Prof Wong Tina

MBBS, FRCS(Ed), FRCOphth, FAMS, PhD (Lond)

Senior Consultant

Singapore National Eye Centre

Specialty: Glaucoma, Cataract ＆ Comprehensive Ophthalmology

Sub-specialties: Glaucoma, Cataract ＆ Comprehensive Ophthalmology

Conditions Treated by this Doctor:
Cataract Surgery, Glaucoma.

Clinical Appointments

Head & Senior Consultant Glaucoma Department Singapore National Eye Centre
Senior Consultant Cataract ＆ Comprehensive Ophthalmology Department Singapore National Eye Centre

Academic Appointments

Professor SingHealth Duke-NUS Ophthalmology ＆ Visual Sciences Academic Clinical Programme

Profile

Professor Tina Wong is the Head and Senior Consultant of the Glaucoma Department at Singapore National Eye Centre. She was trained at the Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, UK. She combined her clinical training with academic research and was awarded the prestigious Wellcome Trust Vision Research Fellowship to pursue and complete a PhD at the Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London in Professor Sir Peng T. Khaw’ laboratory. The work of the thesis was in the areas of matrix metalloproteinase and conjunctival wound healing in relation to post-operative scarring from glaucoma surgery. Her research led to the award of the Founders Cup in the Oxford Ophthalmological Congress and the Moorfields Research Medal.

Professor Wong is the Head of the Ocular Therapeutics and Drug Delivery Research Group at the Singapore Eye Research Institute. She holds an adjunct faculty appointment at the National University Hospital System (NUHS). Professor Wong is the Executive Director of the National Health Innovation Centre, NMRC.

Professor Wong’s research interests lie in the development of new ophthalmic therapies , nanomedicine and the innovative application of drug delivery systems to improve on the current medical and surgical treatments in glaucoma and other ophthalmic diseases. Professor Wong has published widely in these areas and has nationally funded research grants amounting to $8M. She holds many patents to her name and is the co-founder of 2 spin off biotech companies that spawned from her research. One of these technologies was awarded the prestigious President’s Science and technology Award (Technology) in 2014. She is also the recipient of the MOH Clinician Scientist Award, the Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology distinguished Service Award and the SingHealth GCEO Excellence Award.

Additionally, Professor Wong has presented at numerous international scientific and ophthalmological meetings and has also been invited as a speaker at international conferences as well as academic institutes and universities. She has supervised several PhD students from NTU, and graduate medical students from Duke NUS Medical School.

Professor Wong is the founding President of the Glaucoma Association of Singapore (GLAS), a member of the World Glaucoma Association, and examiner to the Royal College of Edinburgh of Surgeons (Ophthalmology), UK.

Education

FRCOphth (2010)
FRCS(Ed) (2006)
PhD (Lond) (2003)
MBBS (1995)
BSc(Hons) (1992)

Professional Appointments and Committee Memberships

Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
Executive Director, National Health and Innovation Centre, National Medical Research Council (2017 - present)
Founding President Glaucoma Association of Singapore (GLAS)
Clinician-scientist Residents, SAB Scholarship Administration Panel Member, Ministry of Health (2014 - present)
Associate Advisory Board Member, World Glaucoma Association (2013 - present)
Examiner, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, (Ophthalmology) UK (2014 - present)

Awards

EXSA Clinical Service Award (Silver), Singapore National Eye Centre (2016)
Clinician Scientist Award (Senior Investigator), NMRC Singapore (2015)
President’s Science and Technology Award (Technology) “Devices and nanomedicine for eye diseases” (2014)
Doug Johnson Memorial Lecture – Anti fibrosis International Congress on Glaucoma Surgery (2014)
Distinguished Service Award, Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (2011)
Clinician Scientist Award, NMRC Singapore (2010)
Moorfields Eye Hospital Research Gold Medal, UK (2006)
Founders Cup, Oxford Ophthalmological Congress, UK (2006)
Wellcome Trust Research Fellowship, UK (2000)
Physiological Society Prize, St George’s Hospital Medical School, London, UK (1992)

