx VA), “who played key roles in integrating data from multiple health systems, cohorts and data types to create new knowledge of AMD biology,” Sudha said.

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 is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many , including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. Cleveland Clinic is consistently recognized in the U.S. and throughout the world for its expertise and care. Among Cleveland Clinic’s 81,000 employees worldwide are more than 5,743 salaried physicians and researchers, and 20,160 registered nurses and advanced practice providers, representing 140 medical specialties and subspecialties. Cleveland Clinic is a 6,690-bed health system that includes a 173-acre main campus near downtown Cleveland, 23 hospitals, 276 outpatient facilities, including locations in northeast Ohio; Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada; Toronto, Canada; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and London, England. In 2023, there were 13.7 million outpatient encounters, 323,000 hospital admissions and observations, and 301,000 surgeries and procedures throughout Cleveland Clinic’s health system. Patients came for treatment from every state and 132 countries. Visit us at . Follow us at . º£½ÇÉçÇø and resources available at 

ABOUT VA NORTHEAST OHIO HEALTHCARE SYSTEM: Focusing on treating the whole Veteran through health promotion and disease prevention, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System provides comprehensive, seamless health care and social services for nearly 140,000 Veterans across Northeast Ohio. With 17 locations of care, including 12 outpatient clinics, two community resource and referral centers, a psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery center, a chronic dialysis center, and an outpatient surgery center, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System’s quality services are easily accessible to Veterans in 21 counties. VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System also contributes to the future of medicine through education, training, and research programs.

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