Early reactional hyperplasia and neuronal differentiation of the ciliary epithelium (CE) in experimental retinal detachment (RD) with proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) in the porcine eye

Abstract

AbstractPurpose Rare quiescent retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) have been isolated in the adult mammalian (including human) CE. We have reported a CE proliferation with retinal neuronal and photoreceptor cell (rhodopsin+) differentiation in three human eyes eviscerated for longstanding RD and PVR. The CE strongly expressed EGFR. We have hypothezised that the disease RD and PVR might stimulate a dormant population of RPCs in the CE in presence of a niche constituted by EGF. The aim of the present work was to study the CE in the porcine eye with experimental DR and PVR.Methods Two porcine eyes with experimental surgical RD and PVR enucleated at Day 15 and Day 35 were studied with light microscopy and immunocytochemistry with antibodies against EGFR, Ki67, CD133, NSE, rhodopsin, GFAP. The fellow porcine eyes, one non operated porcine eye, and one human eye exenterated for orbital tumor served as controlsResults Wwe observed in the CE of both porcine eyes a discrete hyperplasia of the non pigmented CE with an overexpression of EGFR and an expression of NSE. All CE controls were negative for NSE. Ki 67, CD133, GFAP and rhodopsin were negative in the CE of the eyes with RD and of the control eyesConclusion The CE of the porcine eye in vivo with shorter duration experimental RD and PVR showed hyperplasia with neuronal differentiation, in presence of an overexpression of EGFR, as in the human eye with longer duration RD. Photoreceptor differentiation was not observed in the porcine CE at this stage.