Genome-wide analysis of Sox2-ablated optic cups compared with wild-type control optic cups at E16.5

To test the hypothesis that ablation of the SOX2 in the developing optic cup leads to expansion of peripheral optic cup signaling pathways, we screened whole-genome changes in gene expression in Sox2-mutant eyes compared with controls. Results confirm that ciliary epithelial (peripheral) identity is gained at the expense of neural retinal identity in Sox2-ablated optic cups. Total RNA was isolated from whole eyes enucleated from six wild-type controls and six Sox2-mutant embryos for a total of twelve eyes per genotype. Each embryo (pair of eyes) was analyzed as a single sample.