title: Unexpected presence of neurofilaments in axon-bearing horizontal cells of the mammalian retina.
abstract: In several mammals only one of the two types of retinal horizontal cell, the axonless A-type, appears to express neurofilaments. Neurofilament immunostaining of rodent retinas reveals a horizontal cell plexus that has previously been interpreted as belonging to A-type cells. Our intracellular Lucifer yellow injections strongly suggest that there are no A-type horizontal cells in rat and gerbil. Counterstaining of dye-injected cellular structures with a neurofilament antibody directly shows that the axon terminal systems of the axon-bearing B-type horizontal cells contain neurofilaments. These unexpected findings explain and reinterpret the neurofilament plexus in rodent retinas. In contrast, Lucifer yellow injections in guinea pig retina reveal both A- and B-type horizontal cells, showing that horizontal cell types are not uniform among rodents. In the guinea pig retina both A-type cells and B-type axon terminal systems contain neurofilaments.
authors.affiliation: Max-Planck-Institut für Hirnforschung, Frankfurt/M., Germany.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Peichl
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: González-Soriano
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D005849:Gerbillinae; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007382:Intermediate Filaments / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051379:Mice; D016900:Neurofilament Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051381:Rats; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D016900:Neurofilament Proteins