Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
197,768 studies31 sourcesUpdated 5 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDGlia

A Müller Glia-Retinal Pigment Epithelium Apical Network Surrounding Cone Outer Segments in Fish and Mouse.

  • Maria Sharkova1,2
  • Michael Housset3
  • Samantha Boudreau3,4
  • Chavy Dworkind2
  • Sara Amidian5
  • Michel Cayouette3,4,6,7
  • Jennifer C Hocking1,2,8,9
9 affiliations
  1. 1Division of Anatomy, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
  2. 2Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
  3. 3Cellular Neurobiology Research Unit, Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
  4. 4Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
  5. 5Cell Imaging Core, B-120 Katz Group Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
  6. 6Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
  7. 7Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
  8. 8Women and Children's Health Research Institute, 5-083 Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
  9. 9Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Read full textPDFDOICite

Abstract

Homeostasis of the vertebrate retina critically depends on two non-neuronal cell populations, Müller glia and the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Their opposing apical surfaces delineate the subretinal space, a specialized extracellular compartment housing the light-detecting outer segments of photoreceptors. Although the individual interactions between these supporting cells and photoreceptors have been extensively characterized, Müller glia and the RPE have long been presumed to remain physically separate in the healthy retina. Here, we challenge this assumption and present a revised model of the subretinal space architecture based on detailed FIB-SEM and confocal microscopy imaging of the zebrafish and mouse outer retina. We demonstrate that both Müller glia and the RPE extend long apical processes that not only contact one another but also collectively ensheath cone outer segments, forming a previously unrecognized tripartite interface. These contact regions are highly elaborated in fish and, while comparatively sparser, are still present in mouse. Developmentally, the growth and interdigitation of Müller glial and RPE apical processes follow the emergence of the outer segment in both species and, in mouse, coincides with the onset of visual function. Although glial-RPE interactions are enriched at cone-associated sites, their presence is not strictly dependent on cone localization in either species, suggesting they represent a fundamental feature of the vertebrate subretinal space. Together, these findings revise our understanding of the subretinal space cytoarchitecture and reveal a previously unappreciated structural interaction between Müller glia, RPE, and photoreceptors that is conserved across vertebrate species.

Related

  1. RNA base-modification and A-to-I editing landscapes of oxidatively stressed human retinal pigment epithelium under Quantum Molecular Resonance electrotherapy and blood-derived secretome.
    Domenico Mordà, Simona Alibrandi, Concetta Scimone +8
    RNA biologyPeer-reviewedCC BY-NCFull textMolecular biology & gene regulationEurope PMC
  2. Functional and molecular profiles of the neuroretina and retinal pigmented epithelium-choroid in response to aging and Nrf2 deletion
    B. L. Wells, A. J. Filiberti, D. R. Stanford +5
    bioRxivPreprintAll rights reservedFull textMolecular biology & gene regulationbioRxiv
  3. A maximum entropy model for m6A prediction: from human transcripts to influenza A viral segments
    I. Lecce, P.-G. Brun, S. Cocco
    bioRxivPreprintCC BYFull textBiophysicsbioRxiv
  4. Characteristics of Microbiota in Different Segments of the Digestive Tract of Orange‐Collared Keelback ( Rhabdophis himalayanus )
    Ji Chen, Jiuyan Jiang, Xia Zhou +7
    Ecology and EvolutionPeer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Full textMolecular biology & gene regulationCrossref
  5. Aortic Segments‐Depending Hypertensive Remodeling Is Driven by Mitochondrial Fusion Dysfunction
    Alexis Richard, Alicia Baptista Vicente, Clara Gourhand +12
    FASEB JournalPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Full text1 citedMolecular biology & gene regulationHAL

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{sharkova2026müller,
  title = {{A Müller Glia-Retinal Pigment Epithelium Apical Network Surrounding Cone Outer Segments in Fish and Mouse.}},
  author = {Maria Sharkova and Michael Housset and Samantha Boudreau and Chavy Dworkind and Sara Amidian and Michel Cayouette and Jennifer C Hocking},
  journal = {Glia},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1002/glia.70241},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42905611},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - A Müller Glia-Retinal Pigment Epithelium Apical Network Surrounding Cone Outer Segments in Fish and Mouse.
AU  - Maria Sharkova
AU  - Michael Housset
AU  - Samantha Boudreau
AU  - Chavy Dworkind
AU  - Sara Amidian
AU  - Michel Cayouette
AU  - Jennifer C Hocking
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/30
JO  - Glia
DO  - 10.1002/glia.70241
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42905611
AB  - Homeostasis of the vertebrate retina critically depends on two non-neuronal cell populations, Müller glia and the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Their opposing apical surfaces delineate the subretinal space, a specialized extracellular compartment housing the light-detecting outer segments of photoreceptors. Although the individual interactions between these supporting cells and photoreceptors have been extensively characterized, Müller glia and the RPE have long been presumed to remain physically separate in the healthy retina. Here, we challenge this assumption and present a revised model of the subretinal space architecture based on detailed FIB-SEM and confocal microscopy imaging of the zebrafish and mouse outer retina. We demonstrate that both Müller glia and the RPE extend long apical processes that not only contact one another but also collectively ensheath cone outer segments, forming a previously unrecognized tripartite interface. These contact regions are highly elaborated in fish and, while comparatively sparser, are still present in mouse. Developmentally, the growth and interdigitation of Müller glial and RPE apical processes follow the emergence of the outer segment in both species and, in mouse, coincides with the onset of visual function. Although glial-RPE interactions are enriched at cone-associated sites, their presence is not strictly dependent on cone localization in either species, suggesting they represent a fundamental feature of the vertebrate subretinal space. Together, these findings revise our understanding of the subretinal space cytoarchitecture and reveal a previously unappreciated structural interaction between Müller glia, RPE, and photoreceptors that is conserved across vertebrate species.
SN  - 0894-1491
SN  - 1098-1136
ER  -