1996 Volume 178 Issue 3 Pages 233-240
The distribution and accumulation of visual pigments, i.e., rod pigment, rhodopsin and red sensitive cone pigment, iodopsin, and transducin in the retina of chicken and chicken embryo were investigated immunohistochemically using their specific antibodies. The immunoreactivities of these proteins appeared at the early stage of photoreceptor differentiation (embryonal day 15) and increased in the photoreceptor cells appeared to reach maximum at the end of the embryonal period (embryonal day 20). On the other hand, although the immunoreactivity of βγ subunit of transducin (Tβγ) was detected at embryonal day 15, the expression level of Tβγ still remained in low level during the embryonal period. These observations suggest that both Tβγ and visual pigments are expressed during the embryonic period in chicken photoreceptor cells, but their accumulations in the cells are different.
