Fig. 8

Ischemia induces connexin-43 clustering in Müller end-feet. a-h Ischemia induced connexin-43 (Cx43, green, cf. a, c with d, f), clustering in Müller end-feet (identified with CRALBP, blue, cf. a with d) over pericytes (NG2-DsRed, red, cf. a, b with d, e). g 3D reconstruction displays the view of the selected area in d by using IMARIS software, and shows Cx43 connexons in Muller end-feet overlying pericytes 60 min after ischemia. All images were captured with optical sectioning followed by a 3D reconstruction. h Cx43 expression was much less in non-ischemic retinae and covered a small area on capillary surface in contrast to ischemic retina (h; non-ischemia: n = 18 pericytes in 3 retinae; ischemia: n = 15 pericytes in 4 retinae; P = 0.01, Student’s t-test). Scale bars in a-f = 5 μm; in g = 2 μm