Retinal Research Entering a Golden Era

Enjoy this video, produced by The Foundation Fighting Blindness where Louis Kreisberg is the CEO. The video depicts a young woman whose eyesight was restored through gene therapy through the support of the Foundation.

The New Focus on Estate Planning

According to the Wall Street Journal, many families are moving their estate planning focus away from avoiding estate taxes, to minimizing their capital gains tax burdens. Nowadays the federal estate tax is not the biggest worry for affluent people who would like to avoid paying taxes when their heirs inherit their wealth.

This is in contrast to how it was during the past ten years. Back in 2004, those with over $1.5 million in assets wishing to pass on their wealth after death, or who made gifts above that limit during their lifetimes, had to pay taxes at the top rate which was close to 50 percent. Married couples were forced to set up trust funds in order to benefit from the full $3 million exemption they were entitled to.

Adding to the complexity of planning was the fact that the tax burden kept changing every year. In fact, in 2010 the tax was completely gone, making it extremely difficult to plan for the future.

Last year Congress changed the estate tax law. Today the top estate-and-gift tax rate is set at a maximum of 40 percent and the exemption was changed to $5 million, with adjustments to take into account inflation, so that today’s exemption comes to $5.34 million. In addition, couples do not need to set up trusts to get the full benefit they are entitled to.

Now that individuals do not have to be so concerned with estate taxes, they can reap meaningful tax savings on capital gains by choosing smartly which assets to hold until death.

The Foundation Fighting Blindness and Stem Cell Therapy

Louis Kreisberg is the CEO of The Foundation Fighting Blindness, which funds pioneering research into the causes and cures of illnesses which result in blindness.

One example of up-to-the-minute research funded by the FFB is stem cell transplantation therapy. Many people engaged in finding a cure for blindness have called the transplantation of photo-receptors in order to restore sight as the “holy grail” of possible therapies to cure blindness. The reason is that this therapy has the potential to help people who are living with blindness, but for many difference reasons.

It has already been shown to work in the laboratory where lost photo-receptors have been replaced by injecting stem-cell-derived photo-receptors into the eye. Yet, although much progress has been made with this line of research, there are still many obstacles standing in the way of a cure.

One such hurdle is the inability to distinguish between the newly injected cone photo-receptors from the cone receptors that are already in the eye and not functioning properly. One researcher, Dr. Valerie Wallace, has made a breakthrough towards solving this problem.

“There is considerable work being done on exploring rod cell transplantation in the eye, which has formed the basis for much of the field to this point. Although this work is of significant value to understanding photo-receptor transplantation, replacing a cell type that is responsible for low-light (night) vision in one’s periphery is not an end-point goal of this field,” explained Dr. Phil Nickerson, a collaborator on the project.

Tips to Save on Insurance Premiums

Between car, health, life and other forms of insurance that we pay for each month, the premiums quickly add up. Here are a few tips to keep the costs of having insurance to a minimum.

• If there is something that you want, ask for it. This might mean using a broker for your insurance needs instead of signing up on-line, but the potential for savings makes it worthwhile.

• Want to lower your premiums? Start with making some life changes that make you look less risky on paper, (and in real life, too.) Dare I say it? Lose some weight, quit smoking, take a defensive driving class. These actions can not only help you save money on your insurance, but save your life, too.

• Never stop comparing prices. Comparing prices does not mean making endless phone calls, either. The internet and sites like compare.com make is simple and fast to get the best price for your insurance.

• Bundled plans are not always the cheapest. Consider looking at each service you are getting separately and see if you are really saving money in the bundle.

• Your credit history can be used by insurance companies to determine your rates, so keep an eagle eye on it. Knowing your credit score is an important part of taking charge of your finances anyway, and should be checked yearly. Checking regularly also helps avoid identity theft and fraud.

• Many organizations such as companies or schools offer discounted rates for members or alumni. Check and see if your alma mater or company offers such savings on insurance.

Confronting the Truth About Estate Planning

There are many goals of estate planning; one of which is to leave those you love in a better position than perhaps you began your life with. It means coming to the realization that one day you will no longer be alive. For many people this is a difficult realization to confront in all its ramifications.

When planning for your eventual death, the following issues will most likely arise:

• You will have mixed emotions about confronting the reality of inevitable death. When you understand that avoiding developing an estate plan will lead to your assets going to unintended beneficiaries and loss of money for your loved ones in unnecessary taxes and liabilities, perhaps that will charge you to action.

• Be sure to clearly communicate your wishes. Be sure to involve your loved ones and financial advisors. The more you clarify before your demise, the less likely there will be misunderstandings and disputes after.

• The way to communicate your wishes legally is through a will. Be sure to write one, the sooner the better. And keep it up to date whenever some change your status, or your children’s status, or any other relevant event, takes place.

• Consider establishing a living trust. This completely bypasses the entire probate process, saves on attorney’s fees, court control, contest clauses, unneeded taxes. It is private and entirely controlled by the family.

New Procedure for FED Could Reduce Need for Corneal Transplants

Louis Kreisberg is the CEO of The Foundation Fighting Blindness, where the causes, cures and

prevention of eye diseases is the focus of ongoing research.

A minimally invasive procedure to treat one of the more common eye ailments, Fuchs endothelial dystrophy (FED) is proving to be at least as effective as the present standard of care, namely, a cornea transplant.

Researcher Kathryn Colby, MD, PhD, and others found that removing just a few square millimeters fo a single layer of cells on the inside of the cornea stimulated the rejuvenation of the nearby tissue, eliminating the need for a corneal transplant. For every four patients with FED who had the procedure, three experienced the restoration of clear vision. FED is the most frequent cause of corneal transplants in the US.

"It's too soon to call this a cure," Colby said. "We performed the first operation just over two years ago. But when it works, it's a wonderful thing. It's quick, inexpensive and it spares patients from having someone else's cells in their eyes, which requires local immunosuppression."

One patient who had the procedure described his recovery:

"Few things remind you as constantly as deteriorating vision," the patient recalled. "Your world steadily narrows as you lose the ability to see. But mine expanded again at the other end. I remember walking the dog at night right after the operation. Each night, the streetlights would be a little more in focus. You could see the improvement, night after night over the course of a few weeks, like the fog lifting out of London. It was cool. Really cool."

Gene Therapy Helps Sheep Overcome “Day Blindness”

The Foundation Fighting Blindness, where Louis Kreisberg is CEO, supports a blog called “Eye on the Cure,” which explores the latest research in retinal disease. Recently the blog discussed a new therapy which was tried on sheep suffering from achromatopsia, an illness that not only affects sheep but about 100,000 people each year, causing blindness in light conditions.

Sheep with the illness were treated by a research team led by Eyal Banin, MD, PhD of Hadassah Medical Center in Israel. University of Florida’s William Hauswirth, PhD supplied the gene-delivery system, the human-engineered adeno-associated virus, or AAV, which delivered the healthy gene to the sheep retinas.

Sheep with achromatopsia were given the virus loaded with the good gene. Whereas before the treatment they could not successfully navigate through a maze to find their flock, after the treatment they were successful.

The research results were published in the journal Molecular Therapy.

The below video shows the results of the therapy: