Rate My Professor John Sullivan

Sullivan's research centers on developing gene-based and nucleic acid therapeutics, including hammerhead ribozymes and RNAi agents, for hereditary retinal degenerations and age-related macular degeneration. His NIH- and VA-funded laboratory has secured major grants, such as an R01 from the National Eye Institute for Optimizing Enhanced Hammerhead Ribozymes for Retinal Nucleic Acid Therapeutics (2023–2027, $2,239,262) and a VA Merit Award for A Ribozyme Rescue Strategy for Dry Age-Related Macular Degeneration (2009–2024, $715,000). Key publications include 'Enhanced hammerhead ribozyme turnover rates: reevaluating therapeutic space for small catalytic RNAs' (Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids, 2025), 'Genome-wide association analyses identify distinct genetic architectures for age-related macular degeneration across ancestries' (Nature Genetics, 2024), 'Systematic Screening, Rational Development, and Initial Optimization of Efficacious RNA Silencing Agents for Human Rod Opsin Therapeutics' (Translational Vision Science & Technology, 2019), and 'Development of lead hammerhead ribozyme candidates against human rod opsin mRNA for retinal degeneration therapy' (Experimental Eye Research, 2009). He holds patents including 'Enhanced Hammerhead Ribozymes and Methods of Use' (2025). Sullivan was invited to the Scientific Advisory Board of the Foundation Fighting Blindness in 2024 and chaired the Ad Hoc Tenure and Promotions Committee of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 2021.