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University of California, Irvine

PerZeption Wins NEI Phase I SBIR Grant for AMD Vision Test

Boston – September 16, 2026 -- PerZeption Inc. has secured a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Eye Institute to fund development of a new photostress recovery test for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a condition affecting an estimated 20 million people in the United States.

NEI Funds Photostress Recovery Test for Earlier AMD Detection

The award backs the project "Efficient Achromatic and Chromatic Photostress Recovery Assessment for Age-related Macular Degeneration," which will be carried out in collaboration with researchers at the Brunson Center for Translational Vision Research at the University of California, Irvine. The work targets how quickly vision recovers after bright-light exposure, a marker of macular health that can reveal functional deficits before they show up on standard acuity tests.