scholarly journals A simple retinal mechanism contributes to perceptual interactions between rod- and cone-mediated responses in primates

eLife ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
William N Grimes ◽  
Logan R Graves ◽  
Mathew T Summers ◽  
Fred Rieke
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Nonlinear Interactions ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Linear Summation ◽  
Perceptual Asymmetry ◽  
Parallel Pathways ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Circuit Output ◽  
Rod And Cone Photoreceptors

Visual perception across a broad range of light levels is shaped by interactions between rod- and cone-mediated signals. Because responses of retinal ganglion cells, the output cells of the retina, depend on signals from both rod and cone photoreceptors, interactions occurring in retinal circuits provide an opportunity to link the mechanistic operation of parallel pathways and perception. Here we show that rod- and cone-mediated responses interact nonlinearly to control the responses of primate retinal ganglion cells; these nonlinear interactions, surprisingly, were asymmetric, with rod responses strongly suppressing subsequent cone responses but not vice-versa. Human psychophysical experiments revealed a similar perceptual asymmetry. Nonlinear interactions in the retinal output cells were well-predicted by linear summation of kinetically-distinct rod- and cone-mediated signals followed by a synaptic nonlinearity. These experiments thus reveal how a simple mechanism controlling interactions between parallel pathways shapes circuit output and perception.

Investigating visual mechanisms underlying scene brightness

2016 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
UC Besenecker ◽  
JD Bullough
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Spectral Sensitivity ◽  
Short Wavelength ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Forced Choice ◽  
Light Sources ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Brightness Perception ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Relative Brightness

Short-wavelength (<500 nm) output of light sources enhances scene brightness perception in the low-to-moderate photopic range. This appears to be partially explained by a contribution from short-wavelength cones. Recent evidence from experiments on humans suggests that intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) containing the photopigment melanopsin might also contribute to spectral sensitivity for scene brightness perception. An experiment was conducted to investigate this possibility at two different light levels, near 10 lx and near 100 lx. Subjects provided forced-choice brightness judgments and relative brightness magnitude judgments when comparing two different amber-coloured stimuli with similar chromaticities. A provisional brightness metric including an ipRGC contribution was able to predict the data with substantially smaller errors than a metric based on cone input only.

Light adaptation in the primate retina: Analysis of changes in gain and dynamics of monkey retinal ganglion cells

1990 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith Purpura ◽  
Daniel Tranchina ◽  
Ehud Kaplan ◽  
Robert M. Shapley
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Negative Feedback ◽  
Light Adaptation ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Light Level ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
M Cell ◽  
Feedback Model ◽  
Light Levels

AbstractThe responses of monkey retinal ganglion cells to sinusoidal stimuli of various temporal frequencies were measured and analyzed at a number of mean light levels. Temporal modulation tuning functions (TMTFs) were measured at each mean level by varying the drift rate of a sine-wave grating of fixed spatial frequency and contrast. The changes seen in ganglion cell temporal responses with changes in adaptation state were similar to those observed in human subjects and in turtle horizontal cells and cones tested with sinusoidally flickering stimuli; “Weber's Law” behavior was seen at low temporal frequencies but not at higher temporal frequencies. Temporal responses were analyzed in two ways: (1) at each light level, the TMTFs were fit by a model consisting of a cascade of low- and high-pass filters; (2) the family of TMTFs collected over a range of light levels for a given cell was fit by a linear negative feedback model in which the gain of the feedback was proportional to the mean light level. Analysis (1) revealed that the temporal responses of one class of monkey ganglion cells (M cells) were more phasic at both photopic and mesopic light levels than the responses of P ganglion cells. In analysis (2), the linear negative feedback model accounted reasonably well for changes in gain and dynamics seen in three P cells and one M cell. From the feedback model, it was possible to estimate the light level at which the dark-adapted gain of the cone pathways in the primate retina fell by a factor of two. This value was two to three orders of magnitude lower than the value estimated from recordings of isolated monkey cones. Thus, while a model which includes a single stage of negative feedback can account for the changes in gain and dynamics associated with light adaptation in the photopic and mesopic ranges of vision, the underlying physical mechanisms are unknown and may involve elements in the primate retina other than the cone.

scholarly journals Melanopic stimulation does not alter psychophysical threshold sensitivity for luminance flicker

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joris Vincent ◽  
Edda B. Haggerty ◽  
David H. Brainard ◽  
Geoffrey K. Aguirre
Keyword(s):  
Circadian Rhythm ◽  
Visual Perception ◽  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Threshold Sensitivity ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Pupil Response ◽  
Visual Functions ◽  
Psychophysical Threshold ◽  
Rod And Cone Photoreceptors

