IoO celebrates academic staff promotions

Congratulations to Dr Virginia Calder, Dr Gus Gazzard and Dr Anthony Vugler on their academic promotions. Virginia Calder and Gus Gazzard have been promoted to the position of Professor and Anthony Vugler has been promoted to the position of Associate Professor. 

Professor Andrew Dick, Institute Director, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to offer my warmest congratulations to Virginia, Gus and Anthony, who have consistently demonstrated outstanding leadership and dedication throughout their time at the Institute. A promotion is a professional and personal achievement which recognises a commitment to excellence and the international acclaim of our academics’ work. I thank them for their extraordinary contributions to our research, educational and cultural environment.”

Virginia Calder, Professor of Ocular Immunology

Virginia joined the Institute as a junior postdoctoral researcher and has seen the Institute go through many changes. On what it is like to work at the Institute of Ophthalmology, Virginia said, “IoO is an incredibly collegiate environment. It offers plenty of opportunities for students and postdoctoral fellows to meet and exchange ideas, together with senior staff. What I love most about being here is seeing the number of students who come to study for an MSc or PhD, with many of them staying in touch and joining the extended family.”

Gus Gazzard, Professor of Glaucoma Studies

In March 2019, The Lancet published results of a three-year trial led by Gus, showing that a laser-based treatment on newly diagnosed cases of glaucoma is more successful and cost-effective than standard treatments. Speaking of his promotion and clinical trials, Gus said: “I am honoured to have been appointed to a UCL Professorship and I look forward to further developing the clinical trials and excellent postgraduate clinical education that we have established here at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology. The clinical trials that I work on across the globe are a testament to the great team that I’ve been able to build at the Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Hospital, and a tribute to all of their hard work – the energy they bring to answer questions of real clinical importance to patients with blinding diseases.”

Anthony Vugler, Associate Professor

Anthony Vugler is a Principal Investigator in the London Project to Cure Blindness. He is interested in understanding how the neural architecture of the retina sustains visual function and how, in conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD), loss of input from rod/cone photoreceptors leads to alterations in downstream neural circuitry.

Further information

• Dr Virginia Calder’s academic profile
• Dr Gus Gazzard’s academic profile
• Dr Anthony Vugler’s academic profile
• Laser-based treatment successful and cost-effective for glaucoma
• The London Project to Cure Blindness
• Research at the Institute of Ophthalmology