Professor Frank Schaeffel Delivers 2023 Hill Lecture
The Hill Lecture Series endowment makes in-person interactions with the luminaries of vision science possible. The College of Optometry had the pleasure of hearing about the latest in myopia research from Professor Frank Schaeffel, the 2023 Richard and Leonora Hill lecturer.
One of my vision science heroes, Professor Schaeffel has been a leader in myopia research for over 30 years. Visiting us from the University of Tubingen in Germany, Professor Schaeffel was generous with his time in meetings with graduate students and faculty. His love of science and spirit of collaboration are contagious.
His long career has been devoted to determining the visual signals that regulate the growth of the eye. His 1988 paper in Vision Research was the first to report that refractive error development of the chick could be altered by defocus from spectacle lenses. Lens-induced myopia was a true paradigm shift away from previous experimental models using deprivation of form vision, one that has led to countless experiments on the visual control of eye growth and that has a direct connection to today’s optical myopia control treatments for children. His work has also been pivotal in establishing a role for dopamine release from the retina as a growth modulator, the foundation of the beneficial effect against myopia of time outdoors, established by the Orinda and CLEERE myopia studies.
His current work explores the theory that chromatic signals, from the same chromatic aberration underlying the duochrome test, are powerful influences on eye elongation. The better the focus for blue, the stronger the signal for elongation, while red in focus means the eye is too long and elongation is inhibited. Professor Schaeffel predicted disappointing results from several investigational approaches to myopia control if their only effect was degrading peripheral vision rather than tapping into these more important chromatic signals. Time will tell if his predictions come true.
Many thanks to Dick and Lee Hill for Professor Schaeffel’s visit, educating us all on these important theories about myopia.
