Sun Young Lee, MD, PhD

Dr. Lee is a board-certified retina surgeon and clinician-scientist with extensive experience in managing complex vitreoretinal diseases, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), inherited retinal diseases (IRD), and diabetic retinopathy (DR). As an already fully trained vitreoretinal surgeon from South Korea, she completed her training again at top, nationally-ranked ophthalmology programs in the United States, including the Johns Hopkins University, University of Southern California, and University of Iowa for postdoctoral fellowship, ophthalmology residency, and vitreoretinal surgery fellowship training respectively.
Expanding upon Dr. Lee’s expertise in retinal drug discovery, pre-clinical experimental design, and retinal cell biology and biochemistry, Dr. Lee’s research program, funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI), currently focuses on studying the role of extracellular vesicles (EVs), especially small EV (freuqnetly called as exosomes), in retinal diseases and developing innovative EV-based intraocular therapies. EV-based intraocular therapy holds a promise for next generation drug delivery, gene therapy and stem cell therapy for retina diseases with limited or no treatment available.

For more information on Dr. Lee’s work, visit LeeRetinaLab.com

• Alcon Research Institute : Young Investigator Award, 2023
• Women in Retin (WinR)/ American Society of Retina Specialist (ASRS): Mina Chung Research Award, 2021
• Presbyterian Health Foundation (PHF): Clinician Scientist Development Award, 2019
• Fellowship Research Award: The Retina Society, 2017
• Women in Retina (WinR) Mentoring Program : Travel Grant, 2016
• Los Angeles Ophthalmology Society (LASO): Dr. Henry & Lilian Nesburn Award for Best Research by a Resident, 2016
• ARVO Foundation : Eye Research/Retina Research Foundation Travel Grant, 2009

