Dr. Joseph Martel is a distinguished clinician-researcher specializing in vitreoretinal disease and vision restoration therapies. Dr. Martel’s research focuses on understanding and treating retinal degeneration through multiple therapeutic approaches, including gene therapy, optogenetics, artificial retina devices, and developing novel treatment delivery platforms. As both a practicing physician and researcher he is working to uncover the fundamental mechanisms of retinal degeneration while developing innovative therapeutic interventions to preserve and restore vision. Dr. Martel is the principal investigator on several clinical trials.
Dr. Martel was the first surgeon in North America to surgically implant an investigational wireless photovoltaic submacular implant (Pixium PRIMA) in patients with end-stage atrophic macular degeneration. He is co-author of a Nature Medicine publication describing preliminary results in end-stage retinitis pigmentosa patients treated with a novel optogenetics treatment.
- Duke University, Fellowship in Vitreoretinal Surgery
- University of California, San Francisco, Ophthalmology Residency
- University of Nevada, MD
Education & Training
At both the investigational preclinical stages and in human clinical trials, Dr. Martel, along with collaborators, aims to develop and deploy novel vision restoration approaches to patients with blinding retinal conditions.
Dr. Martel's research program encompasses multiple therapeutic approaches to understanding and treating retinal degeneration, including:
- Gene therapy (gene-specific and gene-agnostic approaches)
- Optogenetics
- Artificial retina devices
- Novel treatment delivery platforms