Abstract： AIM To investigate the response of the astrocytes and retinalganglion cell (RGC) axons to crush injury in rat optic nerve. METHODS Serial longitudinal optic nerve sections were studied by using immunohistochemical staining and computer-enhanced immunohistochemical techniques. Cellular responses of rat optic nerve to crush injury were quantified in different periods. RESULTS Markers, neurofilment-160 (NF-160) for axons and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) for astrocytes, decreased their activity and remained depressed in the area of direct mechanical injury throughout weeks after crush injury. The optical density of GFAP was 1.7 times above the normal at 3 wk in the nerve segments proximal to the site of injury. Through the 3-week period of study, a significantly higher NF-160 staining is expressed at proximal boundary of the crush injury than that of distal. CONCLUSION Absence of astrocytes from the crush site between the glial scar and the distal stump might explain the failure of axons to elongate across the site of the injury.