Effects of neonatal monocular enucleation on the number of GAD-positive puncta in rat visual cortex.

Rats that had one eye removed on the day of birth were examined at various postnatal ages with immunocytochemical methods to determine the effect on the development of the GABAergic axonal plexus in the visual cortex. The monocular segment of visual cortex contralateral to the enucleated orbit had 20-30% fewer GABAergic axon terminals than the monocular segment of visual cortex contralateral to the normal eye. Other cortical areas did not show any significant changes. These findings suggest that sensory deprivation of the visual cortex interferes with the normal development of GABAergic neurons.