Survival of adult rat retinal ganglion cells with regrown axons in peripheral nerve grafts: a comparison of graft attachment with suture of fibrin glue.

Abstract

The goal of this study was to examine whether the method of attachment of a peripheral nerve graft would have an effect on retinal ganglion cell (RGC) regeneration. The number of adult rat RGCs with regrown axons in a peripheral nerve graft was compared under two grafting conditions: 1) attachment of the graft to the optic nerve stump made using a suture; and 2) attachment made using fibrin glue. Counts of RGCs retrogradely labeled with FluoroGold from the grafts 1 month after attachment revealed approximately seven times the number of RGCs in the fibrin-glue group compared with the suture group. The use of fibrin glue may be a useful tool for enhancing the regrowth of central nervous system neuron axons into peripheral nervous system grafts.