Changes in intrinsic excitability of ganglion cells in degenerated retinas of RCS rats

Journal Title: International Journal of Ophthalmology - Year 2018, Vol 11, Issue 5

Abstract

"AIM: To evaluate the intrinsic excitability of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) in degenerated retinas. METHODS: The intrinsic excitability of various morphologically defined RGC types using a combination of patch-clamp recording and the Lucifer yellow tracer in retinal whole-mount preparations harvested from Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rats, a common retinitis pigmentosa (RP) model, in a relatively late stage of retinal degeneration (P90) were investigated. Several parameters of RGC morphologies and action potentials (APs) were measured and compared to those of non-dystrophic control rats, including dendritic stratification, dendritic field diameter, peak amplitude, half width, resting membrane potential, AP threshold, depolarization to threshold, and firing rates. RESULTS: Compared with non-dystrophic control RGCs, more depolarizations were required to reach the AP threshold in RCS RGCs with low spontaneous spike rates and in RCS OFF cells (especially A2o cells), and RCS RGCs maintained their dendritic morphologies, resting membrane potentials and capabilities to generate APs. CONCLUSION: RGCs are relatively well preserved morphologically and functionally, and some cells are more susceptible to decreased excitability during retinal degeneration. These findings provide valuable considerations for optimizing RP therapeutic strategies."

Authors and Affiliations

Cong-Jian Zhao

Keywords

Related Articles

A systematic review of teleophthalmological studies in Europe

A systematic review of the recent literature regarding a series of ocular diseases involved in European telemedicine projects was performed based on the PubMed, Google Scholar and Springer databases in June 2017. Literat...

Aralia elata inhibits neurodegeneration by downregulating O-GlcNAcylation of NF-κB in diabetic mice

"AIM: To investigate the role of O-GlcNAcylation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) in retinal ganglion cell (RGC) death and analysedthe effect of Aralia elata (AE) on neurodegeneration in diabetic mice. METHODS: C57BL/6m...

Correlation of neutrophil/lymphocyte and platelet/lymphocyte ratio with visual acuity and macular thickness in age-related macular degeneration

"AIM: To investigate the place of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in the diagnosis of and prognosis for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD). METHODS: One hundred...

Download PDF file
  • EP ID EP489832
  • DOI 10.18240/ijo.2018.05.07
  • Views 77
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

Cong-Jian Zhao (2018). Changes in intrinsic excitability of ganglion cells in degenerated retinas of RCS rats. International Journal of Ophthalmology, 11(5), -. https://europub.co.uk/articles/-A-489832