title: Autoradiographic and electron microscopic studies of retinal rosettes in genetically microphthalmic mice.
abstract: We report results obtained in the microphthalmic strain of mice 944. Heterozygotes appear normal, but they produce litters in which typically between 2 and 5 offspring exhibit microphthalmia and rosettes in the retina and the optic nerve. As a result these animals are blind. Our investigations using 3H-thymidine for autoradiographic estimation of postnatal cell proliferation and electron microscopy for detailed observation of the morphology of the rosettes show an increased proliferation of neuronal cells (more than 200%), especially in rosettes. In the rosettes a centrally located lumen exists in which cytoplasmatic processes can be found. In ultrastructural investigations these processes were identified as residues of the outer segments of photoreceptor cells.
authors.affiliation: Paul Flechsig Institute for Brain Research, Department of Neuroanatomy, Leipzig University, Germany.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hilbig
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Winkelmann
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kopischke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001345:Autoradiography; D002448:Cell Adhesion / Q000502:physiology; D005123:Eye / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051379:Mice; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D012160:Retina / Q000648:ultrastructure*