The expression patterns of Nogo-A, myelin associated glycoprotein and oligodendrocyte myelin glycoprotein in the retina after ocular hypertension: the expression of myelin proteins in the retina in glaucoma.

Nogo-A, a major myelin inhibitory protein, inhibits axon growth and synaptic function in the central nervous system. Glaucoma is a progressive neuropathy as a result of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) death. Synaptic degeneration is thought to be an early pathology of neurodegeneration in glaucoma and precedes RGC loss. Here experimental ocular hypertension model was induced in adult rats with laser coagulation of the episcleral and limbal veins. The expression of Nogo-A, myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) and oligodendrocyte myelin glycoprotein (OMgp) in the retina was investigated using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. We found that Nogo-A was expressed in the RGCs and upregulated after the induction of ocular hypertension. OMgp was only expressed in the inner plexiform layer. There was no MAG expression in the retina. Our data provided, for the first time, the expression patterns of three myelin proteins in the adult retina and suggested an important role of Nogo-A in the RGC death and synaptic degeneration in glaucoma.