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Assoc Prof Barathi Veluchamy Amutha

Assoc Prof Veluchamy Amutha Barathi

DVM, PhD

Assistant Director, Translational Pre-Clinical Model Research Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute

Research Interest:

Animal models of ocular diseases
Pathophysiology and pharmacological intervention of Ocular Diseases
Focusing on Diabetic Retinopathy
Glaucoma
AMD
Myopia
Infectious Diseases and Ocular Surface

Research Appointments

Assistant Director, Translational Pre-Clinical Model Research Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute
Head, Translational Pre-Clinical Model Support Research Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute
Junior Principal Investigator, Translational Pre-Clinical Model Research Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute

Academic Appointments

Associate Professor SingHealth Duke-NUS Ophthalmology ＆ Visual Sciences Academic Clinical Programme

Profile

Veluchamy A. Barathi, is an Assistant Director and Principal Investigator at Singapore Eye Research Institute. Assoc Prof Barathi earned her Doctor of Philosophy from the Department of Ophthalmology, Yong Loo Lin school of Medicine, National University of Singapore. She is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Ophthalmology, National University of Singapore and National University Hospital System and Associate Professor at DUKE-NUS Medical School, Eye ACP in Ophthalmology. She is a Vet & Molecular Biologist with research focused on understanding the pathophysiological mechanism and new therapeutics for myopia, glaucoma, ocular infectious diseases, retinal degenerations, retinal atrophies, retinal angiogenic diseases (diabetic retinopathy and Age-related Macular Degeneration). Her research has led to the translational and pre-clinical testing of ocular diseases using specific animal models. She has published more than 95 peer-reviewed papers; 60+ proceedings; 100+ conference presentations and obtained more than US$ 20M research funds from National grant funding body and Pharmaceutical Industry.

She has vast experience in lab animals and her specialisation encompasses non-human primates, pigs, rabbits, mice, rats, Guinea-pigs and chicken. She is currently collaborating with seven international institutes and six inter-institutions. She regularly peer reviews at least six international journals and also regularly reviews SHSIACUC animal study protocols and SHSIBC study protocols. She currently holds competitive research grants from National Medical Research Council (NMRC) and BioMedical Research Council (BMRC), and Pharma Industry funding. She is a chair of Singhealth Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).

Professional Appointments and Committee Memberships

Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
Member, SingHealth Biosafety Committee (IACUC) (2015 – present)
Ex-officio, SingHealth Duke-NUS Research Council (2015 – present)
Chairman, SingHealth Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) (2014 – present)
Member, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (2007 – present)
Member, Singhealth Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) (2006 – 2014)

Education

PhD (2006)
DVM (1997)

Awards

You Shine Award, Outstanding in National Large Animal Research Facility Administration/Operation & Veterinary Team, SingHealth (2017)
Publish Award, SingHealth (2016)
Novartis Research Prize, Oral-Outstanding, NHG 3rd International Ophthalmology Congress (2010)
Novartis Research Prize, Oral-Outstanding, NHG 2nd International Ophthalmology Congress (2009)
Novartis Research Prize, Outstanding, 1st SERI-ARVO Meeting on Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (2008)
International Travel Award, The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) (2008)
Short-term Fellowship Award, SingHealth (2007)
Best Poster Prize, SALAS 2nd Fall Conference (2006)
Young Investigator Award, Visual Science (Outstanding), 22nd Singapore-Malaysia Joint Meeting in Ophthalmology (2004)
Young Investigator Award, Visual Science (Merit), 1st SERI-ARVO Meeting on Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (2003)
Young Investigator Award, Visual Science (Merit), 20th Singapore-Malaysia Joint Meeting in Ophthalmology (2002)

Research Studies

Phenotypic and functional study of multiple-glaucoma associated gene loci for identification of potential glaucoma drug targets (2016 – present)
Development of smart, thermo-sensitive and bio-degradable hydrogel as an ideal internal tamponading agent during vitreo-retinal surgery (2015 – present)
Evaluation of flow dynamics in the retinal/choroidal circulation and assessment of vitreous characteristics in animal model of diabetic retinopathy (2013 – present)
Efficacy and Safety of novel antiangiogenic / anti-inflammatory compounds in wet-AMD rodents and Non-Human Primate models (2012 – present)
To understand the pathogenesis and novel treatment for diabetic retinopathy and ocular surface diseases (2010 - present)
Animal Models of Myopia: Gene and Environmental Interactions (2008 – present)

