title: Distinct neurogenic potential in the retinal margin and the pars plana of mammalian eye.
abstract: Unlike many other vertebrates, a healthy mammalian retina does not grow throughout life and lacks a ciliary margin zone capable of actively generating new neurons. The isolation of stem-like cells from the ciliary epithelium has led to speculation that the mammalian retina and/or surrounding tissues may retain neurogenic potential capable of responding to retinal damage. Using genetically altered mouse lines with varying degrees of retinal ganglion cell loss, we show that the retinal margin responds to ganglion cell loss by prolonging specific neurogenic activity, as characterized by increased numbers of Atoh7(LacZ)-expressing cells. The extent of neurogenic activity correlated with the degree of ganglion cell deficiency. In the pars plana, but not the retinal margin, cells remain proliferative into adulthood, marking the junction of pars plana and retinal margin as a niche capable of producing proliferative cells in the mammalian retina and a potential cellular source for retinal regeneration.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Takae
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kiyama
authors.forename: Hongyan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Manu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: Ya-Ping
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Alice Z
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: Chuang
authors.forename: Deborah C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Otteson
authors.forename: Steven W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002829:Choroid / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D055495:Neurogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D020419:Photoreceptor Cells, Vertebrate / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*