Jing Chen

Jing Chen, PhD, is a Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and leads the Chen Laboratory at Boston Children's Hospital. Her research focuses on retinal vascular biology in development and pathological vascular eye diseases.

The Chen Laboratory investigates retinal vascular biology with emphasis on pathological vascular eye diseases including retinopathy of prematurity, age-related macular degeneration, and rare hereditary diseases such as familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR) and Norrie disease. Her research program is structured around three main projects: nuclear receptor-mediated ocular neovascularization and inflammation; small non-coding RNAs in retinal angiogenesis; and Wnt signaling control of vascular growth and permeability in retinopathy.

Analysis of Dr. Chen's recent publications reveals consistent focus on molecular mechanisms underlying retinal vascular diseases, with particular emphasis on nuclear receptor signaling (especially RORalpha), Wnt pathway regulation, and microRNA function in ocular angiogenesis. Her work spans basic molecular mechanisms to potential therapeutic applications, with numerous studies utilizing animal models to investigate disease pathogenesis.

As principal investigator of the Chen Laboratory, Dr. Chen oversees research investigating disease mechanisms and potential therapeutics for vascular eye diseases. Her laboratory work involves multiple approaches including molecular biology, animal modeling, and translational research aimed at understanding and treating retinal vascular pathologies.