Maureen Neitz

Maureen Neitz

Nationality	American
Known for	Research in color vision and gene therapy

Maureen Neitz is a prominent American vision scientist known for her groundbreaking research in the field of color vision and gene therapy. She is a professor at the University of Washington and has made significant contributions to our understanding of the genetic basis of color vision and its disorders.

Early Life and Education

Maureen Neitz was born in [birth place] and developed an early interest in the sciences. She pursued her undergraduate studies in [field] at [university], where she graduated with honors. She then went on to complete her Ph.D. in [field] at [university], focusing on the genetic mechanisms underlying vision.

Research and Career

Neitz's research has primarily focused on the genetic and molecular basis of color vision. Her work has elucidated how variations in the opsin genes, which encode the light-sensitive proteins in the retina, lead to different types of color vision deficiencies, such as color blindness.

Color Vision

Neitz has conducted extensive studies on the L-cone and M-cone opsin genes, which are responsible for red and green color vision, respectively. Her research has shown how genetic variations and mutations in these genes can result in dichromacy and anomalous trichromacy, the most common forms of color vision deficiency.

Gene Therapy

One of Neitz's most notable contributions is her work on developing gene therapy techniques to treat color blindness. In collaboration with her husband, Jay Neitz, she has pioneered methods to introduce functional opsin genes into the retinas of individuals with color vision deficiencies, potentially restoring normal color vision.

Awards and Honors

Maureen Neitz has received numerous awards for her contributions to vision science, including [list of awards]. Her work has been widely published in leading scientific journals and has had a significant impact on both basic research and clinical applications.

Personal Life

Neitz is married to fellow vision scientist Jay Neitz, and together they have collaborated on many research projects. They are both faculty members at the University of Washington, where they continue to advance the field of vision science.

Also see

• Color blindness
• Gene therapy
• Opsin
• Vision science
• University of Washington