Primary Retinal Cultures as a Tool for Modeling Diabetic Retinopathy: An Overview

Figure 3

Retinal cultures can be used to investigate the direct effects of various pathological conditions in retinal cells. In (b), colorimetric TUNEL assay highlights an increase in apoptotic nuclei in HG-treated pure neuronal cultures, with respect to control cultures (a). In HG-treated mixed cultures, the same treatment (d) induces an enhanced reactivity for vimentin (red), suggesting an activation of glial cells, with respect to normal glucose cultures (c). In (d), TUNEL-positive apoptotic nuclei are labeled in green. In (f), the reduction of synaptophysin (Syn) immunoreactivity in glutamate treated cultures, with respect to control cultures (e), suggests a damage of synaptic structure, confirming the excitotoxic effect of excessive glutamate concentration. Bar = 20 m.

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