Publications

Tun SBB, Chua M, Hasan R, Köhler M, Zheng XF, Ali Y, Abdulreda MH, Juntti-Berggren L, Barathi VA⁺, Berggren PO. Islet Transplantation to the Anterior Chamber of the Eye—A Future Treatment Option for Insulin-Deficient Type-2 Diabetics? A Case Report from a Nonhuman Type-2 Diabetic Primate. Cell Transplantation 2020 April; 7(29), 0963689720913256. IF: 3.460. Citation: 1.
Liu ZP, Sing SL, Siew LL, Alli-Shaik A, Holder GE, Parikh BH, Krishnakumar S, Li ZB, Tan MJ, Gunaratne J, Barathi VA, Hunziker W, Lakshminarayanan R, Tan CWT, Chee CK, Zhao P, Lingam G, Loh XJ, Su XY. Retinal-detachment repair and vitreous-like-body reformation via a thermogelling polymer endotamponade. Nature biomedical engineering 2019; 3 (8), 598-610. IF: 10.870. Citation: 13.
Wong CW, Cheung N, Ho C, Barathi V, Storm G, Wong TT. Characterisation of the inflammatory cytokine and growth factor profile in a rabbit model of proliferative vitreoretinopathy. Scientific reports 2019; 9. IF: 4.120.
Yao XW, Devarajan K, Werkmeister RM, dos Santos VA, Ang M, Kuo A, Wong DWK, Chua J, Tan BY, Barathi VA, Schmetterer L. In vivo corneal endothelium imaging using ultrahigh resolution OCT. Biomedical Optics Express 10 (11), 5675-5686. IF: 4.230. Citation: 5.
Chaurasia SS, Lim RR, Parikh BH, Wey YS, Tun BB, Wong TY, Luu CD, Agrawal R, Ghosh A, Mortellaro A, Rackoczy E, Mohan RR, Barathi VA⁺. The NLRP3 Inflammasome May Contribute to Pathologic Neovascularization in the Advanced Stages of Diabetic Retinopathy. Sci Rep. 2018 Feb 12;8(1):2847. IF: 4.259. Citation: 33.
Teo KYC, Lee SY, Barathi AV, Tun SBB, Tan L, Constable IJ. Surgical Removal of Internal Limiting Membrane and Layering of AAV Vector on the Retina Under Air Enhances Gene Transfection in a Nonhuman Primate. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2018 Jul 2;59(8):3574-3583. IF: 3.303. Citation: 9.
Dhand C, Venkatesh M, Barathi VA, Harini S, Bairagi S, Goh Tze Leng E, Muruganandham N, Low KZW, Fazil MHUT, Loh XJ, Srinivasan DK, Liu SP, Beuerman RW, Verma NK, Ramakrishna S, Lakshminarayanan R. Bio-inspired crosslinking and matrix-drug interactions for advanced wound dressings with long-term antimicrobial activity. Biomaterials. 2017 Sep; 138:153-168; IF: 8.402. Citation: 88.
Diez JA, Arrojo E Drigo R, Zheng X, Stelmashenko OV, Chua M, Rodriguez-Diaz R, Fukuda M, Köhler M, Leibiger I, Tun S4B, Ali Y, Augustine GJ, Barathi VA, Berggren PO. Pancreatic Islet Blood Flow Dynamics in Primates. Cell Rep. 2017 Aug 8;20(6):1490-1501; IF: 8.282. Citation: 16.
Regula JT, Lundh von Leithner P, Foxton R, Barathi VA, Cheung CM, Bo Tun SB, Wey YS, Iwata D, Dostalek M, Moelleken J, Stubenrauch KG, Nogoceke E, Widmer G, Strassburger P, Koss MJ, Klein C, Shima DT, Hartmann G. Targeting key angiogenic pathways with a bispecific CrossMAb optimized for neovascular eye diseases. EMBO Mol Med. 2016 Nov 2;8(11):1265-1288. JIF: 8.665; Citation: 65.
Fan Q, Verhoeven VJ, Wojciechowski R, Barathi VA*, Hysi PG, Guggenheim JA, Höhn R, Vitart V, Khawaja AP, Yamashiro K, Hosseini SM, Lehtimäki T, Lu Y, Haller T, Xie J, Delcourt C, Pirastu M, Wedenoja J, Gharahkhani P, Venturini C, Miyake M, Hewitt AW, Guo X, Mazur J, Huffman JE, Williams KM, Polasek O, Campbell H, Rudan I, Vatavuk Z, Wilson JF, Joshi PK, McMahon G, St Pourcain B, Evans DM, Simpson CL, Schwantes-An TH, Igo RP, Mirshahi A, Cougnard-Gregoire A, Bellenguez C, Blettner M, Raitakari O, Kähönen M, Seppala I, Zeller T, Meitinger T; Consortium for Refractive Error and Myopia, Ried JS, Gieger C, Portas L, van Leeuwen EM, Amin N, Uitterlinden AG, Rivadeneira F, Hofman A, Vingerling JR, Wang YX, Wang X, Tai-Hui Boh E, Ikram MK, Sabanayagam C, Gupta P, Tan V, Zhou L, Ho CE, Lim W, Beuerman