Dr. Leroy is professor of Ophthalmology, Ophthalmic Genetics and Visual Electrophysiology at Ghent University and the Head of the Ophthalmology department at Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium.
Dr. Leroy completed his medical degree (MD), PhD in medical sciences, residencies in clinical genetics and Ophthalmology and a fellowship in medical retina and visual electrophysiology at Ghent University in Belgium. He also completed a fellowship in medical retina, inherited retinal diseases, visual electrophysiology, and molecular genetics at Moorfields Eye Hospital & Institute of Ophthalmology in London, UK.
Dr. Leroy’s focus is diagnosis and detailed clinical phenotyping of inherited retinal degenerations as well as in the development of innovative treatments, including serving as a clinical investigator on therapies for RPE65-IRD and CEP290-IRD. He served as past president for the European Organization for Vision & Eye Research and is a board member of the International Society for Genetic Eye Disease & Retinoblastoma, the Société de la Génétique Ophtalmologique Francophone, and the Belgian Society of Ophthalmology. He is also co-opted board member for ophthalmic genetics of the European Society of Retina Specialists (EURETINA).
Dr. José-Alain Sahel is the chair and Distinguished Professor of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, director of the UPMC Eye Center, and the Eye and Ear Foundation Endowed Chair of Ophthalmology. He is also a Professor of the Sorbonne Medical School.
Dr. Sahel studied medicine at University Denis Diderot and completed a residency in Ophthalmology at the Louis Pasteur University Hospital in Strasbourg. He also was a research fellow at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and a visiting scholar in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University.
Dr. Sahel is world renowned for his work in vision restoration techniques including stem cell implantation, gene therapy, retinal prostheses, and optogenetics. He has also developed novel high resolution imaging technologies for retinal and optic nerve conditions. Dr. Sahel is a co-inventor on more than 40 patents and a member of 11 editorial boards.
He previously served as chairman of the Departments of Ophthalmology at the Quinze-Vingts National Eye Hospital, the Rothschild Ophthalmology Foundation, the Vision Institute, and the French National Reference Center for Retinal Dystrophies. He has supervised dozens of clinical trials and directed a network of more than 90 European clinical trial centers focused on retinal diseases.
Dr. Adrienne Graves is a visual scientist by training and a global industry leader in ophthalmology. Dr. Graves was CEO of Santen Inc (2002-2010) following 7 years there as Sr VP of Worldwide Clinical Development. She previously spent 9 years at Alcon, where she built a Retinal Electrophysiology Lab, directed clinical development and served as Director of International Ophthalmology. Dr. Graves was Chairman of the Board at Iveric Bio until their 2023 acquisition by Astellas, and is currently on the Board of Directors at Ocular Therapeutix, Harrow, Qlaris Bio, Surface phthalmics, NVasc, JelliSee, and Implandata. She previously held board positions at Nicox (2014-2024), Encore Vision (acquired by Novartis), Envisia (assets acquired by Aerie), TearLab (now Trukera), Aerpio, and Akorn. Dr. Graves also serves on the boards of the following Foundations: American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ASCRS), Glaucoma Research Foundation (GRF), American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO; Emeritus), Retina Global, Himalayan Cataract Project, Foundation Fighting Blindness (FFB), and was a founding board member of OWL (Ophthalmic World Leaders, formerly Ophthalmic Women Leaders). She is Chairman of the RD (Retinal Degeneration) Fund, the venture arm of FFB, and she Co-founded Glaucoma 360. Her recent honors include the Visionary Award (FFB), Catalyst Award (GRF), Visionary Award (OWL), Bernice Brown Memorial Lecture Award (Women in phthalmology), and The Ophthalmologist 2021 and 2023 Power Lists. Dr. Graves received an AB with Honors in Psychology from Brown University, a Ph.D. in Pyschobiology/Neuroscience from the University of Michigan, and she completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Visual Neuroscience at the University of Paris. She is a Visionary Innovation Mentor for the Ophthalmic Innovation Program at Stanford.
Caroline R. Baumal, MD is a Professor of Ophthalmology at Tufts Medical Center and co-director of the retina service and medical retina fellowship at New England Eye Center in Boston, MA. She specializes in medical and surgical diseases of the retina and vitreous. Her research interests include novel retinal imaging and drug development, which are a continuation from her research background with the prototype OCT and working with drug implants and photodynamic therapy. Her clinical interests include age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal circulatory disorders, complex vitreoretinal surgery, and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).
Dr. Baumal completed medical school and ophthalmology residency at the University of Toronto after undergraduate studies at McGill University. She completed two fellowships: one at New England Eye Center, Boston in Medical Retina and Lasers and another in Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia. Dr. Baumal is Board Certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology. She has received multiple awards from various societies including the American Academy of Ophthalmology, The American Society of Retinal Surgeons, The Retinal Hall of Fame, the Donald J. Gass Beacon of Sight Award from the Florida Ophthalmologic Society, the ASRS Crystal Apple award and was recently awarded the Lifetime Achievement award from the Vit-Buckle Society. She is on the editorial board for Retina Cases and Brief Reports and Ophthalmic Surgery, Lasers, and Imaging (OSLI) Retina. Dr. Baumal has authored over 170 publications, 33 book chapters on retinal diseases and edited the book Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy. She is actively involved in mentoring and teaching vitreoretinal fellows and residents and was previously Director of Education and the Residency program at New England Eye Center.
Dr. Bennett is the F.M. Kirby Emeritus Professor of Ophthalmology at the Perelman School of Medicine and previously served as director of the Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics (CAROT) at the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to Dr. Bennett’s positions at the University of Pennsylvania, she has been an Investigator at the Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) for more than a decade. She also co-founded life science companies Spark Therapeutics (acquired by Roche), GenSight Biologics and Limelight Bio. Dr. Bennett received her Ph.D. in Zoology and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkley, and obtained an M.D. from Harvard University. She also completed postdoctoral fellowships in Radiobiology and Environmental Health at the University of California, San Francisco, Human Genetics at Yale School of Medicine and Development Genetics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She received her B.S. in Biology from Yale University.
Dr. Pierce is the Chatlos Professor of Ophthalmology and Director of the Ocular Genomics Institute in the Department of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Harvard Medical School. Dr. Pierce received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He completed his residency in Ophthalmology at Harvard and fellowship in Pediatric Ophthalmology at Children’s Hospital, Boston, where he also assumed his first faculty position. He was then recruited to the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure. He returned to Harvard in 2011 to establish the Ocular Genomics Institute (OGI), which aims to translate the promise of precision medicine into clinical care for patients with inherited eye diseases.
Dr. Ayyagari is a Professor of Ophthalmology, Pathology and Biomedical Sciences Graduate program, Viterbi Family Endowed Chair and Director of the Shiley Eye Institute Biobank, at the Shiley Eye Institute and University of California, San Diego, California. She is an internationally renowned leader in the field of genetics and disease mechanisms of inherited retinal degenerations. Dr. Ayyagari obtained her PhD in Biochemistry and trained in ophthalmic genetics during her post-doctoral fellowship. She has published more than 130 peer-reviewed articles, mentors high school, graduate and medical school students, and post-doctoral scholars, and serves on several national and international scientific advisory boards/committees.
