Retinal vascular changes during aging in Wistar Kyoto rats. Application of corrosion cast and scanning electron microscopy.

Retinal vasculature changes during aging in normal Wistar Kyoto rats maintained to longevity without known diseases were studied by corrosion casts and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Six-month-old rat retina showed regular running and arrangement of retinal blood vessels. In 18-month-old rats, a definite morphological change was moderate tortuosity of the vessels, especially at the posterior pole of the retina. In 24-month-old rats, the retinal arteries and veins were very tortuous and narrow, and their calibers were irregular. In some animals occlusion of the veins and localized constriction of the arteries and veins were evident in the vascular casts. Neither arteriovenous crossing defects nor microaneurysms were seen. Retinal capillaries showed marked changes: localized narrowing, constriction, bead-like features, caliber irregularity and occlusion. The corrosion cast method with SEM can demonstrate the details of the capillary networks in the rat retina. The findings demonstrated appear to be related to aging.