Benjamin
Middle Name
J.
Frankfort, M.D., Ph.D.
Middle Name
J.
Picture

Benjamin
Middle Name
J.
Frankfort, M.D., Ph.D.
Middle Name
J.
Associate Professor
Phone
Phone
Positions
- Associate Professor
-
Ophthalmology and Neuroscience
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX US
- Member
-
Center for Space Medicine
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX US
- Co-Director
-
Medical Scientist Training Program
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, Texas
Addresses
- Jamail Specialty Care Center - Alkek Eye Center (Clinic)
-
1977 Butler Blvd.
3rd Floor
Houston, TX 77030
United States
Phone: (713) 798-6100
https://www.bcm.edu/healthcare/care-centers/eye/
Education
- MD from Baylor College Of Medicine
- 05/2005 - Houston, TX United States
- PhD from Baylor College Of Medicine
- 12/2003 - Houston, TX United States
- Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine
- 07/2010 - Houston, Texas United States
- Glaucoma
- Residency at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
- 06/2009 - Baltimore, Maryland United States
- Ophthalmology
- BA from Duke University
- 05/1996 - Durham, North Carolina United States
Certifications
- American Board of Ophthalmology
Professional Interests
- Translational research
- Basic research
- Medical and surgical management of adult glaucoma
Professional Statement
My clinical practice is dedicated to the care of patients with glaucoma, including medical, laser and surgical approaches. As a clinician scientist, I am committed to improving our understanding of glaucoma, which will hopefully lead to the development of new diagnostics and therapeutics. Accordingly, my primary research objective is to understand the earliest events that occur in human and experimental glaucoma, which includes the identification of potential risk factors and susceptible retinal cell types. My research attempts to achieve this goal by working to understand the fundamental changes in retinal sensitivity that occur during glaucoma. In mice, we use experimental models of intracranial pressure and intraocular pressure change in wild type and transgenic strains to achieve this objective. We study visual function and changes in retinal light sensitivity through a variety of techniques. In humans, we study this through the development of new psychophysical tests administered under both light and dark conditions in patients with and without glaucoma.Websites
Selected Publications
- Frankfort BJ1, Nolo R, Zhang Z, Bellen H, Mardon G. "Senseless repression of rough is required for R8 photoreceptor differentiation in the developing Drosophila eye.." Neuron. 2001 Nov 8;32(3):403-14. Pubmed PMID: 11709152
- Frankfort BJ1, Mardon G. "Development in the Drosophila Eye: A Paradigm for Neural Selection and Differentiation.." Development. 2002 Mar;129(6):1295-306. Pubmed PMID: 11880339
- Frankfort BJ1, Mardon G. "Senseless represses nuclear transduction of Egfr pathway activation.." Development. 2014 Feb;131(3):563-70. Pubmed PMID: 14711872
- Pepple KL1, Atkins M, Venken K, Wellnitz K, Harding M, Frankfort B, Mardon G. "Two-Step Selection of a Single R8 Photoreceptor: A Bistable Loop Between senseless and rough Locks in the R8 Fate.." Development. 2008 Dec;135(24):4071-9. Pubmed PMID: 19004852
- Frankfort BJ1, Khan AK, Tse DY, Chung I, Pang JJ, Yang Z, Gross RL, Wu SM. "Elevated intraocular pressure causes inner retinal dysfunction prior to cell loss in a mouse model of experimental glaucoma.." Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2013 Jan 28;54(1):762-70. Pubmed PMID: 23221072
- Khan AK1, Tse DY2, van der Heijden ME3, Shah P1, Nusbaum DM4, Yang Z1, Wu SM3, Frankfort BJ5. "Prolonged elevation of intraocular pressure results in retinal ganglion cell loss and abnormal retinal function in mice.." Exp Eye Res. 2015 Jan;130:29-37. Pubmed PMID: 25450059
- Pang JJ1, Frankfort BJ1, Gross RL1, Wu SM2. "Elevated intraocular pressure decreases response sensitivity of inner retinal neurons in experimental glaucoma mice.." Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Feb 24;112(8):2593-8. Pubmed PMID: 25675503
- Nusbaum DM1, Wu SM2, Frankfort BJ3. "Elevated intracranial pressure causes optic nerve and retinal ganglion cell degeneration in mice.." Exp Eye Res. 2015 Jul;136:38-44. Pubmed PMID: 25912998
- Butler MR1, Prospero Ponce CM, Weinstock YE, Orengo-Nania S, Chevez-Barrios P, Frankfort BJ. "Topical silver nanoparticles result in improved bleb function by increasing filtration and reducing fibrosis in a rabbit model of filtration surgery.." Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2013 Jul 24;54(7):4982-90. Pubmed PMID: 23766475
Memberships
- American Glaucoma Society
- Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology
- American Academy of Ophthalmology
Funding
- Brain and eye-pressure induced optic nerve and retinal degeneration - #R01-EY025601 (08/01/2015 - 07/31/2020) Grant funding from National Eye Institute
- Early Detection and Treatment of Glaucoma (05/01/2015 - 12/31/2019) Grant funding from Clayton Foundation for Research
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