Immunohistochemical localization of mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation enzymes in Müller cells of the retina.

The presence of a mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation system in the retina was shown by immunohistochemistry. Fatty acids are considered to serve as a major energy source metabolized by fatty acid β-oxidation together with glucose metabolized by glycolysis in the organs of the entire body, but almost nothing is known about this metabolic system in the retina. Adult rat retinae were subjected to immunofluorescence and immuno-electron microscopy for the localization of fatty acid β-oxidation enzymes, together with western blot analysis for quantitation of the amount of enzyme proteins and DNA microarray analysis for gene expression. All the enzymes examined were shown to be present in the retina, but in small amounts, with the amount of protein and gene expression in the retina being about 1/10 of those in the liver. Immunohistochemistry at light and electron microscopic levels revealed the enzymes to be more preferentially localized to the mitochondria of Müller cells than the retinal neurons. The Müller cells were isolated from the retina and confirmed for the presence of mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation enzymes. A mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation system was thus shown to be present in the retina heterogeneously.