Immunohistochemical localization of 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase and myelin basic protein in the chick retina.

Antisera against bovine 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase (CNPase) and against chick myelin basic protein (MBP) were raised in New Zealand white rabbits. The specificity of CNPase antiserum was examined by Ouchterlony double-immunodiffusion test and immunoadsorption assay. With use of the specific antiserum, immunohistochemical localizations of CNPase and MBP were investigated in the chick retina. Light microscopic immunohistochemical studies have shown that MBP is localized in the optic nerve fiber layer and that CNPase is localized in the optic nerve fiber and photoreceptor layers. Electron microscopic immunohistochemical examinations demonstrated that the myelin-like neural sheaths in the optic nerve fiber layer were clearly stained by both antisera, whereas the membranes of the Müller cell were not stained. In the photoreceptor layer, membranes of the inner and outer segments of rod and cone photoreceptor cells were intensely stained by CNPase antiserum. However, these portions were not stained by MBP antiserum. Membranes of bipolar cells, amacrine cells, horizontal cells, and ganglion cells were not stained by either antiserum.