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Reza Dana, MD, Ophthalmology, Boston, MA

RezaDanaMDMPH MSc

Ophthalmology • Boston, MA

Cornea & External Disease, Refractive Surgery, Uveitis

Claes H Dohlman Professor of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School; Senior Scientist and Director of Cornea, Mass. Eye and Ear; Head, Laboratory of Immunology, Transplantation, and Regeneration, Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass. Eye and Ear; Director of Harvard-Vision Clinical Scientist Development Program; Vice Chairman, Harvard Department of Ophthalmology

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  • Office

    Mass. Eye and Ear Infirmary
    243 Charles Street
    Boston, MA 02114
    Phone+1 617-573-4331
    Fax+1 617-573-4330

Summary

  • Prof. Dana is an international expert in Cornea and Ocular Immunology. A graduate of Johns Hopkins and Harvard, he holds the Claes Dohlman Chair in Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. He is Director of the Cornea Service at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Senior Scientist at the Schepens Eye Research Institute (as Director of the Laboratory of Corneal Immunology, Transplantation and Regeneration), Vice Chairman and Associate Chief for Academic Programs at Mass Eye and Ear and Director of the Harvard-Vision Clinical Scientist Development Program.

    His work focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms of ocular inflammation with applications in autoimmunity, transplantation, dry eye disease, and angiogenesis. A ‘Gold Fellow’ of ARVO, he has authored over 500 peer-reviewed articles and over 150 reviews and book chapters. His published work has been cited more than 52,000 times (h-index=109) per Google Scholar. He has been the recipient of multiple awards, including the Physician-Scientist Award, Innovation Award and the Senior Investigator Award from Research to Prevent Blindness, the Cogan and Friedenwald Awards from ARVO, the Alcon Research Institute Award and the Endre A. Balazs Prize from ISER, among others.

    He is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Cornea and is on the editorial board of multiple other journals. In addition to his basic laboratory investigations, he leads a translational research program at Mass. Eye and Ear that has received 15 IND permits from the US FDA in the last decade. Dr. Dana has trained over 150 fellows and graduate students from 36 countries in his laboratory to date in addition to over 100 clinical cornea fellows, and was recipient of the A. Clifford Barger Excellence in Mentoring Award at Harvard Medical School. His research is supported by several federal grants.

    He is the co-founder of several biotechnology firms.

Education & Training

  • Harvard University
    Harvard UniversityMSc, Health Care Management, 2003 - 2005
  • Harvard Medical School
    Harvard Medical SchoolFellowship, Ocular and Transplantation Immunology, 1994 - 1996
  • Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary/Harvard Medical School
    Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary/Harvard Medical SchoolFellowship, Ocular Immunology/Uveitis, 1994 - 1995
  • Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University/Wills Eye Hospital
    Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University/Wills Eye HospitalFellowship, Cornea, External Diseases, and Refractive Surgery, 1993 - 1994
  • University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago
    University of Illinois College of Medicine at ChicagoResidency, Ophthalmology, 1990 - 1993
  • Johns Hopkins U School of Public Health
    Johns Hopkins U School of Public HealthMPH, International Health and Epidemiology, 1985 - 1989
  • Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
    Johns Hopkins University School of MedicineClass of 1989
  • Johns Hopkins University
    Johns Hopkins UniversityBA, 1981 - 1985

Certifications & Licensure

  • MA State Medical License
    MA State Medical License 1994 - 2025
  • PA State Medical License
    PA State Medical License 1993 - 1994
  • American Board of Ophthalmology Ophthalmology

Awards, Honors, & Recognition

  • Qunize-Vingts Medal, U. Paris 2023
  • Plenary Lecture, San Rafaele Biomedical Center, Milan Italy 2022
  • Bowman Club-David Easty Lecture, UK 2021
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Clinical Trials

Publications & Presentations

PubMed

Journal Articles

  • Association of Α-melanocyte–Stimulating Hormone with Corneal Endothelial Cell Survival During Oxidative Stress and Inflammation-Induced Cell Loss in Donor Tissue  
    Ula V Jurkunas, Jia Yin, Reza Dana, JAMA Ophthalmology
  • Aged Mice Exhibit Severe Exacerbations of Dry Eye Disease with an Amplified Memory Th17 Cell Response  
    William Foulsham, Reza Dana, The American Journal of Pathology
  • Permanent Neuroglial Remodeling of the Retina Following Infiltration of CSF1R Inhibition-Resistant Peripheral Monocytes  
    Claes H Dohlman, James Chodosh, Demetrios G Vavvas, Reza Dana, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Other

