RCS rat macrophages exhibit normal ROS phagocytosis.

Peritoneal macrophages from RCS rats exhibit phagocytic capability equal to that found in macrophages from normal strains of rat. The similarity in phagocytic activity was found with rat or bovine rod outer segments as well as with dystrophic retinal debris. Thus the genetic defect in RCS pigment epithelium is not expressed in the macrophages, which are available to clear the debris layer that accumulates in dystrophic RCS retinas.