Mary Whitman, MD/PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Ophthalmology department at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her research focuses on understanding the pathophysiologic basis of eye movement disorders. The lab has two main areas of focus: (1) identifying genetic causes of strabismus and understanding the mechanisms by which genetic variants lead to strabismus, and (2) molecular mechanisms of motor neuron and extraocular muscle development in normal development and in mouse models of nystagmus. Her long-term goal is to understand how oculomotor development is perturbed in eye movement disorders, in order to develop new treatments that address the underlying pathophysiology. She has received funding from the NEI (both K08 and R01), multiple foundations, including the Knights Templar Eye Foundation, the Massachusetts Lions Foundation, the Myles and Gertrude Hanson Foundation, and from private philanthropy. She has won numerous awards, including an ARVO/Alcon Early Career Clinician-Scientist Award.
The Whitman Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital studies the genetics of strabismus (misaligned eyes) and development of the oculomotor system. The lab enrolls individuals and families with strabismus to identify new genetic causes, models genetic variants identified in individuals with strabismus in human neurons to help understand the mechanisms of strabismus, and studies development of the oculomotor system in mouse models.