Localization of transport adenosine triphosphatase in rat cornea.

Increasingly, physiological and biochemical data on the mammalian cornea have emphasized the importance of the endothelial rather than the epithelial layer in regulating the state of hydration of the cornea, via a transport ATPase. This view is supported by the observations reported here. With the Ernst method, the first cytochemical procedure to be readily responsive to ions and ouabain, the major sites of enzyme reaction product are the intercellular spaces of the endothelial layer. This localization was not found by us with the so-called ATPase method of Wachstein and Meisel.