The ganglion cell degeneration observed in glaucoma (in humans and mice) is not spread diffusely over the whole retina but occurs in sectors that point towards the optic nerve head. The obvious localization for a first insult to the axons that would cause this geometry is the portion of the optic nerve head that lies directly behind the sclera, because there the axons are organized into bundles with a topographic relationship to the retina. It is possible that individual axon bundles are separately damaged or spared, leading to sectors of degenerated or normal ganglion cells in the same retina. In humans, the optic nerve head contains a rigid, collagenous lamina cribrosa, lined by astrocytes. In contrast, the murine optic nerve contains only a meshwork of astrocyes (the """"""""glial lamina""""""""), which is disorganized in glaucomatous nerves. Because astrocytes are not rigid, this suggests that the damage to axon bundles may not be mechanical. Instead it raises the possibility that astrocytes of the glial lamina may be directly involved in the pathophysiology of glaucoma. We propose four studies on the single-cell level of the cell biology of glial lamina astrocytes using a mouse that expresses GFP in sporadic, individual astrocytes. (1) We will describe the normal astrocytic architecture of the glial lamina. (2) We will introduce global optic nerve lesions (optic nerve crush) or focal lesions of ganglion cell axons on the retinal surface (by laser) to study the behavior of individual astrocytes under pathological conditions. (3) We will observe the consequences of these axonal lesions in transgenic mice whose astrocytes are compromised by knock-out of intermediate filaments or connexin43. (4) We will observe the behavior of GFP-labeled astrocyes in a new strain of GFP-DBA/2J glaucomatous mice as a realistic, slow model of glaucoma.

Public Health Relevance

Glaucoma leads to a progressive and irreversible loss of retinal ganglion cells, whose axons form the optic nerve, and thereby severs the connection of an otherwise functional retina with the brain. Recent experimental evidence suggests that a non-neuronal cell type (astrocytes) in the optic nerve might play an active role in the disease. Our goal is to study the reaction of individual astrocytes to injury and glaucomatous degeneration in more detail than has been possible before.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Eye Institute (NEI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01EY019703-02
Application #
7936903
Study Section
Anterior Eye Disease Study Section (AED)
Program Officer
Agarwal, Neeraj
Project Start
2009-09-30
Project End
2014-08-31
Budget Start
2010-09-01
Budget End
2011-08-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$304,920
Indirect Cost
Name
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
Department
Type
DUNS #
073825945
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02114
Zhu, Ying; Pappas, Anthony C; Wang, Rui et al. (2018) Ultrastructural Morphology of the Optic Nerve Head in Aged and Glaucomatous Mice. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 59:3984-3996
Sun, Daniel; Moore, Sara; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2017) Optic nerve astrocyte reactivity protects function in experimental glaucoma and other nerve injuries. J Exp Med 214:1411-1430
Wang, Rui; Seifert, Philip; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2017) Astrocytes in the Optic Nerve Head of Glaucomatous Mice Display a Characteristic Reactive Phenotype. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 58:924-932
Gao, Shan; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2016) Mice Homozygous for a Deletion in the Glaucoma Susceptibility Locus INK4 Show Increased Vulnerability of Retinal Ganglion Cells to Elevated Intraocular Pressure. Am J Pathol 186:985-1005
Choi, Hee Joo; Sun, Daniel; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2015) Astrocytes in the optic nerve head express putative mechanosensitive channels. Mol Vis 21:749-66
Berry, Ryan H; Qu, Juan; John, Simon W M et al. (2015) Synapse Loss and Dendrite Remodeling in a Mouse Model of Glaucoma. PLoS One 10:e0144341
Choi, Hee Joo; Sun, Daniel; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2015) Isolation of intact astrocytes from the optic nerve head of adult mice. Exp Eye Res 137:103-10
Sun, Daniel; Qu, Juan; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2013) Reversible reactivity by optic nerve astrocytes. Glia 61:1218-35
Lye-Barthel, Ming; Sun, Daniel; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2013) Morphology of astrocytes in a glaucomatous optic nerve. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 54:909-17
Qu, Juan; Jakobs, Tatjana C (2013) The Time Course of Gene Expression during Reactive Gliosis in the Optic Nerve. PLoS One 8:e67094

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