About the Authors

Xiaodong Jiao

Contributed equally to this work with: Xiaodong Jiao, Firoz Kabir, J. Fielding Hejtmancik, S. Amer Riazuddin

Affiliation Ophthalmic Genetics and Visual Function Branch, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, United States of America

Firoz Kabir

Contributed equally to this work with: Xiaodong Jiao, Firoz Kabir, J. Fielding Hejtmancik, S. Amer Riazuddin

Affiliation The Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21287, United States of America

Bushra Irum

Affiliations The Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21287, United States of America, National Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 53700, Pakistan

Arif O. Khan

Affiliation King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital, Riyadh, 12329, Saudi Arabia

Qiwei Wang

Affiliation Ophthalmic Genetics and Visual Function Branch, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, United States of America

David Li

Affiliation Ophthalmic Genetics and Visual Function Branch, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, United States of America

Asma A. Khan

Affiliation National Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 53700, Pakistan

Tayyab Husnain

Affiliation National Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 53700, Pakistan

Javed Akram

Affiliations Allama Iqbal Medical College, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, 54550, Pakistan, National Centre for Genetic Diseases, Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University, Islamabad, Pakistan

Sheikh Riazuddin

Affiliations National Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 53700, Pakistan, Allama Iqbal Medical College, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, 54550, Pakistan, National Centre for Genetic Diseases, Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University, Islamabad, Pakistan

J. Fielding Hejtmancik

Contributed equally to this work with: Xiaodong Jiao, Firoz Kabir, J. Fielding Hejtmancik, S. Amer Riazuddin

Affiliation Ophthalmic Genetics and Visual Function Branch, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, United States of America

S. Amer Riazuddin

Contributed equally to this work with: Xiaodong Jiao, Firoz Kabir, J. Fielding Hejtmancik, S. Amer Riazuddin

riazuddin@jhmi.edu

Affiliation The Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21287, United States of America

Competing Interests

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Author Contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: XJ FK QW DL SR JFH SAR. Performed the experiments: XJ FK BI QW DL SAR. Analyzed the data: XJ FK BI AOK QW DL AAK TH JA SR JFH SAR. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: AOK TH JA SR JFH SAR. Wrote the paper: XJ FK AOK QW DL TH SR JFH SAR.