Research Summary
My research involves designing and implementing multidisciplinary approaches to problem solving. My primary research interest is directed towards understanding of the etiology and natural history of age-related macular degeneration by combining genetic, biological and clinical data and mechanistic models. I am also interested in characterizing transport phenomena (the exchange of mass, energy, charge and momentum) in the eye in health and how they change in disease.
Education
- Diplôme D'Ingénieur, Engineering, Ecole Centrale de Lille, France
- M. Sc., School of Health, Cranfield University, United Kingdom
- Ph. D., Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, United Kingdom
Biography
Dr. Zouache is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences at the University of Utah. His research involves designing and implementing multidisciplinary and translational approaches to problem solving. His primary research interest is directed towards understanding the etiology and natural history of age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of irreversible vision loss worldwide. He is also interested in characterizing transport phenomena – or the exchange of mass, energy, charge and momentum between systems – in the eye in health and how they change in disease.
Dr. Zouache trained as an Engineer in his native France before pursuing advanced degrees in Biology and Health in the UK. He holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from University College London, UK, where he worked within the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Institute of Ophthalmology/Moorfields Eye Hospital. He has taught many courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels and has given instructional courses designed for Ophthalmologists.
As part of his research, Dr Zouache developed a theoretical framework to characterize the blood flow and passive transport in the choriocapillaris, a microvascular bed with an unusual planar vascular geometry. This framework dramatically improved our understanding of mass transfers across the blood-retinal barrier and retinal homeostasis. Dr Zouache currently leads an initiative to identify markers of progression for AMD using genetic, biological and clinical data and mechanistic models.