William W. Dawson, Ph.D., Professor of Ophthalmology, Neuroscience, Physiology and Functional Genomics

Retiring after 38 years at UF, William W. Dawson, Ph.D., has devoted much of his career to the anatomy and neurophysiology of vision, particularly the retina, the delicate layer of cells at the back of the eyeball responsible for converting visual images into nerve impulses.

Within that framework, Dawson has researched a remarkable variety of topics, including artificial sight technology, unusual structures in dolphins’ retinas, laser diagnostics for retinal disorders, a connection between ovulation and visual acuity in women, and a link between vitamin deficiency and night blindness in pancreatitis patients. Some of his recent work involves electrodiagnostics, detection of eye disorders by monitoring electrical activity in eye cells, and studies of possible genetic factors that may cause glaucoma.

“I’m a very curious person,” he said. “However, all of these (projects) tie in together.”

After a month long sabbatical, Dawson will return to UF this fall as a professor emeritus to continue a long-term study of age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma in a genetically isolated population of rhesus monkeys on an island in Puerto Rico. The study is expected to yield enormous quantities of data unavailable from human patients. Dawson is proud of his association with the International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision, for which he recently served as vice president for the Americas.