About Our Research
The Bernstein Laboratory explores the biochemistry and biophysics of nutritional interventions against inherited and acquired ocular disorders. His National Eye Institute-funded laboratory is a leader in the study of the proteins involved in the uptake and stabilization of lutein and zeaxanthin in the human macula. These dietary xanthophyll carotenoids play an important role in protecting the macula from light-induced oxidative damage, and high ocular levels are associated with decreased risk of age-related macular degeneration.
In collaboration with Dr. Werner Gellermann of the University of Utah Physics Department, he has developed instrumentation to non-invasively measure carotenoid levels in the eye, skin, and other human tissues using resonance Raman spectroscopy.
In addition to its important potential medical uses, this patented technology has been enthusiastically embraced by the nutritional supplementation industry—thousands of these Biophotonic Scanners® are in consumer use worldwide.
Dr. Bernstein’s Foundation Fighting Blindness research is devoted to the identification of genes associated with macular dystrophies and degenerations. He and his colleagues have helped to define the role of the ABCR and ELOVL4 genes in macular disease, and he has recently been able to demonstrate for the first time that high dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids can protect against dominant Stargardt macular dystrophy (STGD3) in a large Utah family with an ELOVL4 mutation. Dr. Bernstein has authored over fifty peer-reviewed research articles and reviews as well as six book chapters, and he has served as a reviewer for numerous journals, foundations, and institutes.
He is among the first researchers worldwide to test the early diagnostic capabilities of fluorescence lifetime imaging ophthalmoscopy, a new non-invasive retinal imaging technique known as FLIO.
How Does Our Research Help Patients
Dr. Bernstein’s research has helped to establish the importance of lutein and zeaxanthin omega-3 fatty acids in the maintenance of macular health. He served as the Moran Eye Center principal investigator for the National Eye Institute’s AREDS II study, a nationwide multi-center clinical trial to establish definitive recommendations for nutritional interventions against age-related macular degeneration. In addition, his work on the mechanisms of action of proteins associated with the major inherited form of macular degeneration offers hope that further molecular interventions are possible.
Research Publications
- Natural History of Microperimetry and Optical Coherence Tomography in USH2A-Retinopathy: A Structure-Function Association Study. Vincent A, Liang W, Maguire MG, Duncan JL, Ayala AR, Bernstein PS, Carroll J, Cheetham JK, Durham TA, Farsiu S, Hoyng CB, Huckfeldt RM, Jaffe GJ, Loo J, Pennesi ME, Sahel JA, Singh MS, Zemborain ZZ, Birch DG, Lad EM; Foundation Fighting Blindness Clinical Consortium Investigator Group.
Am J Ophthalmol. 2025 May 3;276:336-349. - Head-mounted surgical robots are an enabling technology for subretinal injections. Posselli NR, Hwang ES, Olson ZJ, Nagiel A, Bernstein PS, Abbott JJ. Sci Robot. 2025 Feb 19;10(99):eadp7700.
- Imaging macular carotenoids and their related proteins in the human retina with confocal resonance Raman and fluorescence microscopy. Li B, Chang FY, Wan Z, Giauque NA, Addo EK, Bernstein PS. Exp Eye Res. 2024 Oct;247:110043.
- High-throughput ultrastructural analysis of macular telangiectasia type 2. Zucker CL, Bernstein PS, Schalek RL, Lichtman JW, Dowling JE. Front Ophthalmol (Lausanne). 2024 Jul 30;4:1428777.
- Ocular Effects of Prenatal Carotenoid Supplementation in the Mother and Her Child: The Lutein and Zeaxanthin in Pregnancy (L-ZIP) Randomized Trial - Report Number 2. Addo EK, Gorka JE, Allman SJ, Harrison DY, Sharifzadeh M, Hoffman RO, Hartnett ME, Varner MW, Bernstein PS. Ophthalmol Sci. 2024 Apr 24;4(5):100537.
- Eye-mounting goggles to bridge the gap between benchtop experiments and in vivo robotic eye surgery. Posselli NR, Bernstein PS, Abbott JJ. Sci Rep. 2023 Sep 19;13(1):15503.
- Understanding the Roles of Very-Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (VLC-PUFAs) in Eye Health. Nwagbo U, Bernstein PS. Nutrients. 2023 Jul 10;15(14):3096.
- The value of pre-symptomatic genetic risk assessment for age-related macular degeneration: the Moran AMD Genetic Testing Assessment (MAGENTA) Study: a study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Addo EK, Hartnett ME, Bernstein PS. Trials. 2023 Jun 19;24(1):414.
- Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Ophthalmoscopy in Patients with Macular Telangiectasia Type 2 with and Without Diabetes. Sauer L, Vitale AS, Jacoby RS, Hart B, Bernstein PS. Retina. 2023 Sep 1;43(9):1597-160.
Retinal bioavailability and Functional Effects of a Synthetic Very-Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid in Mice. Gorusupudi A, Rallabandi R, Li B, Arunkumar R, Blount JD, Rognon GT, Chang FY, Wade A, Lucas S, Conboy JC, Rainier JD, Bernstein PS. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021 Feb 9;118(6):e2017739118. - Longitudinal Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Ophthalmoscopy Analysis in Patients with Macular Telangiectasia Type 2 (Mactel). Sauer L, Vitale AS, Modersitzki NK, Bernstein PS. Retina. 2021 Jul 1;41(7):1416-1427.
Lutein and Zeaxanthin Reduce A2E and Iso-A2E Levels and Improve Visual Performance in Abca4-/-/Bco2-/- Double Knockout Mice. Arunkumar R, Gorusupudi A, Li B, Blount JD, Nwagbo U, Kim HJ, Sparrow JR, Bernstein PS. Exp Eye Res. 2021 Jun 20;209:108680. - Association of adipose and red blood cell lipids with severity of dominant Stargardt macular dystrophy (STGD3) secondary to an ELOVL4 mutation. Hubbard A.F., Askew E.W., Singh N., Leppert M., Bernstein P.S. (2006). Arch Ophthalmol, 124(2), 257-63.
Non-Mydriatic Fluorescence-Based Quantitative Imaging of Human Macular Pigment Distributions. Sharifzadeh M, Bernstein P.S., Gellermann W. (2006). J Opt Soc Am A, in press.