Methyl alcohol poisoning. IV. Alterations of the morphological findings of the retina and optic nerve
G. L. Baumbach, P. A. Cancilla, G. Martin-Amat, T. R. Tephly, K. E. McMartin, A. B. Makar, M. S. Hayreh and S. S. Hayreh
The ocular morphological findings of three methyl alcohol-intoxicated
rhesus monkeys with optic disc swelling was investigated with light and
electron microscopy in conjunction with intravascular horse radish
peroxidase. Alterations observed in the optic nerve head were confined to
the axons and consisted of swelling and clustering of the mitochondria,
disruption of the neurotubules, the formation of vesicles, and enlargement
of the axon segments in the prelaminar region. Swelling of the
oligodendroglial cytoplasm in contact with the axons and of the astrocytes
was seen in the retrolaminar optic nerve and the intraorbital optic nerve.
Alterations were not observed in the retina. It is hypothesized that the
alterations in the axons are the result of disrupted axoplasmic flow.
Possible mechanisms relating methyl alcohol intoxication to disruption of
axoplasmic flow are discussed.
