Fig. 3

EDTA/GM6001 treatment results in microphthalmic embryos showing reduced RGC axon innervation in the optic tectum.

A Whole mount immunostaining for acetylated-α-Tubulin in 5 dpf EDTA-treated embryos reveals a reduced tectal area (dotted circle and arrow) innervated by RGC axons, represented by the smaller dotted circle in the EDTA-treated embryos as compared to control embryos. Images show a dorsolateral view on the left OT and eye. B-C Quantitative analysis of the tectal area innervated by RGC axons and the eye size reveals that EDTA as well as GM6001 treatment leads to embryos with a significantly reduced RGC axon arborization area and microphthalmic eyes, as compared to control embryos at 5 dpf. Eye size and tectal innervation area are normalized to average values in untreated embryos (n = 30 from 3 independent experiments). Data are represented as mean ± SEM (*p<0.05, Student′s t-test). A; anterior; D, dorsal; dpf: days post fertilization; OT: optic tectum; P, posterior; RGC: retinal ganglion cells; V, ventral.