Fig. 5
COX-1 deletion provides the long-term inhibition of microglia activation and the preservation of cone morphology and function in the rd10 retina. a–d Retina flat mounts were stained with an antibody against Iba-1, a marker for microglia. Confocal images from the dorsal retina at about 1 mm away from the optic nerve head along the dorsal-ventral axis show that microglia display a ramified morphology in P42 WT (a, arrows) COX-1−/− (b, arrows) and COX-1−/−/rd10 (c, arrows) mouse retinas and an amoeboid appearance in P42 rd10 control retinas (d, arrowheads). Scale bar, 10 μm. e–h Retinal flat mounts were stained with an antibody against red/green opsins. The retina from WT (e, arrows) and COX-1−/− (f, arrows) mice shows red/green-opsin-expressing cone OS. The antibody reveals shorten cone OS and IS in P42 COX-1−/−/rd10 mice (g, arrows), while most cone cells lost OS and IS in P42 rd10 control mice (h, arrowheads). Scale bar, 20 μm. i Quantification of cone cell densities from whole mounted retinas of P42 WT, COX-1−/−, rd10 and COX-1−/−/rd10 mice (F(3, 20) = 76.96, p = 3.7 × 10−11; WT versus COX-1−/−, p = 0.43; WT versus rd10, p = 1.9 × 10-7; WT versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 2.4 × 10−5; COX-1−/− versus rd10, p = 4.7 × 10−8; COX-1−/− versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 1.3 × 10−5; rd10 versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 1.5 × 10−11). j Average scotopic b-wave amplitudes in response to 3 cd-s/m2 flash light intensity (F (3, 20) = 946.87, p = 1.0 × 10−21; WT versus COX-1−/−, p = 0.64; WT versus rd10, p = 1.4 × 10−13; WT versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 3.6 × 10−1; COX-1−/− versus rd10, p = 2.7 × 10−13; COX-1−/− versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 3.7 × 10−12; rd10 versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 4.2 × 10−12). k Photopic visual acuity was evaluated from P42 WT, COX-1−/−, rd10, and COX-1−/−/rd10 mice (F(3, 20) = 785.53, p = 6.6 × 10−21; WT versus COX-1−/−, p = 0.23; WT versus rd10, p = 5.1 × 10−12; WT versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 1.3 × 10−10; COX-1−/− versus rd10, p = 6.8 × 10−13; COX-1−/− versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 1.6 × 10−11; rd10 versus COX-1−/−/rd10, p = 1.1 × 10−7). Results are presented as means ± SDs (n = 6 animals/each group). ***p < 0.001