Vision: Two Speeds in the Retina.

The central (foveal) retina takes about 30 milliseconds longer to signal to the brain than the peripheral retina. In the natural world, a 30 millisecond delay could have real consequences. Why did evolution do it this way?

The types of retinal ganglion cells: current status and implications for neuronal classification.

In the retina, photoreceptors pass visual information to interneurons, which process it and pass it to retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Axons of RGCs then travel through the optic nerve, telling the rest of the brain all it will ever know about the visual world. Research over the past several decades has made clear that most RGCs are not merely light detectors, but rather feature detectors, which send a diverse set of parallel, highly processed images of the world on to higher centers.

Automated computation of arbor densities: a step toward identifying neuronal cell types.

The shape and position of a neuron convey information regarding its molecular and functional identity. The identification of cell types from structure, a classic method, relies on the time-consuming step of arbor tracing. However, as genetic tools and imaging methods make data-driven approaches to neuronal circuit analysis feasible, the need for automated processing increases.

A genetic and computational approach to structurally classify neuronal types.

The importance of cell types in understanding brain function is widely appreciated but only a tiny fraction of neuronal diversity has been catalogued. Here we exploit recent progress in genetic definition of cell types in an objective structural approach to neuronal classification. The approach is based on highly accurate quantification of dendritic arbor position relative to neurites of other cells.