Human retinal vessels in tissue culture. A preliminary report of the effect of acute glucose poisoning on cultured vascular cells.
To delineate the factors involved in the pathogenesis of human retinal vasculopathies, as in vitro model of human retinal vascular cells was developed by using cadaver eyes enucleated four to eight hours after death and stored at +4 C for three to seven days. A pure, viable capillary explant was obtained by microdissection and gentle agitation; the more rapidly occurring postmortem changes in the surrounding nervous tissue of the retina facilitated separation of the vascular explants. Factor VIII indirect immunofluorescent staining revealed that 85% to 90% of the cells harvested from capillaries of 3- to 5-day-old cadaver eyes and all cells cultured from 1-week-old postmortem eyes reacted positively, indicating their endothelial nature. High-glucose medium caused degenerative changes in the cells of the initial explant as well as in the cells of confluent cultures within 24 to 72 hours. The cytotoxic effect of glucose was manifested by accumulation of PAS-positive granules, cytoplasmic vacuolation, and eventual cell degeneration.
D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004727:Endothelium / Q000166:cytology; D005947:Glucose / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects
D005947:Glucose