Description

The RPE, Retinal Pigmented Epithelium, is a single layer of cells in the eye that support the light-sensitive photoreceptors. The RPE and photoreceptors work together with the brain to transform light into vision. This image shows Apoptosis - a form of cell death - of RPE cells in culture. Annexin V, in green, was used to label the damaged membranes of apoptotic cells, it also labels the debris from dead cells (seen in the center of the image). The nucleus is labeled with a blue DNA stain. Propidium Iodide stains the cells and DNA red. The purple nuclei within the central green area are the remnants of dead cells. This image was made with the UCSB Center for Bio-Image Informatics' Olympus FV1000 laser-scanning confocal microscope.