Immunohistochemical localization of a macrophage-specific antigen in developing mouse retina: phagocytosis of dying neurons and differentiation of microglial cells to form a regular array in the plexiform layers

In the developing mouse retina degenerating neurons can be observed initially in the ganglion cell layer followed by a phase of cell death in the inner nuclear layer. Using an immunohistochemical method to localize the mouse macrophage specific antigen F4/80, we show that macrophages migrate from the vascular supply overlying the developing retina and phagocytose the degenerating neurons. The macrophages subsequently differentiate to become the microglia of the retina and form a regularly spaced distribution across the retina in the inner and outer plexiform layers. These experiments provide strong evidence for the mesodermal origin of central nervous system microglia.