Myopia has become a major global public health concern. It is not simply a matter of blurred distance vision: as the eye continues to elongate, high myopia can increase the risk of macular lesions, choroidal neovascularization, retinal degeneration, and retinal detachment. With myopia rising among children and adolescents, current management increasingly combines behavioral measures, optical interventions, and pharmacological treatment. While atropine has long been the best-known option, uncovering how these medications work to slow myopia progression is far more complex than expected.

A review titled Pharmacological Management of Myopia: Emerging Agents and Novel Molecular Targets published in Eye Discovery brings together current and emerging pharmacological approaches for myopia control. Written by Tong Zhao of Nanjing Medical University and Meiyan Li of the Eye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University, the article reviews established and investigational agents, including atropine, pirenzepine, 7-methylxanthine (7-MX), and intraocular pressure-lowering drugs. It also discusses emerging molecular targets linked to endoplasmic reticulum stress, ferroptosis, signaling pathway modulation, and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) blockade.

UCF has recruited Melchor Antuñano, one of the nation’s foremost aerospace medicine experts. After decades leading the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, Antuñano joins the College of Medicine as professor, chief technologist and medical innovation officer.