![]() ![]() They then conducted experiments to confirm those predictions in mouse and salamander retinas. Their results on such a novel gain control mechanism in the retina have been published in the journal PLOS ONE.īuilding on the team’s expertise in computational methods, the scientists developed a biologically inspired mathematical model of the retinal network and derived predictions on how RGCs of the same type modulate each other’s activity. Scientists in the Asari Group at EMBL Rome found evidence that RGCs can send feedback signals to other retinal cells, and contribute to local computation of visual stimuli by modulating the output signals from the retina. However, recent anatomical studies suggest that RGCs may form a more complex network with other retinal neurons through high-speed communication channels. RGCs have conventionally been considered as a relay, simply integrating incoming visual signals from the eye and conveying them to the brain. These neurons are at the core of the scientists’ recent findings. The RGCs are located on the inner surface of the retina, where they project visual information to the brain via their axons, which make up the optic nerve. When light hits the retina, it stimulates photoreceptors, creating an electric signal that is conveyed through other neurons – horizontal, bipolar, and amacrine cells – to the retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). The retinal layers contain diverse and specialised sets of cellular components. Apart from mapping the outside world, the retina extracts visual features, such as colour, contrast, and motion. Located at the back of the eye, the retina is a neuronal tissue that receives visual input to the eye and converts it to electrical signals that travel to the brain. They too may be deciphering what we actually see. ![]() However, recent evidence indicates that retinas may do even more. Scientists have long known that vision is made possible because our brains decode electrical signals that are sent by the retina. From left: green/blue, photoreceptors yellow, horizontal cells dark green, bipolar cells orange, amacrine cells purple, retinal ganglion cells. Vision unveiled: new roles for the retina in visual processingĮMBL scientists have found evidence of an unexpected role for retinal cells in pre-processing visual information their results provide potential opportunity for future prosthetic visual aids.Īrtistic representation of the complex cell circuit forming the retina. ![]()
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