Kamal Shokeen is a postdoctoral researcher at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. His work focuses on exploring eye-specific regulatory networks in early forebrain and eye development. In this Postdoc Portrait interview, he shares what initially drew him to this field and the importance of his work.
Deciphering Embryonic Eye Development
Q | What drew you to your research question/field?
The fact we cannot see this beautiful world of ours without eyes. Our vision feels effortless and we go about our daily lives without thinking about it. We assume that it is as simple as opening our eyes and seeing the world. But for our vision to exist, hundreds of proteins work together in perfect harmony during development. Even after full development, there is a lot going on literally behind our eyes. It is surprising that we still don’t understand how our eyes develop in the first place. That led me to my current research work where I study eye development in mice.
Q | What scientific problem are you trying to solve?
I am working on deciphering a key protein involved in eye and brain development—Six3, which derives its name from sine oculis, meaning “without eyes.” It was first identified in fruit flies, where its misregulation led to the complete absence of eyes. Our lab has already shown that it is responsible for maintaining and guiding retinal progenitor cells, which are early cells that eventually develop into the different cell types of the eye.
My work focuses on understanding how this protein helps these early eye cells specialize during the initial stages of embryonic development. I am particularly interested in identifying its functional relationships with other proteins, and their significance in the eye. Through this work, we hope to better understand how the eye develops, which makes us see this world.
Q | What’s one thing you learned from working on this research question that you didn’t expect?
One thing I didn’t expect to learn from this work is just how beautiful the eyes are from the inside. As part of my research, I’ve had the chance to look at mouse embryos eyes at different stages of development, and seeing the eyes form step by step has been a spectacular experience. The retinal structure, the developing lens, and especially the optic nerves are just gorgeous to look at. The optic nerves feel almost elegant and otherworldly, even at such early stages. I think it really made the phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” feel very real to me.
Targeting Root Causes of Vision Loss
Q | If your research succeeds, what could it change for science or society?
It could help us potentially prevent certain causes of vision loss and developmental disorders in kids. My research will provide crucial details about six3 protein function, mainly how it is linked to serious conditions such as holoprosencephaly, where the forebrain does not form properly, as well as major eye defects like the absence of the lens or retina and issues with the pituitary gland. We will be able to identify eye defects much earlier and target the root causes. Ultimately, my goal is very simple: to give the affected children a chance to see and experience this beautiful world.
Q | What question are you most excited to answer next?
After studying eye development under normal conditions, the next question I’m most excited to explore is how things go wrong during disease conditions, especially viral infections. There are viruses that can lead to vision loss or blindness, and this is an area that still needs much deeper understanding. Coming from a background in virology from my PhD, I’m particularly interested in connecting these two fields. I want to understand how viral infections interfere with eye function and identify the eye-specific factors that play role in this.
Responses have been edited for length and clarity.
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