Kk. Ohlemiller et al., Retinal function is improved in a murine model of a lysosomal storage disease following bone marrow transplantation, EXP EYE RES, 71(5), 2000, pp. 469-481
Mucopolysaccharidoses are heritable lysosomal storage diseases caused by de
ficiencies in acid hydrolases involved in the sequential degradation of com
plex glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). In many mucopolysaccharidoses, GAGs accumul
ate in the retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells of the eye resulting in p
ronounced lysosomal distension. Tt is not clear how the progressive accumul
ation of GAGs affects retinal function. Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) i
s a relatively effective therapy for many lysosomal storage diseases and ca
n result in a dramatic reduction in lysosomal distention in the RPE. Althou
gh effective at reducing lysosomal storage, it is not clear how effective s
yngeneic BMT is at treating retinal dysfunction. Here we show that there is
a progressive decrease in the amplitudes of both the dark-adapted (rod-con
e) and light-adapted (cone-dominated) flash electroretinograms (ERG) betwee
n 8 and 20 weeks of age in a murine model of mucopolysaccharidosis type VII
(MPS VII). By 20 weeks, the average dark-adapted b-wave amplitude was 118
muV in MPS VII mice as compared to 469 muV in normal mice of the same strai
n. MPS VII mice receiving syngeneic BMT at 4 weeks of age have reduced lyso
somal storage in retinal pigment epithelial cells and normal ERG amplitudes
at 20 weeks of age. Retinal function is impaired in untreated 8 week old M
PS VII mice. Following BMT at 8 weeks, rod-cone-and cone-dominated response
s recovered to within the normal range by 20 weeks of age. These data demon
strate the temporal pattern of retinal dysfunction in the MPS VII mouse and
indicate that BMT can reduce the lysosomal storage and improve retinal fun
ction. (C) 2000 Academic Press.