RetroDISCO: Clearing technique to improve quantification of retrograde labeled motor neurons of intact mouse spinal cords.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Quantification of the number of axons reinnervating a target organ is often used to assess regeneration after peripheral nerve repair, but because of axonal branching, this method can overestimate the number of motor neurons regenerating across an injury. Current methods to count the number of regenerated motor neurons include retrograde labeling followed by cryosectioning and counting labeled motor neuron cell bodies, however, the process of sectioning introduces error from potential double counting of cells in adjacent sections.

New method

We describe a method, retroDISCO, that optically clears whole mouse spinal cord without loss of fluorescent signal to allow imaging of retrograde labeled motor neurons using confocal microscopy.

Results

Complete optical

SUBMITTER: Zygelyte E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5620662 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature