Spectral domain optical coherence tomography in mouse models of retinal degeneration.
OBJECTIVE
Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) allows cross-sectional visualization of retinal structures in vivo. Here, the authors report the efficacy of a commercially available SD-OCT device to study mouse models of retinal degeneration.


METHODS
C57BL/6 and BALB/c wild-type mice and three different mouse models of hereditary retinal degeneration (Rho(-/-), rd1, RPE65(-/-)) were investigated using confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (cSLO) for en face visualization and SD-OCT for cross-sectional imaging of retinal structures. Histology was performed to correlate structural findings in SD-OCT with light microscopic data.


RESULTS
In C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice, cSLO and SD-OCT imaging provided structural details of frequently used control animals (central retinal thickness, CRT(C57BL/6) = 237 +/- 2 microm and CRT(BALB/c) = 211 +/- 10 microm). RPE65(-/-) mice at 11 months of age showed a significant reduction of retinal thickness (CRT(RPE65) = 193 +/- 2 microm) with thinning of the outer nuclear layer. Rho(-/-) mice at P28 demonstrated degenerative changes mainly in the outer retinal layers (CRT(Rho) = 193 +/- 2 microm). Examining rd1 animals before and after the onset of retinal degeneration allowed monitoring of disease progression (CRT(rd1 P11) = 246 +/- 4 microm, CRT(rd1 P28) = 143 +/- 4 microm). Correlation of CRT assessed by histology and SD-OCT was high (r(2) = 0.897).


CONCLUSIONS
The authors demonstrated cross-sectional visualization of retinal structures in wild-type mice and mouse models for retinal degeneration in vivo using a commercially available SD-OCT device. This method will help to reduce numbers of animals needed per study by allowing longitudinal study designs and will facilitate characterization of disease dynamics and evaluation of putative therapeutic effects after experimental interventions.
Huber
Gesine
G
Division of Ocular Neurodegeneration, Institute for Ophthalmic Research, Centre for Ophthalmology, Tuebingen, Germany.
Beck
Susanne C
SC
Grimm
Christian
C
Sahaboglu-Tekgoz
Ayse
A
Paquet-Durand
Francois
F
Wenzel
Andreas
A
Humphries
Peter
P
Redmond
T Michael
TM
Seeliger
Mathias W
MW
Fischer
M Dominik
MD
D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D007834:Lasers; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D009887:Ophthalmoscopy; D012160:Retina / Q000473:pathology*; D012162:Retinal Degeneration / Q000175:diagnosis*; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods*