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Fig. 9 | Molecular Neurodegeneration

Fig. 9

From: CNS axonal degeneration and transport deficits at the optic nerve head precede structural and functional loss of retinal ganglion cells in a mouse model of glaucoma

Fig. 9

Optic nerve degeneration precedes structural and functional loss of RGCs. Three-month old C57BL/6 J mice were injected bilaterally once a week for 5 weeks with Veh or Dex. The structural and functional loss of RGCs was analyzed by PERG and immunostaining (a-d). Optic nerve degeneration was examined via TEM and PPD staining (e-g). Dot graphs show PERG amplitudes (a) and latency (b) demonstrating no significant loss of RGC function in Dex-injected mice after 5 weeks of treatment. Data are shown as mean ± SD (n = 18 in Veh and n = 26 in Dex, unpaired t-test, ns = not statistically significant, p > 0.05). In consistence with PERG data, the flat mount retinal images stained with RBPMS (c) and the corresponding dot plots (d) showed no significant RGC loss between the 5 weeks post Veh and Dex injected mice (n = 9 in Veh and n = 7 in Dex). The data are shown as mean ± SD (unpaired t-test, two tailed, ns = not statistically significant, p > 0.05). The representative TEM images (e&f) show axonal degeneration and glial scar formation in proximal region (close to ONH) (e) and not at distal ON region of 5 weeks post Dex injected compared to Veh injected mice (n = 6) (f). The mean optic nerve axonal counts at the proximal region of optic nerves show a significant axonal loss in 5 weeks Dex-treated mice compared to control mice (g). The data are shown as mean ± SD (n = 6, unpaired t-test, two tailed, p = 0.035)

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