Lysosomal enzyme activities in cultured retinal pigment epithelial and glial cells of RCS rat.

Purpose: To compare the activities of acid phosphatase, N-acetyl-β-glu-cosaminidase and a- mannosidase in cultured retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)and glial cells of Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rat with those in Long Evans(LE).Methods: The cultured RPE and glial cells of RCS and LE rat were plated into thesame 96 well microtitre, and the biochemical method in microsystem were usedfor enzyme assays.Results: The activities of acid phosphatase and N-acetyl- β-glucosaminidase arehigher by, respectively, 30% and 46% in cultured RPE of RCS rat than LE rat.The activity of a- mannosidase has no significant difference. The activities of 3enzymes in the retinal glial cells derived from RCS rats are higher than LE rat by43% to 77%.Conclusion: These results suggest that the high activities of lysosomal enzymes inRCS RPE and glial cells may play an important role in the pathogenesis of retinaldystrophy. Eye Science 1996; 12:20-27.