title: Electroretinography as a screening method for mutations causing retinal dysfunction in mice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To detect mice with hereditary retinal impairment, a high-throughput electroretinography (ERG) screening system was established.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mice from eight different strains without known retinal disorders (102, 129/SvJ, AKR, C57BL/6J, C57BL/6JIco, CBA/CaJ, and DBA/2NCrlBR) and one control strain with retinal degeneration (C3HeB/FeJ) were fixed on a specially constructed sled, ERG electrodes were placed on the cornea, and mice were moved into a Ganzfeld stimulator. From a luminance range of 0.0125 to 500 cd-s/m(2) in a pretest series two levels (5 and 125 cd-s/m(2)) were chosen to shorten examination times. The root mean square (RMS) of the ERG-recording was analyzed to detect animals with abnormal retinal function. ERG responses of the left and right eyes were compared in amplitudes and implicit times of the a- and b-waves. Statistical analysis of the latter parameters was performed in all wild-type animals. Histology was performed on selected mice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  ERG recordings of individual animals for the left and right eye revealed good agreement in amplitudes and implicit times of the a- and b-waves (P < 0.05). Comparison of these parameters among the wild-type strains showed several differences. Evaluation of the RMS revealed, in addition to the C3HeB/FeJ mice, a subgroup of mice within the 129/SvJ strain with abnormal retinal function. Molecular analysis of these mice demonstrated the presence of the same retroviral insertion in the Pde6b gene, which is causative of the Pde6b(rd1) allele carried in C3HeB/FeJ mice. Histologic analysis demonstrated good correlation between retinal electrophysiology and morphology.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present results demonstrate the feasibility of ERG for screening a large number of mice to detect animals with functional retinal impairment.
authors.affiliation: GSF-National Research Center for Environment and Health, Institutes of. Developmental Genetics, Clinical Cooperation Group Ophthalmogenetics, Neuherberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dalke
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Löster
authors.forename: Helmut
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.forename: Valerie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gailus-Durner
authors.forename: Dian
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Soewarto
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Favor
authors.forename: Angelika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Neuhäuser-Klaus
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Pretsch
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gekeler
authors.forename: Kei
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shinoda
authors.forename: Eberhart
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zrenner
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Meitinger
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hrabé de Angelis
authors.forename: Jochen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Graw
mesh_terms: D015106:3',5'-Cyclic-GMP Phosphodiesterases / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D054707:Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases, Type 6; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004596:Electroretinography / Q000379:methods*; D005820:Genetic Testing / Q000379:methods; D051379:Mice; D008806:Mice, Inbred AKR; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008808:Mice, Inbred CBA; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D009154:Mutation; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012162:Retinal Degeneration / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D015106:3',5'-Cyclic-GMP Phosphodiesterases; D054707:Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases, Type 6; C517438:Pde6b protein, mouse