Development of autoreactive antibodies.

<p>Exemplary retina (A, B) and optic nerve cross-sections (C, D) after incubation with rat serum. Sera from RGA animals revealed a strong binding reactivity to the RGC layer and some binding to the inner plexiform layer. (E) Strong staining due to autoreactive antibodies was also observed on longitudinal optic nerve sections of immunized animals after six weeks incubated with serum from the same animal collected at the same time. (F) Development of autoreactive antibodies against ocular tissues. Time course for control (CO) and RGA animals. Values are mean±SE. Abbreviations: GCL = ganglion cell layer, IPL = inner plexiform layer, INL = inner nuclear layer, OPL = outer plexiform layer, ONL = outer nuclear layer. (**, p<0.01; ***, p<0.001; scale bars in A, C, D, E: 50 µm and in B: 20 µm.).