The Effects of Sodium Iodate on Retinal Adhesion

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The effects of iodate and iodoacetate on the retinal adhesion Frank S. Ashburn, Jr., A. Raymond Pilkerton, Narsing A. Rao, and George E. Marak Sodium iodate and sodium iodoacetate were employed as biological probes to evaluate component forces contributing to the strength of retinal adhesion to the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Iodate treatment produced a rapid reduction in the strength of adhesion, which was complete within 1 hr without evidence of concurrent structural change. The adhesive strength reduction produced by iodoacetate required 8 to 12 hr, corresponding to the appearance of early structural changes in the photoreceptor outer segments, although delayed metabolic disturbances in the RPE might also have been involved. The study suggests that metabolic activiity in the RPE may account for a portion of the strength of adhesion and that structural changes in the photoreceptor outer segments may also contribute to the forces of adhesion. Key words: sodium iodate, sodium iodoacetate, retinal pigment epithelium, retinal adhesion, photoreceptor outer segments, electroretinogram A variety of hypotheses have been proposed to explain the forces of adhesion between retina and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). 1 " 3 It has been proposed that acid mucopolysaccharides in this region function as an extracellular cement. 4 ' 5 Hydrostatic pressure and flow conductivity as the result of active metabolic processes have been implicated. l The demonstration that light adaptation modulates the force of retinal adhesion suggested that interdisc electrostatic forces in the photoreceptor outer segments may also be a component force.6 This paper addresses the question of the contribution of active metabolic processes to the force of retinal adhesion. The effects of From The Ophthalmology Section, Veterans Administration Medical Center, and the Department of

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