Skip to main content
. 2016 Sep 9;6(2):444–457. doi: 10.5966/sctm.2016-0181

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Synergistic efficacy from combined MSC treatment. Postnatal day (P)21–P25 Royal College of Surgeons rats received singular treatment (BSSSRI, MSCSRI, or Untr.; blue bars) or treatment combined with MSCIV (red bars) and assessed at P90. (A): Visual acuity from MSCSRI was 54% higher than with BSSSRI and 110% higher than with Untr. controls. BSSSRI resulted in 36% higher visual acuity compared with Untr. eyes (blue bars). MSCIV supplementation enhanced the visual acuity of Untr. eyes by 29%, BSSSRI‐treated eyes by 34%, but not MSCSRI‐treated eyes. (B): Greater retinal sensitivity to light stimulation (lower luminance threshold) was observed for all subretinal treatments when supplemented with MSCIV. Combined MSCSRI and MSCIV treatment (blue line) produced the highest number of responding foci compared with singular treatments MSCSRI (green line) or MSCIV (orange line) at the indicated luminance thresholds. (C): Representative LTR from individual animals show retinotopic light sensitivity by heat map indicating focal hot spots (red) as less than 33% of the mean value. The functional rescue area from MSCSRI increased 22% with MSCIV supplementation, corresponding to 3.9‐fold increased total retinal sensitivity. Similarly, MSCIV increased the rescue area from BSSSRI by 27% and retinal sensitivity 3.4‐fold. (D–F): Phase‐contrast microscopy images of cresyl violet stained retinae show distinct focal versus panoptic photoreceptor protection that correlates with OKR and LTR data. (D): Rats that received MSCSRI alone had five to seven rows of photoreceptor nuclei exclusively at the injection site. (F): In contrast, BSSSRI with MSCIV rescued approximately six rows of photoreceptors over a larger area. (E): MSCSRI with MSCIV produced greater and more widespread photoreceptor preservation compared with either MSC treatment alone. Brackets indicate focal rescue area. Scale bar = 100 µm. Asterisks correspond to statistically significant differences within MSCIV and MSCSRI groups; daggers correspond to differences between groups. Abbreviations: BSS, balanced salt solution; c/d, cycles per degree; Cd, cycles per degree; INL, inner nuclear layer; IV, intravenous; LTR, luminance threshold response; MSC, mesenchymal stem cell; OKR, optokinetic response; ONL, outer nuclear layer; PR, photoreceptor layer; RGC, retinal ganglion cells; RPE, retinal pigment epithelium; SC, superior colliculi; SRI, subretinal injection; Untr., untreated.