MSC transplantation increased RGC survival 16 days after optic nerve crush.

A-F: Confocal images of flat-mounted retinas labeled with Tuj1 (A-C) or anti-Brn3a (D-F) antibodies. Insets in A-C are higher magnifications of the images to illustrate the morphology of the Tuj1-positive cells. In the control retina (contralateral eye) numerous cells are labeled with Tuj1 (A) and Brn3a (D), and axon bundles are intact (arrows in A). Sixteen days after optic nerve crush, there was a large reduction in the number of RGCs (B and E) and axon bundles were notably compromised, as revealed by Tuj1 staining (arrows in B). In the MSC-injected animals (C and F) the number of surviving RGCs was increased compared to the vehicle-injected ones, and Tuj1 staining in axon bundles was similar to the control (arrows in C). G-J: Quantification of RGC survival 16 days after nerve crush using Tuj1 (G, H) or Brn3a labeling (I, J). Results are displayed as mean ± SEM of the percentage of Tuj1+ or Brn3a+ cells relative to the control retina (contralateral eye). *P<0.05; **P<0.01; ***P<0.001. Scale bar in A-F: 50 µm.