Retinal transplants bear threefold fruit

Darkfrog submitted, created time 2 months 1 week (www.nature.com)

A formerly clinically blind woman's vision improved from 20/800 to 20/160--from one-fortieth of ordinary vision to one-eighth--after receiving donated retina. Six months after the operation, the started noticing the pendulum in her grandfather clock. For years, she found that she could read large-print books and emails and returned to her hobbies, knitting and sewing. Now, six years after her operation, her vision is fading, but it is still better than it was before the operation

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Algal protein causes blind mice to react to light

Darkfrog submitted, created time 6 months 3 weeks (www.nature.com)

Blind mice have been made to react to light in the lab. Scientists have used a protein found in algae to make little systems that react to light. When properly attached, these proteins can switch neurons on and off almost like natural photoreceptors do. It's not too clear how well the mice can actually see, but they can now tell the difference between "lights on" and "lights off." The scientists suppose, too, that the mice can only see in black and white

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Vision loss linked to greater risk of early death

DanyC submitted, created time 1 year 4 months (www.reutershealth.com)

A study hints, older men and women with cataracts or age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) are at increased risk for suffering an early death, relative to older people without these two types of visual impairment.

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