[Cell population kinetics during retinal histogenesis in Rana temporaria frogs]

The histogenesis of retina was studied by means of 3H-thymidine autoradiography in the Rana temporaria embryos at the 17-25th developmental stages. At all these stages the central zone of retina is more differentiated than the peripheral one. The index of labeled nuclei in the central zone changes from 74-80 to 1.5-2.0% and in the peripheral zone from 74-80 to 60%. The outcome of the first cells from the reproduction cycle is realized beginning from the moment of the optic vesicle invagination. During the histogenesis of retina in anurans both the reproduction and the onset of differentiation of different cell types take place. The heterogeneity of the population of proliferating cells at all the stages studied proved to be similar. The data obtained are compared with those characterizing the kinetics of cell populations during the histogenesis of retina in avian and mammal embryos.