James Jester
University of California-Irvine, CA·Medicine & Clinical Research
Dry eye disease affects many people as they age, and a major cause is trouble with the meibomian glands. These tiny glands line the eyelids.
- Fields
Medicine & Clinical Research
Biology
Genetics
- Topics
meibomian gland dysfunction
dry eye disease
evaporative dry eye
- Grants
- 2 known grants, through May 2028
What they work on
- Test whether loss of Pparg, a gene regulator of meibocyte differentiation, in stem/progenitor cells causes age- and sex-dependent gland atrophy and dry eye, using Sox9-Cre and Lrig1-Cre knockout mice at 1, 3 and 6 months.
- Map the Pparg-controlled gene program that drives meibocyte versus duct-cell differentiation using scATAC-seq and ChIP-seq on normal and Pparg-knockout mice, comparing ages and sexes.
- Test whether removing meibocyte progenitor cells by deleting Sox9 or Lrig1 with Krt14-Cre mice reproduces gland atrophy and dry eye.
- Confirm that human meibomian gland organoids follow a staged program from progenitor cells to Far2-expressing immature and Awat2-expressing mature meibocytes, and identify the molecular controls of this transition.
- Determine whether deleting Far2, an enzyme making precursor meibum lipids, in mice causes obstructive gland dysfunction and a psoriasis-like inflammation of the gland's lining.
More about the research
They release an oily substance called meibum that forms the top layer of the tear film and keeps tears from evaporating. Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) is estimated to affect 39–50% of people in the US. Yet treatment mostly relieves symptoms, because the cellular causes are poorly understood. Both projects study meibocytes, the gland cells that make meibum. One asks why these cells are lost with age. The other asks how faulty oil production clogs the glands and triggers inflammation.
Why it matters
Evaporative dry eye from meibomian gland dysfunction is common, especially in older adults, and makes up a large share of eye-care visits. Current management mainly eases symptoms. By identifying the genes, cells and lipid changes that drive gland atrophy, clogging and inflammation, this work could point to new treatment targets that address causes. This could help aging patients and others with dry eye.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Cornelia Peterson
Tufts University, MA·Medicine & Clinical Research·Early-career
Test how turning the insulin/insulin-like growth factor signaling (IIS) pathway up or down with drugs and genetic tools changes MYC levels, behavior and gene activity in cultured normal and tumor meibocytes, the oil-producing eyelid gland cells.
Eran Andrechek
Michigan State University, MI·Genetics
Characterize mammary gland defects in mice lacking E2F5 only in mammary epithelial cells, including duct extension during puberty, alveolar development and involution.
Suhsun Liu
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus, CO·Public Health & Epidemiology
Identify social factors, such as race and ethnicity and preferred language spoken, linked to differential access to care and prognosis in dry eye, using electronic health records from the Sue Anschutz-Rogers Eye Center.
The school
University of California-Irvine: 46 labs on PI Pages, $645M a year on research, 524 research doctorates a year.
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