Fig. 1. Effect of EE on the retinal dysfunction and histological alterations at 10 weeks post-SCGx.

A Experimental protocols. B SCGx induced a significant decrease in ERG a-wave amplitude in animals housed in SE, whereas EE starting 48 h post-SCGx, which had no effect per se, completely prevented the decrease in this parameter (representative traces shown in C). Data are mean ± SEM (n: 12 animals per group), **P < 0.01 vs. sham-treated eyes from SE animals; a: P < 0.01 vs. SCGx-treated eyes from SE animals, by Tukey’s test. D In animals housed in SE, SCGx induced focal losses of PR discs (yellow asterisk) and blebs (quantified in E), and a decrease in RPE melanin content (black arrow) and melanosome number at the central temporal RPE, which were completely prevented by EE (quantified in F and G). EE also prevented RPE vacuolization (cyan arrow) and basal infolding thickening (magenta arrowhead) (quantified as RPE damage score in H), as well as the decrease in RPE65-immunostaining (white arrowhead) and protein levels at the temporal RPE at 10 weeks post-SCGx (quantified in I and J). SCGx induced BrM thickening (quantified in K), a clear loss of its pentalaminar structure (asterisk) and thickening of the endothelial cell basal membrane (black arrowhead), which were prevented by EE. Shown are representative photomicrographs from 5 (for optic microscopy) and 4 (for electronic microscopy) eyes/group, at 800 μm temporally from the ONH. OS photoreceptor outer segments, RPE retinal pigment epithelium, BI RPE basal infoldings, BrM Bruch’s membrane, Ch choriocapillaris, Chr choroid. Scale bars = 500, 20, 25, 1.5, 300 nm. Data are mean ± SEM (n: 5 (for optic microscopy) and 4 (for electronic microscopy) eyes per group), **P < 0.01 vs. sham-treated eyes from SE animals; a: P < 0.01 vs. SCGx-treated eyes from SE animals, by Tukey’s test. Data are mean ± SEM (n: 5 homogenates per group), **P < 0.01 vs. sham-treated eyes from SE animals, by Tukey’s test.