Distribution of glycosaminoglycans in the aqueous outflow system of the cat

Although glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) have been postulated to play a role in the regulation of intraocular pressure, structural localization of specific varieties of GAGs in the outflow system is necessary before their precise role can be determined. In this study, the outflow system of the cat was stained with ruthenium red to identify GAGs with the electron microscope. The composition of the ruthenium red-stainable material was determined by predigestion of tissues with testicular hyaluronidase, neuraminidase, or papain. Testicular hyaluronidase-sensitive GAGs were located on the surfaces of the endothelial cells in the trabecular meshwork and aqueous plexus, within their basal laminae, and in the amorphous tissue of the trabecular beams and tissue adjacent to the aqueous plexus. Collagen and elastic fibers throughout the outflow system were also associated with ruthenium red-stainable material that was resistant to testicular hyaluronidase. Connective tissue GAGs, but not endothelial cell-associated GAGs, were demonstrated to be complexed to protein, since they were disrupted by papain treatment. Neuraminidase-sensitive material (sialoglycoprotein) was identified only on the lumenal surface of the endothelial cells of the aqueous plexus. The complex distribution of GAGs and order polyanions in the outflow system of the cat suggests that the these macromolecules may serve more than one function.