FIG. 3.

Increase in retinal permeability and redistribution of claudin-5 and VE-cadherin junctional complexes in Per2 mutant mice. A: Wild-type or Per2 mutant mice injected with FITC-albumin 20 mg/kg i.v. were killed 2 h later by cardiac perfusion using 4% paraformaldehyde. Flat-mounted retinas were imaged using a confocal scanning microscope. Representative retinal flat mounts showed leakage of FITC-albumin in the retina of Per2 mutant mice, whereas wild-type mice retinas showed background autofluorescence without any obvious albumin leakage. B: The neural retinas were stained for detection of claudin-5 and VE-cadherin followed by secondary staining with Cy3-conjugated goat anti-rabbit IgG antibodies. Digital confocal images were captured with identical photomultiplier tube gain settings using imaging software. Maximum projections generated from z-section stacks of confocal images were processed identically for experimental and control retinas. Images depict changes in claudin-5 and VE-cadherin localization in the retinas of Per2 mutant mice, whereas wild-type mice showed a normal expression pattern for these proteins. n = 5 for wild type; n = 5 for Per2 mutant Scale bar, 10 μm.