Based at the Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (iCBR) in Coimbra, Portugal, and integrated within the Retinal Dysfunction and Neuroinflammation Lab, our research focuses on developing innovative disease models for inherited retinal diseases (IRDs). These models leverage human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), and retinal organoids, and are used to explore gene editing-based therapeutic strategies for retinal degeneration. Our lab employs a multidisciplinary approach that begins and ends with the patient. Through close collaboration with ophthalmologists and the integration of expertise across ophthalmology, neuroscience, gene editing (including CRISPR/Cas9 and Prime Editing), and cellular and molecular biology, we conduct human natural history studies, investigate the underlying mechanisms of retinal degeneration, and work toward the development of novel gene therapies.