Journal
EXPERIMENTAL EYE RESEARCH
Volume 145, Issue -, Pages 173-186Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.exer.2015.10.014
Keywords
Glaucoma; Rat; Optic nerve head; Neural canal; Scleral canal; Optic nerve; Proprietary interest category: N
Categories
Funding
- NIH from the National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland [R01EY011610, R01EY10145, R01EY16866]
- Legacy Good Samaritan Foundation, Portland, Oregon
- Sears Trust for Biomedical Research, Mexico, Missouri
- Alcon Research Institute, Fort Worth, Texas
- Research to Prevent Blindness
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Purpose: To characterize early optic nerve head (ONH) structural change in rat experimental glaucoma (EG). Methods: Unilateral intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation was induced in Brown Norway rats by hypertonic saline injection into the episcleral veins and animals were sacrificed 4 weeks later by perfusion fixation. Optic nerve cross-sections were graded from 1 (normal) to 5 (extensive injury) by 5 masked observers. ONHs with peripapillary retina and sclera were embedded, serial sectioned, 3-D reconstructed, delineated, and quantified. Overall and animal-specific EG versus Control eye ONH parameter differences were assessed globally and regionally by linear mixed effect models with significance criteria adjusted for multiple comparisons. Results: Expansions of the optic nerve and surrounding anterior scleral canal opening achieved statistical significance overall (p < 0.0022), and in 7 of 8 EG eyes (p < 0.005). In at least 5 EG eyes, significant expansions (p < 0.005) in Bruch's membrane opening (BMO) (range 3-10%), the anterior and posterior scleral canal openings (8-21% and 5-21%, respectively), and the optic nerve at the anterior and posterior scleral canal openings (11-30% and 8-41%, respectively) were detected. Optic nerve expansion was greatest within the superior and inferior quadrants. Optic nerve expansion at the posterior scleral canal opening was significantly correlated to optic nerve damage (R = 0.768, p = 0.042). Conclusion: In the rat ONH, the optic nerve and surrounding BMO and neurovascular scleral canal expand early in their response to chronic experimental IOP elevation. These findings provide phenotypic landmarks and imaging targets for detecting the development of experimental glaucomatous optic neuropathy in the rat eye. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available