Chemotaxis of rat retinal glia to growth factors found in repairing wounds.

Retinal glia migrate to sites in the vitreous body and on the inner and outer surfaces of the retina during a wide variety of pathological processes. Using in vitro cultures of rat retinal glia, we have evaluated an extensive list of homogeneous, well-characterized growth factors as chemoattractants for these cells. Humoral growth factors, fibroblast growth factors, extracellular matrix proteins and immune system cytokines all were without activity except for the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF). Extracts of bovine ocular tissues including vitreous body and retina yielded significant activity.