Allison Ludwig
Credentials: Comparative Biomedical Sciences Program, School of Veterinary Medicine
Position title: Dual DVM/PhD Resident
Email: aludwig4@wisc.edu
Phone: 608-890-1896
Address:
T603 Waisman Center
1500 Highland Ave
Madison, WI 53705
Advisor: David Gamm, MD, PhD
Keywords: Retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, retinal cell therapy, photoreceptor replacement, tissue engineering, retinal synaptogenesis, animal models of retinal disease
Education
BS 2015, Animal Science, Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Research
Allison Ludwig is a dual DVM/PhD trainee who recently completed her dissertation research in the laboratory of McPherson ERI Director Dr. David Gamm. In collaboration with the laboratories of McPherson ERI members Drs. Sarah Gong and Jack Ma, her thesis research focused on developing retinal patches to organize stem cell-derived photoreceptors for cell replacement therapy in diseases like macular degeneration that damage light-sensitive photoreceptors. Together with McPherson ERI member Xinyu Zhao and fellow trainee member Steven Mayerl, she has recently developed a method for studying new connections between stem cell-derived retinal neurons in a dish. As she works toward completing her veterinary degree at the School of Veterinary Medicine, she hopes to continue to find new ways to accelerate development of safe, effective cell therapies for retinal degenerative disease.