Research Interests

Nanomedicine
Wound healing and inflammation
Drug delivery
Glaucoma surgery

Publications

Assessment of progressive alterations in collagen organization in the postoperative conjunctiva by multiphoton microscopy. Seet LF, Chu SWL, Teng X, Toh LZ, and Wong TT. Biomed. Opt. Express 11(11), 6495-6515 (2020)
A review of the clinical applications of drug delivery systems for the treatment of ocular anterior segment inflammation. Wong CW, Metselaar JM, Storm G, Wong TT. Br J Ophthalmol. 2020 Oct 30:bjophthalmol-2020-315911. doi: 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2020-315911.
Endogenous or Exogenous Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells: A Comparison of Two Experimental Animal Models of Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy. Wong CW, Busoy JMF, Cheung N, Barathi VA, Storm G, Wong TT. Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2020 Aug 31;9(9):46. doi: 10.1167/tvst.9.9.46. eCollection 2020 Aug.
Characterisation of the inflammatory cytokine and growth factor profile in a rabbit model of proliferative vitreoretinopathy. Wong CW, Cheung N, Ho C, Barathi V, Storm G, Wong TT. Sci Rep. 2019 Oct 28;9(1):15419. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-51633-8.
Rel B regulates basal and proinflammatory induction of conjunctival CCL2. Seet LF, Toh LZ, Chu SWL, Wong TT. Ocul Immunol Inflamm. 2019 Oct 16:1-14. doi: 10.1080/09273948.2019.1662060.
Valproic acid exerts specific cellular and molecular anti-inflammatory effects in post-operative conjunctiva. Seet LF, Toh LZ, Finger SN, Chu SWL, Wong TT. J Mol Med. Nov 2018; JIF: 4.938
Design and in vitro release study of siRNA loaded layer by layer nanopraticles with sustained gene silencing effect. Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery. Tan YF, Lee YS, Seet LF, Ng KW, Wong TT, Venkatraman SS. 2018 Sept 15(10):937-49. JIF:3.75
Targeted therapy for the post-operative conjunctiva: SPARC silencing reduces collagen deposition. B J Ophthalmol. Seet LF, Tan YF, Chu S, Toh LZ, Lee YS, Venkatraman S, Wong TT. July 2018 pii: bjophthalmol-2018-311937. doi: 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2018-311937. JIF:3.80
Altered expression level of inflammation-related genes and long-term changes in ocular surface after trabeculectomy, a prospective cohort study. Tong L, Ah H, Wong TT. Ocul Surf. June 2018 pii: S1542-0124(18)30110-1. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2018.06.005. JIF:3.01
Evaluation of subconjunctival liposomal steroids for the treatment of experimental uveitis. Wong CW, Czarny B, Metselaar JM, Ho C, Ng SR, Barathi AV, Storm G, Wong TT. Sci Rep. 2018 Apr 26;8(1):6604. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24545-2.
Evaluation of subconjunctival liposomal steroids for the treatment of experimental uveitis. Wong CW, Czarny B, Metselaar JM, Ho C, Ng SR, Barathi AV, Storm G, Wong TT. April 2018 26;8(1):6604. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24545-2 JIF:5.47
Bevacizumab promotes T cell mediated collagen deposition in the mouse model of conjunctival scarring. Seet LF, Toh LZ, Chu S, Finger SN, Ginhoux F, Hong W, Wong TT. Invest Ophth Vis Sci. Mar 2018; 59(3):1682-92 JIF:3.30
A biodegradeable, sustained-released tacrolimus microfilm drug delivery system for the management of allergic conjunctivitis in a mouse model. Liu YC, Lwin NC, Chan N, Venkatraman SS, Wong TT, Mehta JS. Invest Ophth Vis Sci. 2018; 59(2): 675-84 JIF:3.30
Characterisation of liposomal carriers for the trans-scleral transport of Ranibizumab. Joseph RR, Tan DWN, Ramon MRM, Natarajan JV, Agrawal R, Wong TT, Venkatraman SS. Sci Rep. Dec 2017;7(1):16803. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-16791-7. JIF:5.47
Inhibition of monocyte chemoattractive protein-1 prevents conjunctival fibrosis in an experimental model of glaucoma filtration surgery. Chong RS, Chu SW, Toh LZ, Wong TT. Invest Ophth Vis Sci. July 2017;58(9):3432-39 JIF:3.42
Upregulation of distinct collagen transcripts in post surgery scar tissue: a study of conjunctival fibrosis. Seet LF, Toh LZ, Chu SW, Finger SN, Chua JL, Wong TT. Dis Model Mech June 2017;10 (6): 751-60 JIF:4.97
Sustained antibiotic-eluting intraocular lenses: A new Approach. Tan DW, Lim SG, Wong TT, Venkatraman SS. PLoS One Oct 2016;11 (10):e0163857 JIF:4.41
Evaluation of a prednisolone acetate-loaded subconjunctival implant for the treatment of recurrent uveitis in a rabbit model. Ang M, Ng X, Wong C, Yan P, Chee SP, Venkatraman SS, Wong TT. PLoS One. May 2014; 9(5):e97555 JIF:4.41
Layer by layer nanoparticles as an efficient siRNA delivery vehicle for SPARC silencing. Tan YF, Mundargi RC, Chen MHA, Lessig J, Neu B, Venkatraman SS, Wong TT. Small May 2014;10(9):1790-8 JIF:8.37
Sustained drug release in nanomedicine: A long-acting nanocarrier based formulation for glaucoma. Natarajan JV, Darwitan A, Barathi VA, Ang M, Htoon HM, Boey F, Tham KC, Wong TT, Vekatraman SS. ACS Nano Jan 2014; 8:419-29. JIF:12.88

Research Trials

Novel Ocular Drug Delivery Systems
Sustained drug delivery of siRNA for post-operative scarring following glaucoma surgery
Ocular Wound Healing – cellular and molecular mechanisms in glaucoma surgery wound healing
A biodegradable valve for a new glaucoma drainage device with sustained drug releasing ability
The role of SPARC expression on conjunctival wound healing
Role of epigenetics in ocular surface wound healing
Role of tumour necrosis factor and mast cell chymase in bleb failure and conjunctival scarring following trabeculectomy