• Polarized RPE Secretome Preserves Photoreceptors in Retinal Dystrophic RCS Rats Cells. 2023 06 22; 12(13). . View in PubMed
• Fiji-Assisted Automatic Quantitative Volumetric Analysis of Choroidal Neovascularization in a Laser-Induced Choroidal Neovascularization Mouse Model Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2023 04 03; 12(4):10. . View in PubMed
• Utility of No-Charge Panel Genetic Testing for Inherited Retinal Diseases in a Real-World Clinical Setting J Vitreoretin Dis. 2022 Sep-Oct; 6(5):351-357. . View in PubMed
• Proteomic Insight into the Role of Exosomes in Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy Development J Clin Med. 2022 May 11; 11(10). . View in PubMed
• Advanced Retina Implants Ophthalmol Retina. 2022 10; 6(10):899-905. . View in PubMed
• Intraocular RGD-Engineered Exosomes and Active Targeting of Choroidal Neovascularization (CNV) Cells. 2022 08 18; 11(16). . View in PubMed
• ENDOPHTHALMITIS AFTER TRANSCONJUNCTIVAL PARS PLANA VITRECTOMY: A 6-year Experience Without Prophylactic Intraoperative Subconjunctival Antibiotics Retina. 2021 Mar 01; 41(3):531-537. . View in PubMed
• Increased Glial Fibrillary Acid Protein and Vimentin in Vitreous Fluid as a Biomarker for Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2020 05 11; 61(5):22. . View in PubMed
• Wide-Field Swept-Source OCT and Angiography in X-Linked Retinoschisis Ophthalmol Retina. 2019 02; 3(2):178-185. . View in PubMed
• Choroidal Features of Acute Macular Neuroretinopathy via Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography and Correlation With Serial Multimodal Imaging JAMA Ophthalmol. 2017 11 01; 135(11):1177-1183. . View in PubMed
• Objectively quantifying walking ability in degenerative spinal disorder patients using sensor equipped smart shoes Med Eng Phys. 2016 May; 38(5):442-9. . View in PubMed
• Clinical and laboratory characteristics of ocular syphilis: a new face in the era of HIV co-infection J Ophthalmic Inflamm Infect. 2015 Dec; 5(1):56. . View in PubMed
• OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY ANGIOGRAPHY OF RETINAL VENOUS OCCLUSION Retina. 2015 Nov; 35(11):2323-31. . View in PubMed
• Drusen and RPE atrophy automated quantification by optical coherence tomography in an elderly population Eye (Lond). 2015 Feb; 29(2):300. . View in PubMed
• Drusen and RPE atrophy automated quantification by optical coherence tomography in an elderly population Eye (Lond). 2015 Feb; 29(2):272-9. . View in PubMed
• Effect of angle of incidence on macular thickness and volume measurements obtained by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2012 Aug 07; 53(9):5287-91. . View in PubMed
• Intravitreal bevacizumab alone versus in combination with photodynamic therapy for the treatment of neovascular maculopathy in patients aged 50 years or older: 1-year results of a prospective clinical study Acta Ophthalmol. 2012 Feb; 90(1):61-7. . View in PubMed
• Automated characterization of pigment epithelial detachment by optical coherence tomography Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2012 Jan 20; 53(1):164-70. . View in PubMed
• Overexpression of SOD in retina: need for increase in H2O2-detoxifying enzyme in same cellular compartment Free Radic Biol Med. 2011 Oct 01; 51(7):1347-54. . View in PubMed
• N-Acetylcysteine promotes long-term survival of cones in a model of retinitis pigmentosa J Cell Physiol. 2011 Jul; 226(7):1843-9. . View in PubMed
• Constituents of bile, bilirubin and TUDCA, protect against oxidative stress-induced retinal degeneration J Neurochem. 2011 Jan; 116(1):144-53. . View in PubMed
• Randomized, sham-controlled trial of dexamethasone intravitreal implant in patients with macular edema due to retinal vein occlusionOphthalmology. 2010 Jun; 117(6):1134-1146. e3. . View in PubMed
• Rapid progression of subclinical age-related macular degeneration in the untreated fellow eye after intravitreal bevacizumab Acta Ophthalmol. 2009 Sep; 87(6):685-7. . View in PubMed
• NADPH oxidase plays a central role in cone cell death in retinitis pigmentosa J Neurochem. 2009 Aug; 110(3):1028-37. . View in PubMed
• Ocular sarcoidosis in a Korean population J Korean Med Sci. 2009 Jun; 24(3):413-9. . View in PubMed
• Increased expression of catalase and superoxide dismutase 2 reduces cone cell death in retinitis pigmentosa Mol Ther. 2009 May; 17(5):778-86. . View in PubMed
• Bilateral toxoplasma retinochoroiditis simulating cytomegalovirus retinitis in an allogeneic bone marrow transplant patient Korean J Ophthalmol. 2008 Sep; 22(3):197-200. . View in PubMed
• Inhibitory effect of bevacizumab on the angiogenesis and growth of retinoblastoma Arch Ophthalmol. 2008 Jul; 126(7):953-8. . View in PubMed
• The therapeutic effects of bevacizumab in patients with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy Korean J Ophthalmol. 2008 Jun; 22(2):92-9. . View in PubMed
• Optical coherence tomography evaluation of detached macula from rhegmatogenous retinal detachment and central serous chorioretinopathy Am J Ophthalmol. 2008 Jun; 145(6):1071-1076. . View in PubMed
• Efficacy of intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide for eyes with postvitrectomy diabetic vitreous hemorrhage Korean J Ophthalmol. 2007 Dec; 21(4):208-12. . View in PubMed
• Clinical and OCT features in spontaneously progressive idiopathic choriovitreal neovascularization Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging. 2007 Mar-Apr; 38(2):151-3. . View in PubMed
• Intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide in eyes with recurrent postvitrectomy diabetic vitreous hemorrhage Am J Ophthalmol. 2006 Sep; 142(3):501-3. . View in PubMed
• Mitomycin C, ceramide, and 5-fluorouracil inhibit corneal haze and apoptosis after PRK Cornea. 2006 Jan; 25(1):55-60. . View in PubMed
• Mitomycin C-induced reduction of keratocytes and fibroblasts after photorefractive keratectomy Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2004 Sep; 45(9):2978-84. . View in PubMed
• Pars plana vitrectomy for exuduative retinal detachment in coats-type retinitis pigmentosa Retina. 2004 Jun; 24(3):450-2. . View in PubMed

• Humayun, Mark
• Moshfeghi, Andrew
• Rao, Narsing
• Nagiel, Aaron
• Shahidi, Mahnaz
• Berry, Jesse