Figure 7.
BMSC transplantation attenuated apoptosis and activated autophagy in photoreceptors in retinal detachment. (A) TUNEL staining showed that the subretinal transplantation of BMSCs significantly reduced the number of TUNEL‐positive cells in the ONL at 3 (cells/mm2, P < .05) and 7 d (cells/mm2, P < .05) after treatment compared to those in the blank and NC groups. Magnification: 40×. (B and C) At 3 d after transplantation, the treated group showed significantly lower cleaved caspase‐3 levels than the other two groups (P < .05), and at 1 wk after transplantation, this level decreased to nearly that in the normal retina. Significant differences in caspase‐8 and cleaved caspase‐9 levels were also found between retinas treated with BMSCs and the other two groups. (D) The expression of the microtubule‐associated protein LC3‐II was decreased, and p62 expression was increased at 6 and 10 d after RD compared with those at 3 d after RD, suggesting that autophagy levels peaks on day 3 after RD. Three days after treatment, significantly increased LC3‐II expression and decreased p62 levels were found in the BMSC‐treated group compared to those in the other two groups. However, after 7 d post‐treatment, the levels did not differ significantly among the groups. These assays were repeated for three times