Ambati Lab

Department of Bioengineering

The Ambati Lab

Molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis

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OUR mission

Our mission is to understand, and develop interventions for vision loss.


We investigate the molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels, in the cornea. Our laboratory group has solved the long-outstanding mystery of what keeps the cornea normally free of blood vessels, identifying the protein sVEGFR-1 as the prime mediator of this essential requirement for clear vision.

Research

Our lab has developed novel inhibitors targeting the key mediator of angiogenesis, VEGF, specifically sequestering this linchpin molecule within cells, complementing the existing anti-VEGF arsenal.

More about our research

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Knight Campus aerial view

People

We are a team of bioengineers, neuroscientists and molecular biologists. 

Meet the Ambati Lab 

 

Ambati Lab News

black and white portrait with text overlay and underlay of his name, reading "Bala" on top and "Ambati" on bottom
Ambati's TEDxPortland Talk Now Streaming
Knight Campus research professor Bala Ambati's April 11, 2026, TEDxPortland talk, "The Ticking Time Bomb of Childhood Nearsightedness," is now streaming on the TEDx YouTube page
Headshot of Saumya Keremane against a wood wall
Keremane Receives an F31 Fellowship
Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate, co-advised by Richard Taylor and Bala Ambati, Saumya Keremane has been awarded a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (F31) to support her research on mechanisms and treatments for inherited blindness.
Bala Ambati
Bala Ambati Receives Federal–Industry Award to Advance Pediatric Myopia Treatment
Bala Ambati has received nearly $500,000 in funding from iVEena Delivery Systems, Inc. and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to advance a new therapeutic for nearsightedness, the leading cause of vision loss globally.
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The Ambati Lab 

In 2020, the Ambati Lab relocated to the University of Oregon's Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact. Based in the Department of Bioengineering in Eugene, Oregon, the Amabti Lab explores mechanisms of corneal and retinal diseases and the development and improvement of therapies.