Authored Content

  • Patient-Reported Burden of Dry Eye Disease in the United States: Results of an Online Cross-Sectional SurveyApril 2020

Press Mentions

  • Philanthropist Tej Kohli Pledges $2 Million Gift to Champion Biotech Solutions for Eliminating Corneal Blindness Worldwide by 2030
    Philanthropist Tej Kohli Pledges $2 Million Gift to Champion Biotech Solutions for Eliminating Corneal Blindness Worldwide by 2030July 30th, 2019
  • Filantropo Tej Kohli Oferece US$ 2 Milhões Para Patrocinar Soluções Biotecnológicas Para Eliminar a Cegueira Da Córnea Em Todo O Mundo Até 2030
    Filantropo Tej Kohli Oferece US$ 2 Milhões Para Patrocinar Soluções Biotecnológicas Para Eliminar a Cegueira Da Córnea Em Todo O Mundo Até 2030July 29th, 2019
  • Philanthrop Tej Kohli Spendet 2 Millionen Dollar Für Die Weltweite Förderung Von Biotechnologielösungen Zur Beseitigung Der Hornhautbedingten Erblindung Bis 2030
    Philanthrop Tej Kohli Spendet 2 Millionen Dollar Für Die Weltweite Förderung Von Biotechnologielösungen Zur Beseitigung Der Hornhautbedingten Erblindung Bis 2030July 29th, 2019
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Grant Support

  • Immunopathogenesis of dry eye diseaseNIH / NEI R012010–2028
  • Impact of Donor Diabetes on Corneal Immune Cells and Graft SurvivalNEI2022–2027
  • Harvard-Vision Clinical Scientist Development ProgramNEI2004–2026
  • Mechanisms of Sensitization in High-Risk KeratoplastyNIH / NEI R012000–2026
  • Concomitant Topical Treatment of Pain and Inflammation in Ocular InjuriesDOD2022–2025
  • Topical Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) for Corneal Regeneration and Reversal of ScarringDOD2021–2024
  • Alpha-Melanocyte Stimulating Hormone Therapeutic Intervention for Prevention and Reversal of Corneal Edema following Ocular InjuryDOD2021–2024
  • Phase I/II Multicenter Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy for Severe Ocular Surface InjuriesDOD2019–2024
  • Eye-Targeted Sustained Delivery of Anti-Inflammatory and Antibiotic Drugs to Injured EyesDOD2021–2023
  • Therapeutic Function of alpha-Melanocyte Stimulating Hormone (α-MSH) in Acute Injury and Chronic Degeneration of Corneal EndotheliumNEI2021–2023
  • Function of neuropeptides in regulating corneal endothelial cell survival and functionMassachusetts Lions Eye Research Fund2017–2019
  • Vision restoration with a collagen crosslinked Boston keratoprosthesis unitDOD (PI: Ciolino)2015–2019
  • The Dry Eye Evaluation And Management (DREAM) StudyNIH U10 (PI Maguire/Asbell)2014–2019
  • Safety and efficacy of bevacizumab in high-risk corneal transplantationDOD2012–2017

Research History

  • Senior Scientist and Director - Laboratory of Immunology, Transplantation and RegenerationBased at the Schepens Eye Research Inst. of Mass. Eye and Ear, the laboratory is comprised of 6 faculty members and 30+ personnel dedicated to immune-based and pro-regenerative approaches to treat tissue inflammation and degeneration. The lab leads multiple programs and publishes 30+ papers annually1995 - Present

Professional Memberships

Other Languages

  • French, Italian, Farsi

Industry Relationships

  • Scientific Co-Founder, OcuCellDevelopment of cell therapy-based therapies for chronic ocular disorders2021 - Present
  • Scientific Co-Founder, Boston Eye DiagnosticsAutomated precise diagnostics for ocular surface disorders2020 - Present
  • Scientific Co-Founder and Director, SightStream BiotherapeuticsPro-regenerative and cytoprotective therapies for degenerative disorders2020 - Present
  • Scientific Co-Founder and Director, GelMEDIXGelMEDIX Inc. is an early-stage ocular cell therapy company committed to improving current approaches by engineering formulations to improve cell viability, engraftment, and tissue regeneration with the aim of restoring vision.2020 - Present
  • Scientific Co-Founder, Aramis BiosciencesDisease modifying therapy for ocular surface disorders2019 - Present
  • Co-Founder and Director, Claris BiotherapeuticsClaris is dedicated to development of pro-regenerative biologic therapies for healing of tissues2019 - Present

External Links

Dr. Reza Dana, Dr. Reza Dana, MD, Dr. R Dana