PURPOSE. To characterize the course of sodium iodate (SI)-induced retinal degeneration in young adult albino and pigmented mice. (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg) were performed in 7-to 8-week-old BALB/c and C57Bl/6J mice. Retinal function and structure was assessed at baseline, 24 hours, 3 days, 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks postinjection by optokinetic tracking response, ERG, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and histologic and immunohistochemical techniques. METHODS. Single intraperitoneal (IP) injections of SI RESULTS.The 50 mg/kg SI dosage was selected after dose ranging due to consistent retinal effects and lack of systemic toxicity. Time-dependent deterioration in retinal function and morphology was consistently observed between 1 and 4 weeks in all measured parameters. These include reduction of ERG responses, thinning of retinal layers as observed by OCT and histology, and loss of RPE nuclei. Immunohistochemistry revealed rapid RPE disorganization with loss of tight junctions and markedly reduced expression of RPE65 and rod opsin, accompanied by mislocalization of cone opsins. Earlier time points displayed variable results, including partial recovery of visual acuity at 1 week and supranormal ERG cone responses at 24 hours, suggesting possible limitations of early intervention and assessment in the SI model. CONCLUSIONS.A single IP injection of 50 mg/kg SI leads to severe RPE injury followed by vision impairment, dysfunction, and loss of photoreceptors in both BALB/c and C57Bl/6J mice. This easily induced and reproducible noninherited model may serve as a useful tool for seeking and evaluating novel therapeutic modalities for the treatment of retinal degenerations caused by primary failure of the RPE.Keywords: sodium iodate, RPE toxicity, retinal degeneration, mouse model D iseases such as AMD, Best disease, and subtypes of retinitis pigmentosa RP are major causes of visual disability. 1 In these diseases, primary dysfunction, degeneration, and loss of the RPE ultimately results in secondary death of photoreceptors, leading to visual loss. [2][3][4] Despite certain progress in the treatment of retinal degeneration, it remains an essentially irreversible process in which many patients eventually lose their sight. Animal models provide an invaluable tool for searching and testing of novel therapeutic modalities. Animals carrying natural mutations (usually in one gene) provide well-established models for inherited retinal diseases. 5,6 However, the pathogenesis of multifactorial retinal degenerations such as AMD involves complex genetic and environmental factors, leading to expression of disease at older ages. 7 The majority of geneticallyinherited animal models of ocular disease do not entirely mimic such conditions because of early disease onset and progression. 8 Regardless of etiology, maintaining proper RPE function is a major therapeutic target in these diseases, and currently pharmaceutical, genetic, and cellular approaches are being tested to this end in a variety of in vitro and in vivo models, as well as in clini...

The history of the North African Jewish community is ancient and complicated with a number of immigration waves and persecutions dramatically affecting its population size. A decade-long process in Israel of clinical-molecular screening of North African Jews with incurable autosomal recessive blindness led to the identification of a homozygous splicing mutation (c.95-2A > T; IVS2-2A > T) in RPE65, the gene encoding the isomerase that catalyzes a key step in the retinoid-visual cycle, in patients from 10 unrelated families. A total of 33 patients (four now deceased) had the severe childhood blindness known as Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), making it the most common cause of retinal degeneration in this population. Haplotype analysis in seven of the patients revealed a shared homozygous region, indicating a population-specific founder mutation. The age of the RPE65 founder mutation was estimated to have emerged 100-230 (mean, 153) generations ago, suggesting it originated before the establishment of the Jewish community in North Africa. Individuals with this RPE65 mutation were characterized with retinal studies to determine if they were candidates for gene replacement, the recent and only therapy to date for this otherwise incurable blindness. The step from molecular anthropological studies to application of genetic medicine was then taken, and a representative of this patient subgroup was treated with subretinal rAAV2-RPE65 gene therapy. An increase in vision was present in the treated area as early as 15 days after the intervention. This process of genetically analyzing affected isolated populations as a screen for gene-based therapy suggests a new paradigm for disease diagnosis and treatment.

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