Who Is Teresa Puthussery? Indian-Origin Researcher Wins MacArthur 'Genius' Grant

Teresa Puthussery, an optometrist-turned-neuroscientist at the University of California, Berkeley, has been named among the 2025 MacArthur Fellows, an honour often referred to as the 'Genius Grant.' The fellowship, awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, recognises individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary creativity and potential in their fields.

MacArthur Fellowship for Vision Research

Puthussery, an associate professor in UC Berkeley’s Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry and Vision Science, will receive $800,000 in unrestricted funding to advance her research. She has been recognised for her groundbreaking studies on how the retina processes visual information, work that could transform understanding and treatment of vision loss.

Her lab focuses on deciphering the complex network of retinal cells, particularly ganglion cells that transmit visual signals from the eye to the brain. One of her key findings includes identifying a rare class of ganglion cells that stabilise our gaze, helping us see clearly even when our eyes move. Her team is also exploring how other cell types contribute to motion detection and peripheral vision.

Restoring Sight with Stem Cells

In addition to her main research, Puthussery is part of an ambitious multi-university collaboration aiming to restore sight by generating light-sensitive photoreceptor cells from stem cells and transplanting them into damaged retinas. The long-term goal is to repair the neural connections required for restored vision in conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa or age-related macular degeneration.

Puthussery began her career as an optometrist in Australia, but her experiences with patients who suffered irreversible vision loss inspired her to shift toward neuroscience. One encounter with a young patient with retinitis pigmentosa, she recalls, was significant, motivating her to pursue scientific research that could one day prevent such blindness.

With the MacArthur Fellowship, Puthussery plans to continue advancing her lab’s work on the cellular mechanisms of sight, deepening understanding of how visual information is encoded, and exploring new pathways to preserve and restore vision.