IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL LOCALIZATION OF TAURINE IN THE RETINA OF DEVELOPING AND ADULT HUMAN AND ADULT MONKEY

Citation
Tc. Nag et al., IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL LOCALIZATION OF TAURINE IN THE RETINA OF DEVELOPING AND ADULT HUMAN AND ADULT MONKEY, Neurochemistry international, 33(2), 1998, pp. 195-200
Citations number
32
Categorie Soggetti
Biology,Neurosciences
ISSN journal
01970186
Volume
33
Issue
2
Year of publication
1998
Pages
195 - 200
Database
ISI
SICI code
0197-0186(1998)33:2<195:ILOTIT>2.0.ZU;2-3
Abstract
The localization of taurine in the retina of fetal (12-25 weeks of ges tation), postnatal (five-month-old infant) and adult human (35- and 65 -year-old) was examined by immunohistochemistry. Additionally, retinas of fresh adult monkey, which served as positive controls, were employ ed. No immunoreactivity was found in the fetal retinas from 12-15 week s of gestation. At 16-17 weeks of gestation, the ganglion cells and so me of their axons were conspicuously labelled for taurine. At 18-19 we eks, Muller glial endfeet, the inner plexiform layer, some amacrine an d putative horizontal cells and photoreceptors showed moderate immunor eactivity. With further development at 20-21 and 24-25 weeks of gestat ion, the immunoreactivity was prominent in Muller cell endfeet, some b ipolar cells and in horizontal cells that were aligned in a row in the inner nuclear layer, close to the fovea. At both fetal stages, the ph otoreceptors and horizontal cells showed strong immunoreactivity. In t he postnatal infant retina, taurine immunoreactivity was present in so me amacrine cells and photoreceptor inner segments and nuclei, but not in ganglion and horizontal cells, which was also the pattern noted in the adult monkey and human retinas. With development, a shift in the intensity of taurine immunoreactivity was noted towards the outer reti na. The expression of taurine immunoreactivity in most fetal retinal n eurons implies a role for this amino acid in the normal development as well as maturation of human retina. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. Al l rights reserved.