The study of the functional organization of the first synapse of the centripetal visual pathway at the outer plexiform layer level (OPL) ought to be made through the application of combined histological, electrophysiological, and neurochemical techniques. A large amount of new evidence has been accumu lated in the past 20 years on the structure of the retina and on the electrical responses of retinal cells to light stimulus. Also, recently, many substances considered as neurotransmitters in the brain have been found in the retina. The goal of the study of retinal function is to integrate the data obtained by structural and electrophysiological techniques and to identify and determine the role played by neurotransmitters or neuromodulators in the function of the retina. In this study it is important to realize the morphological and biochemical diversi ty displayed by the visual cells in the vertebrate retina which, according to Cresci telli (1972), has been produced "through the interaction of natural selection with diversity in the photic environment." The evidence obtained shows that bipolar and especially horizontal cells, closely related to visual cells, display morphologi cal and probably biochemical differences among classes, genus, and even species according to the photic environment. These differences give peculiarities to the organization of the OPL, which must be taken into account when studying a par ticular retina with electrophysiological or neurochemical techniques.
Editors and Affiliations
Fysiologiska Institutionen II, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm 60, Sweden
David Ottoson
Zoologisches Institut, Universität München, München 2, Germany
Hansjochem Autrum
Department of Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, USA
Edward R. Perl
Physiologisches Institut der Universität, Würzburg, Germany
Robert F. Schmidt
Department of Neurophysiology, University of Tokyo, Institute of Brain Research, Bunkyo Ku, Tokyo, Japan
Hiroshi Shimazu
The Marine Biomedical Institute, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, USA
William D. Willis
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Progress in Sensory Physiology
Editors: David Ottoson, Hansjochem Autrum, Edward R. Perl, Robert F. Schmidt, Hiroshi Shimazu, William D. Willis
