An autoradiographic study of cell proliferatoin in penetrating wounds of sclera in rabbits / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To study the healing process of penetrating injury of sclera. Methods A rabbit model with penetrating injury of sclera was made by incising the sclera accompanied by intravitreous injection of autologous blood. The animals were sacrificed at different time intervals after injury. Two hours before the animals were sacrificed, 3 H thymidine ( 3 H-TdR ) was injected into the vitreous cavity. The enucleated eye balls were fixed, dehydrated, embedded with paraffin, and sectioned for light microscopic examination and autoradiographic study. The numbers of cells that incorporated 3 H-TdR at different time intervals were compared. Results After the sclera was injured, inflammation occurred mainly in the superficial part of the sclera, from which most of the proliferating cells filling the wounds came. These cells grew along the vitreous strands to the blood clot in the vitreous cavity. Tractional retinal detachments were induced in 9 of the 12 rabbits within 2 weeks after injury. Cells of different ocular tissues incorporated 3 H-TdR, of which the cells from superficial sclera accounted for the majority. Incorporation of 3H-TdR by these fibroblasts peaked on the 5th day after injury(P