Immunohistochemical Stain and Electron Microscopic Study on the Pericytes of Fibrovascular Diabetic Preretinal Membrane.

Woo, Kyung Ho; Kim, Kwang Soo; Kwon, Keon Young

Original Article

Journal of the Korean Ophthalmological Society 1996;37(10):1648-1655.
Published online October 1, 1996.

Immunohistochemical Stain and Electron Microscopic Study on the Pericytes of Fibrovascular Diabetic Preretinal Membrane.

Kyung Ho Woo, Kwang Soo Kim, Keon Young Kwon

¹Department of Ophthalmology, College of Medicine, Keimyung University, Taegu, Korea.
²Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Keimyung University, Taegu, Korea.

섬유 혈관성 당뇨망막전막에서 혈관주위세포에 대한 면역조직화학검사 및 전자현미경 관찰

우경호(Kyung Ho Woo),김광수(Kwang Soo Kim),권건영(Keon Young Kwon)

Abstract

Seven fibrovascular diabetic preretinal membranes were examined with lightmicroscophic immunohistochemical stain and electron-microscopy to evaluate the possibility of pericytes to be involved in membrane contraction. Pericytes were positively stained with anti-actin antibody together with some stromal cells thought to be myofibroblasts presumedly. On transmission electron microscopic study, pericytes were highly active with numerous cytoplasmic processes and contained abundant microfilaments considered as actin in their cytoplasm. Pericyte/endothelial cell ratio of vascular channels were increased in some actively proliferative portion of the membranes. Myofibroblasts that contain abundant cytoplasmic microfilaments were also demonstrated in the extravascular stroma of the membranes and were very similar to the pericytes morphologically. Although the evidence that the pericytes are related to the origin of the myofibroblasts could not be demonstrated, this study suggested that the pericytes may play important roles in development and contraction mechanism of fibrovascular diabetic preretinal membranes.

Key Words: Actin microfilament;Diabetic preretinal membrane;Electronmicroscopy;Immunohistochemical stain;Pericytes