An autoradiographic time study during regeneration in fully differentiated Xenopus eyes

Nasal one-third sized fragments were created from fully differentiated larval Xenopus eyes (stage 47). At various times post-surgery, animals were injected with tritiated thymidine. All animals were fixed 1 day post-injection. Animals injected 1 day post-surgery showed limited healing and thymidine labeling in the retina. In animals injected 1 week post-surgery, heavy thymidine label was localized in the ventrotemporal retina in a "thickened" neuroepithelium internal to the extending pigmented retinal epithelium. In contrast, the dorsal retina showed no apparent extra labeling, but rather resembled normal ciliary margin. In animals injected 1 month post-surgery, the eye fragment regained normal size and retinal layering, and the label was restricted to the ciliary margin. Regenerative growth associated with healing appeared to have been completed by this time. This extra cell division that occurs during the 1st month post-surgery may underlie novel axonal targeting properties shown by nasal one-third sized fragments. For example, these findings are consistent with the idea that pattern duplication of the visuotectal projection in nasal one-third sized eye fragments occurs via intercalary cell division during healing and regeneration.