Wei Li, PhD, of the WashU Medicine John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences has been awarded a prestigious Career Starter Grant from the Knights Templar Eye Foundation for 2026–2027. This competitive award supports early-career investigators advancing research to better understand and treat vision disorders. Li’s work focuses on the anterior segment—the front portion of the eye responsible for focusing light and maintaining healthy eye pressure—where developmental disruptions can lead to congenital eye diseases.
Li’s research centers on the potential role of fibroblast growth factor signaling in the pathogenesis of anterior segment dysgenesis-specifically in Peters anomaly. By studying how the signaling networks are coordinated, her work aims to uncover what goes wrong in congenital conditions and identify potential pathways for future therapies. This research builds on her recent presentation at the International Conference on the Lens 2025, highlighting WashU Medicine’s leadership in foundational vision science with direct clinical relevance.
“The eye is a remarkably precise structure, and even subtle disruptions in signaling can lead to profound congenital defects. My work seeks to uncover how key signaling pathways are coordinated and what happens when that balance is lost,” said Wei Li, PhD.