Lab Members
Assistant Professor in Ophthalmology
Dr. Jason Comander is an Alumni of Harvard University and Harvard Medical School, where he also did his residency and fellowship in Ophthalmology. Jason’s research focuses on understanding the genetic causes of inherited retinal degenerations in order to develop better diagnostic treatment options. Dr. Comander is currently working on several projects, including:
• Genetic heterogeneity among patients with pericentral retinitis pigmentosa
• Functional characterization of human genetic variation in retinitis pigmentosa
• Translating optogenetic vision restoration therapies to a primate model (collaborator)
Jason is a member of the Mass. Eye and Ear Retina and Inherited Retinal Disorders Services. For more information on his clinic or to schedule an appointment, patients should click here.
Contact Information:
Phone: 617-573-3804
Research Technologist
Erin Hennessey graduated from the College of William & Mary in 2017 with a BS in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. Her undergraduate research thesis studied the immunity of rainbow trout to F. Psychrophilum with a focus on the IgT isotype. In addition to this research, she has worked in chemical synthesis laboratories.
Erin joined the Ocular Genomics Institute in July 2017 and currently she works as a research technician for Dr. Comander.
Contact Details:
erin_hennessey@meei.harvard.edu
Dr. Yuki Tachida received his Master of Science in Pharmacy from Kyoto University in Japan. After graduation, he worked at a Japanese pharmaceutical company for drug screening, target search and pharmacological research before obtaining his Ph.D. in pharmaceutical science from Kumamoto University in 2017. His Ph.D. thesis was focused on mechanisms of cytoprotective effects of mesenchymal stem cells on cardiovascular cells. In January 2019, he joined the Ocular Genomics Institute, where he started to develop gene therapeutic strategies for the treatment of Inherited retinal diseases.
yuki_tachida@meei.harvard.edu