The retina is one of the most important tissues in the human body. As the neural tissue responsible for sight, injury to the retina can lead to irreparable visual loss. Therefore, studying the process of retinal regeneration in vertebrates that are capable of doing so is important for understanding how the retina can be healed, instead of scarred, after an injury. To this end, the embryonic chick has been identified as a model for retinal regeneration, and until day 4 of embryonic development is capable of regenerating the retina when treated with certain factors, such as the proteins C3a and FGF2. These molecules induce the regeneration of neural retina from the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a tissue found behind the retina. However, the exact molecular mechanisms which allow these factors to induce retina regeneration are not completely understood. In order to gather data on these potential pathways, we surgically removed the retina of embryonic chickens and treated RPE with C3a or FGF2. RNA from the RPE was collected 6 hours later and sequenced in order to determine which genes were being differentially regulated. Following this, statistical analysis was performed with R, and the relative expressions of known genes were compared to begin deciphering the process of retinal regeneration. In particular, we identified unique mechanisms involved in the regeneration pathway induced by the small molecule C3a vs FGF2, pertaining to immune response and MAPK signaling. Moreover, we demonstrate that manual dissection of RPE tissue is able to capture an accurate representation of native RPE gene expression. These findings help contribute to the understanding of retinal regeneration, and directly relates to my interest in a future career in medicine.
Authors: Harshavardhan Sanaka, Alex Danciutiu
Faculty Advisor: Katia Del Rio-Tsonis, Biology
Graduate Student Advisor: Jared Tangeman, Biology
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