Prof Lyndon da Cruz

As the Clinical lead for the London Project I will co-ordinate and operate for the programme of pre-clinical transplantation experiments for safety and efficacy stem cells and clinical phase trials.  In tandem I will carry out the autologous -RPE transplantation  trials for inherited macular dystrophies and Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD).  My main research interest is in the field of therapies for blinding retinal conditions such as AMD and the artificial retina or Bionic Eye.

Key achievements

Lyndon da Cruz completed his medical studies in Perth, Western Australia. He began his research interest in retinal disease at the Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology, in Oxford in 1990. On completion of the English surgical fellowship he returned to Australia to carry out a PhD at the Lions Eye Institute, Perth Australia. He completed his Australian speciality training and carried out a vitreo-retinal surgical fellowship  with Ian McAllister in Perth.  He was awarded the NH and MRC post-doctoral fellowship in 1999 and named the Menzies Scholar in Science and Medicine for Australia in 2000. The latter awarded to the highest ranked postdoctoral fellow in Australia in medicine and science. He won the Howard Florey Post-doctoral Fellowship from the Royal Society that brought him to London to study with Prof. Alan Bird. He finished his clinical training with further vitreoretinal surgical fellowships in London, at Moorfields Eye Hospital. He is now Consultant Retinal Surgeon and Medical Retina Specialist at Moorfields Eye Hospital. He is Clinical Lead of the The London Project and Head of the Artificial Retina Programme at Moorfields Eye Hospital.

Key publications

• da Cruz L, Coley BF, Dorn J, Merlini F, Filley E, Christopher P, Chen FK, Wuyyuru V, Sahel J, Stanga P, Humayun M, Greenberg RJ, Dagnelie G; Argus II Study Group. The Argus II epiretinal prosthesis system allows letter and word reading and long-term function in patients with profound vision loss. Br J Ophthalmol. 2013 May;97(5):632-6.
• Ramsden CM, Powner MB, Carr AJ, Smart MJ, da Cruz L, Coffey PJ. Neural retinal regeneration with pluripotent stem cells. Dev Ophthalmol. 2014;53:97-110.
• Muthiah MN, Gias C, Chen FK, Zhong J, McClelland Z, Sallo FB, Peto T, Coffey PJ, da Cruz L Cone photoreceptor definition on adaptive optics retinal imaging Br J Ophthalmol doi:10.1136/bjophthalmol-2013-304615
• Muthiah NM, Keane PA, Zhong J, Gias C, Uppal G, Coffey PJ, da Cruz L. Adaptive Optics Imaging shows Rescue of Macula Cone Photoreceptors. Ophthalmology. 2014 Jan;121(1):430-431.
• Ahuja AK, Yeoh J, Dorn JD, Caspi A, Wuyyuru V, McMahon MJ, Humayun MS, Greenberg RJ, Dacruz L. Factors Affecting Perceptual Threshold in Argus II Retinal Prosthesis Subjects. Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2013 Apr;2(4):1.
• Ramsden CM, Powner MB, Carr AJ, Smart MJ, da Cruz L, Coffey PJ. Stem cells in retinal regeneration: past, present and future. Development. 2013 Jun;140(12):2576-85.
• Carr A, Smart MJK, Ramsden CM, Powner M, da Cruz L, Coffey PJ. Development of human embryonic stem cell therapies for age-related macular degeneration Trends in Neurosciences.17 April 2013
• Ong JM, da Cruz L. A review and update on the current status of stem cell therapy and the retina. Br Med Bull. 2012 Jun;102:133-46.
• Uppal G, Feely MP, Crossland MD, Membrey L, Lee J, da Cruz L, Rubin GS. Assessment of reading behavior with an infrared eye tracker after 360° macular translocation for age-related macular degeneration. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2011 Aug 17;52(9):6486-96.
• Rahman W, Chen FK, Yeoh J, Patel P, Tufail A, da Cruz L. Repeatability of manual subfoveal choroidal thickness measurements in healthy subjects using the technique of enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2010 Nov 18.
• Chen FK, Patel PJ, Webster AR, Coffey PJ, Tufail A, da Cruz L. Nidek MP1 Is Able To Detect Subtle Decline In Function In Inherited And Age-Related Atrophic Macular Disease With Stable Visual Acuity. Retina. 2010 Oct 1.
• Chen FK, Patel PJ, Uppal GS, Tufail A, Coffey PJ, da Cruz L. Long-term outcomes following full macular translocation surgery in neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Br J Ophthalmol. 2010 May 21.
• Chen FK, Patel PJ, Coffey PJ, Tufail A, da Cruz L. Increased fundus autofluorescence in neovascular age-related macular degeneration is associated with outer segment shortening in macular translocation model. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2010 Mar 10.
• Chen FK, Uppal GS, MacLaren RE, Coffey P, Rubin G, Tufail A, Aylward GW, da Cruz L Long-term visual and microperimetry outcomes following autologous retinal pigment epithelium choroid graft for neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Clin Experiment Ophthalmol. 2009 Apr;37(3):275-85.
• Chen FK, Patel PJ, Xing W, Bunce C, Egan C, Tufail A, Coffey PJ, Rubin G, da Cruz L. Test-retest variability of microperimetry using the Nidek MP1 in patients with macular disease. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2009 Mar 25.
• da Cruz L, Chen F, Ahmado A, Greenwood J, Coffey P.  RPE transplantation and its role in retinal disease. Prog Retin Eye Res. 2007 Nov;26(6):598-635. Epub 2007 Jul 25.
• Uppal G, Milliken A, Lee J, Acheson J, Hykin P, Tufail A, da Cruz L.  New algorithm for assessing patient suitability for macular translocation surgery. Clin Experiment Ophthalmol. 2007 Jul;35(5):448-57.
• Vugler A, Lawrence J, Walsh J, Carr A, Gias C, Semo M, Ahmado A, da Cruz L, Andrews P, Coffey P.  Embryonic stem cells and retinal repair. Mech Dev. 2007 Aug 15.
• RE MacLaren GS Uppal, KS Balaggan, AD Tufail, PM Munro, AB Milliken, RR Ali, GS Rubin, GW Aylward, L Da Cruz.  Autologous transplantation of the retinal pigment epithelium in the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration..,Ophthalmology. 2007 Mar;114(3):561-70.
• Abeysiri P, Bunce C, da Cruz L. Outcomes of surgery for retinal detachment in patients with Stickler syndrome: a comparison of two sequential 20-year cohorts. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2007 Jun 20;