Immunofluorescent characterization of retinal ganglion cell neurites cultured on substrates coated with antibodies against Thy-1.

Overview

Neurite outgrowth from rat retinal ganglion cells is enhanced if they are cultured on a substrate coated with antibodies against Thy-1. We show that the ganglion cell neurites that grow on antibodies against Thy-1 display immunoreactivity for microtubule-associated protein 2 and tau, cytoskeletal proteins normally localized to the somatodendritic and axonal compartments, respectively. This result suggests that these neurites are incompletely differentiated and have axonal and dendritic features. We also show that the antibodies against Thy-1 used to coat the substrate bind specifically to ganglion cell membranes within 1 day of culture.