• Parykshit Saikia, Tim Maisch, Karin Kobuch, Timothy L Jackson, Wolfgang Bäumler, Rolf-Markus Szeimies, Veit-Peter Gabel, and Jost Hillenkamp.
• Department of Ophthalmology, University of Regensburg, Franz-Josef-Strauss Allee 11, D-93042 Regensburg, Germany.
• Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2006 Nov 1;47(11):4998-5003.

PurposeTo assess retinal toxicity of indocyanine green (ICG) in a porcine ex vivo perfusion organ culture model, and to measure intraretinal penetration of ICG applied to the retinal surface.MethodsThe retinal surface of fresh porcine retinal tissue was exposed to ICG 0.1% and 1% dissolved in glucose 5% for 1 and 30 minutes with and without concomitant illumination. Specimens were then kept in perfusion organ culture for 24 hours before examination by light microscopy and the TUNEL technique. Tissue samples treated with DNAse served as positive controls, and samples exposed to saline served as negative controls. Fluorescence microscopy was used to localize ICG at 1 minute, 60 minutes, 2 hours, and 3 hours after a 1-minute exposure of the retinal surface to ICG 1%.ResultsNo increase in TUNEL-positive cells was observed after exposure to ICG 0.1% for 1 minute. Moderate apoptosis was found after 1-minute exposure to ICG 1% and 30-minute exposure to ICG 0.1%, and severe apoptosis was found after 30-minute exposure to ICG 1%. Concomitant application of light did not influence the degree of apoptosis. No signs of cell necrosis were found. After 1-minute exposure of the retinal surface, ICG 1% gradually penetrated the entire retina.ConclusionsICG induced apoptosis but not necrosis in all nuclear retinal layers in a dose-dependent manner. Brief exposure to ICG 0.1% for 1 minute and illumination for 3 minutes simulated the intraoperative use of ICG. No retinal apoptosis or necrosis was observed. ICG briefly applied to the retinal surface gradually penetrated the entire retina.

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