Vinberg Frans, Kefalov Vladimir
Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis;
Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis.
J Vis Exp. 2015 May 6(99):e52855. doi: 10.3791/52855.
An In vivo electroretinogram (ERG) signal is composed of several overlapping components originating from different retinal cell types, as well as noise from extra-retinal sources. Ex vivo ERG provides an efficient method to dissect the function of retinal cells directly from an intact isolated retina of animals or donor eyes. In addition, ex vivo ERG can be used to test the efficacy and safety of potential therapeutic agents on retina tissue from animals or humans. We show here how commercially available in vivo ERG systems can be used to conduct ex vivo ERG recordings from isolated mouse retinas. We combine the light stimulation, electronic and heating units of a standard in vivo system with custom-designed specimen holder, gravity-controlled perfusion system and electromagnetic noise shielding to record low-noise ex vivo ERG signals simultaneously from two retinas with the acquisition software included in commercial in vivo systems. Further, we demonstrate how to use this method in combination with pharmacological treatments that remove specific ERG components in order to dissect the function of certain retinal cell types.
体内视网膜电图（ERG）信号由源自不同视网膜细胞类型的几个重叠成分以及来自视网膜外来源的噪声组成。离体ERG提供了一种直接从动物或供体眼的完整分离视网膜剖析视网膜细胞功能的有效方法。此外，离体ERG可用于测试潜在治疗剂对动物或人类视网膜组织的功效和安全性。我们在此展示了如何使用市售的体内ERG系统从分离的小鼠视网膜进行离体ERG记录。我们将标准体内系统的光刺激、电子和加热单元与定制设计的标本架、重力控制灌注系统和电磁噪声屏蔽相结合，以使用商业体内系统中包含的采集软件同时从两个视网膜记录低噪声离体ERG信号。此外，我们演示了如何将该方法与去除特定ERG成分的药理学处理相结合，以剖析某些视网膜细胞类型的功能。
