Quantitative assessment of the permeability of the rat blood‐retinal barrier to small water‐soluble non‐electrolytes.

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Abstract
1. The passive permeability of the blood retinal barrier (b.r.b.) to the water-soluble non-electrolytes, sucrose and mannitol, was determined using a multiple time point-graphical approach as has been used in the assessment of blood-brain barrier (b.b.b.) permeability. 2. The calculated permeability surface area product for the b.r.b. for sucrose was 0.44 (.+-. 0.081 S.E. of mean) .times. 10-5 ml g-1 s-1 (n = 20) and for mannitol was 1.25 (.+-. 0.30) .times. 10-5 ml g-1 s-1 (n = 18). These values are similar and comparable to those found for the capillaries in the brain (P > 0.05) and significantly different from zero (P < 0.01). 3. Data on the concentrations of sucrose in different parts of the eye show that the permeability of the blood-retinal barrier, rather than the more permeable blood-aqueous barrier permeability, was being measured by our technique.