Axon orientation and axo-dendritic polarity of retinal ganglion cells during postnatal development in the rat.
The axon orientation and axo-dendritic polarities of ganglion cells were investigated in the retinae of developing and adult rats labeled with retrograde tracers. The cells were classified as either regular, if both parameters corresponded to those found among the majority of ganglion cells in the retina of adult rats, or irregular, if either axon orientation or axo-dendritic polarity, or both, failed to follow the norm of adult retinae. The number of regular cells declined from 118,000 to the adult value of 63,000 during the first 5 days following birth, while the number of irregular cells remained stable at 90,000-100,000 during this period and declined thereafter to 46,000. These data suggest that the geometry of neurites within the retina affect the selective elimination of ganglion cells during postnatal development in rats.
Nakatani
M
M
Instituto de Biofísica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Linden
R
R
D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D016501:Neurites / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051381:Rats; D012160:Retina / Q000254:growth & development / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000648:ultrastructure*