RW, Siantar R, Tai ES, Vithana E, Mihailov E, Khor CC, Hayward C, Luben RN, Foster PJ, Klein BE, Klein R, Wong HS, Mitchell P, Metspalu A, Aung T, Young TL, He M, Pärssinen O, van Duijn CM, Jin Wang J, Williams C, Jonas JB, Teo YY, Mackey DA, Oexle K, Yoshimura N, Paterson AD, Pfeiffer N, Wong TY, Baird PN, Stambolian D, Wilson JE, Cheng CY, Hammond CJ, Klaver CC, Saw SM, Rahi JS, Korobelnik JF, Kemp JP, Timpson NJ, Smith GD, Craig JE, Burdon KP, Fogarty RD, Iyengar SK, Chew E, Janmahasatian S, Martin NG, MacGregor S, Xu L, Schache M, Nangia V, Panda-Jonas S, Wright AF, Fondran JR, Lass JH, Feng S, Zhao JH, Khaw KT, Wareham NJ, Rantanen T, Kaprio J, Pang CP, Chen LJ, Tam PO, Jhanji V, Young AL, Döring A, Raffel LJ, Cotch MF, Li X, Yip SP, Yap MK, Biino G, Vaccargiu S, Fossarello M, Fleck B, Yazar S, Tideman JW, Tedja M, Deangelis MM, Morrison M, Farrer L, Zhou X, Chen W, Mizuki N, Meguro A, Mäkelä KM. Meta-analysis of gene-environment-wide association scans accounting for education level identifies additional loci for refractive error. Nat Commun. 2016 Mar 29;7:11008. JIF: 11.47; Citation: 68.
Barathi VA, Chaurasia SS, Poidinger M, Koh SK, Tian D, Ho C, Iuvone PM, Beuerman RW, Zhou L. Involvement of GABA transporters in atropine-treated myopic retina as revealed by iTRAQ quantitative proteomics. J Proteome Res. 2014 Nov 7;13(11):4647-58. JIF: 5.001; Citation: 32.
Natarajan JV, Darwitan A, Barathi VA, Ang M, Htoon HM, Boey F, Tam KC, Wong TT, Venkatraman SS. Sustained drug release in nanomedicine: a long-acting nanocarrier-based formulation for glaucoma. ACS Nano. 2014; 28(8(1)):419-429 (Article; Published in Print) JIF: 12.06; Citation: 69.
Barathi VA, Yeo SW, Guymer RH, Wong TY, Luu CD. Effects of simvastatin on retinal structure and function of a high-fat atherogenic mouse model of thickened Bruch's membrane. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2014 Jan 23;55(1):460-8. JIF: 3.441; Citation: 16.
Barathi VA⁺, Kwan JL, Tan QS, Weon SR, Seet LF, Goh LK, Vithana EN, Beuerman RW. Muscarinic cholinergic receptor (M2) plays a crucial role in the development of myopia in mice. Dis Model Mech. 2013 Sep;6(5):1146-58. JIF: 5.0; Citation: 27.
Tran-Viet KN, Powell C, Barathi VA, Klemm T, Maurer-Stroh S, Limviphuvadh V, Soler V, Ho C, Yanovitch T, Schneider G, Li YJ, Nading E, Metlapally R, Saw SM, Goh L, Rozen S, Young TL. Mutations in SCO2 are associated with autosomal-dominant high-grade myopia. Am J Hum Genet. 2013 May 2;92(5):820-6. JIF: 11.202; Citation: 84.
Lai CM, Estcourt MJ, Himbeck RP, Lee SY, Yew-San Yeo I, Luu C, Loh BK, Lee MW, Barathi A, Villano J, Ang CL, van der Most RG, Constable IJ, Dismuke D, Samulski RJ, Degli-Esposti MA, Rakoczy EP. Preclinical safety evaluation of sub retinal AAV2.sFlt-1 in non-human primates. Gene Ther. 2012; 19(10):999-1009. JIF: 4.5; Citation: 50.
Robinson R*, Barathi VA*, Chaurasia SS, Wong TY, Kern TS. Update on animal models of diabetic retinopathy: from molecular approaches to mice and higher mammals. Dis Model Mech. 2012 Jul;5(4):444-56. IF: 4.978 Citation: 224.
Robinson R, Ho CE, Tan QS, Luu CD, Moe KT, Cheung CY, Wong TY, Barathi VA⁺. Fluvastatin downregulates VEGF-A expression in TNF-α-induced retinal vessel tortuosity. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2011 Sep 27;52(10):7423-31. JIF: 3.431; Citation: 16.
Barathi VA, Beuerman RW. Molecular mechanisms of muscarinic receptors in mouse scleral fibroblasts: Prior to and after induction of experimental myopia with atropine treatment. Mol Vis. 2011; 9(17):680-692. JIF: 2.33; Citation: 54.
Barathi VA, Boopathi VG, Yap EP, Beuerman RW. Two models of experimental myopia in the mouse. Vision Res. 2008; 48(7):904-916. JIF: 2.512; Citation: 100.