Fig. 8: Correlation between retinal total cell density and optic nerve degeneration score.

Eyes for which there was both an optic nerve score and analysis of the total neuronal cell density present in the retina were used to evaluate the symmetry of both RGC soma loss and axon loss in the same eye. Total cell counts reflect both RGC and amacrine neuronal populations in the ganglion cell layer. Combined scatter plot/bar graphs (mean ± standard deviation) are shown. In all cohorts (naive and BCLX_L treated, aged 10.5 or 12 months), cell density was significantly lower in eyes with SEV optic nerves compared to eyes with NOE optic nerves in the same cohort (Student’s t test, ***P < 0.0001). Also, within cohorts, eyes exhibiting MOD optic nerves had no significant change in cell density, compared to eyes with NOE optic nerves, with the exception of naive mice aged to 10.5 months (**P = 0.0006). Compared to young naive mouse eyes with NOE optic nerves, most aged cohorts had modestly reduced cell densities in the NOE populations (on average a 10% reduction, ^###P < 0.001), with the exception of BCLX_L-treated eyes at 10.5 months, which showed no significant change. The distribution of mice for each cohort (M/F) was: <4 (6/10); 10.5 Naive (17/12); 10.5 BCLX_L (10/5); 12 Naive (12/11); 12 BCLX_L (8/12).