AbstractIn addition to the rod and cone photoreceptors the retina contains intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs). These cells express the photopigment melanopsin and are known to be involved in reflexive visual functions such as pupil response and photo-entrainment of the circadian rhythm. It is possible that the ipRGCs contribute to conscious visual perception, either by providing an independent signal to the geniculo-striate pathway, or by interacting with and thus modifying signals arising from “classical” retinal ganglion cells that combine and contrast cone input. Here, we tested for the existence of an interaction by asking if a 350% change in melanopsin stimulation alters psychophysical sensitivity for the detection of luminance flicker. In Experiment 1, we tested for a change in the threshold for detecting luminance flicker in three participants after they adapted to backgrounds with different degrees of tonic melanopsin stimulation. In Experiments 2 and 3, this test was repeated, but now for luminance flicker presented on a transient pedestal of melanopsin stimulation. Across the three experiments, no effect of melanopsin stimulation upon threshold flicker sensitivity was found. Our results suggest that even large changes in melanopsin stimulation do not affect near-threshold, cone-mediated visual perception.

scholarly journals Beyond colour gamuts: Novel metrics for the reproduction of photoreceptor signals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allie C. Hexley ◽  
Takuma Morimoto ◽  
Hannah E. Smithson ◽  
Manuel Spitschan
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Chromaticity Diagram ◽  
Colour Space ◽  
Light Responses ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Primary Display ◽  
Visual Light

AbstractColour gamuts describe the chromaticity reproduction capabilities of a display, i.e. its ability to reproduce the relative cone excitations from real-world radiance spectra. While the cones dominate “canonical” visual function (i.e. perception of colour, space, and motion) under photopic light levels, they are not the only photoreceptors in the human retina. Rods and melanopsin-containing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) also respond to light and contribute to both visual and non-visual light responses, including circadian rhythms, sleep-wake control, mood, pupil size, and alertness. Three-primary display technologies, with their focus on reproducing colour, are not designed to reproduce the rod and melanopsin excitations. Moreover, conventional display metrics used to characterize three-primary displays fail to describe the display’s ability (or inability) to reproduce rod and melanopsin excitations, and thus do not capture the display’s ability to reproduce the full human physiological response to light. In this paper, three novel physiologically relevant metrics are proposed for quantifying the reproduction and distortion of the photoreceptor signals by visual displays. A novel equal-luminance photoreceptor excitation diagram is proposed, extending the well-known MacLeod-Boynton chromaticity diagram, to allow visualizations of the five-dimensional photoreceptor signal space in a three-dimensional projection.

scholarly journals Blurring the Boundaries of Vision: Novel Functions of Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. JEN.S11267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Matynia
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Bipolar Cells ◽  
Specific Cell ◽  
Neural Pathways ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Cone Photoreceptors ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Rod And Cone Photoreceptors

Mammalian vision consists of the classic image-forming pathway involving rod and cone photoreceptors interacting through a neural network within the retina before sending signals to the brain, and a non image-forming pathway that uses a photosensitive cell employing an alternative and evolutionary ancient phototransduction system and a direct connection to various centers in the brain. Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) contain the photopigment melanopsin, which is independently capable of photon detection while also receiving synaptic input from rod and cone photoreceptors via bipolar cells. These cells are the retinal sentry for subconscious visual processing that controls circadian photoentrainment and the pupillary light reflex. Classified as irradiance detectors, recent investigations have led to expanding roles for this specific cell type and its own neural pathways, some of which are blurring the boundaries between image-forming and non image-forming visual processes.

scholarly journals Deactivation, recovery from inactivation, and modulation of extra–synaptic ion currents in fish retinal ganglion cells

2000 ◽  
Vol 355 (1401) ◽  
pp. 1191-1194 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.T. Ishida
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Visual Environment ◽  
Ion Currents ◽  
Aquatic Species ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Ambient Light ◽  
Specific Population ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Recovery From Inactivation

As is shown magnificently by Heron Island's reef, the visual environment of many fishes includes various light intensities, hues and shapes that can change on large and small scales in space and time. Several articles in this issue address why fishes are sensitive to some of these properties, and how fishes and other aquatic species have acquired or fostered these sensitivities. This article discusses contributions of extrasynaptic ion currents, in a specific population of neurons, to the detection of ambient light levels, the appearance of certain visual stimuli and the disappearance of others.

Calcium Signals Induced By Tonic Firing In Rat Retinal Ganglion Cells

2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyril I. Kuznetsov ◽  
Vitaliy Yu. Maslov ◽  
Svetlana A. Fedulova ◽  
Nikolai S. Veselovsky
Keyword(s):  
Retinal Ganglion Cells ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Retinal Ganglion ◽  
Calcium Signals ◽  
Tonic Firing
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