Abstract
Melanin-related agents regulate the development of the mammalian neural retina, because in albinos there are a range of retinal deficits including abnormal connections between the eye and brain, an underdeveloped central retina and a rod deficit. These deficits may arise because gradients of retinal development in the albino are delayed and the retina is abnormally proliferative, but also goes through a subsequent period of excessive cell death. This may be caused by a reduction in ocular DOPA in albinos as this is in the synthetic pathway of melanin and is a known cell cycle regulator.
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Jeffery, G. The retinal pigment epithelium as a developmental regulator of the neural retina. Eye 12, 499–503 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1998.137
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1998.137
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