Four alpha ganglion cell types in mouse retina: Function, structure, and molecular signatures.

PLoS One

Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States of America.

Published: October 2017

The retina communicates with the brain using ≥30 parallel channels, each carried by axons of distinct types of retinal ganglion cells. In every mammalian retina one finds so-called "alpha" ganglion cells (αRGCs), identified by their large cell bodies, stout axons, wide and mono-stratified dendritic fields, and high levels of neurofilament protein. In the mouse, three αRGC types have been described based on responses to light steps: On-sustained, Off-sustained, and Off-transient. Here we employed a transgenic mouse line that labels αRGCs in the live retina, allowing systematic targeted recordings. We characterize the three known types and identify a fourth, with On-transient responses. All four αRGC types share basic aspects of visual signaling, including a large receptive field center, a weak antagonistic surround, and absence of any direction selectivity. They also share a distinctive waveform of the action potential, faster than that of other RGC types. Morphologically, they differ in the level of dendritic stratification within the IPL, which accounts for their response properties. Molecularly, each type has a distinct signature. A comparison across mammals suggests a common theme, in which four large-bodied ganglion cell types split the visual signal into four channels arranged symmetrically with respect to polarity and kinetics.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5533432PMC
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0180091PLOS

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

ganglion cell
8
cell types
8
ganglion cells
8
αrgc types
8
types
7
alpha ganglion
4
types mouse
4
retina
4
mouse retina
4
retina function
4

Similar Publications

GABAergic Progenitor Cell Graft Rescues Cognitive Deficits in Fragile X Syndrome Mice.

Adv Sci (Weinh)

January 2025

Department of Neurology, Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Neurogenetics and Channelopathies of Guangdong Province and the Ministry of Education of China, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510260, China.

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is an inherited neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a range of clinical manifestations with no effective treatment strategy to date. Here, transplantation of GABAergic precursor cells from the medial ganglionic eminence (MGE) is demonstrated to significantly improve cognitive performance in Fmr1 knockout (KO) mice. Within the hippocampus of Fmr1-KO mice, MGE-derived cells from wild-type donor mice survive, migrate, differentiate into functionally mature interneurons, and form inhibitory synaptic connections with host pyramidal neurons.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Action potential-independent spontaneous microdomain Ca transients-mediated continuous neurotransmission regulates hyperalgesia.

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

January 2025

Department of Neurology, the Second Affiliated Hospital, Neuroscience Research Center, Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710000, China.

Neurotransmitters and neuromodulators can be released via either action potential (AP)-evoked transient or AP-independent continuous neurotransmission. The elevated AP-evoked neurotransmission in the primary sensory neurons plays crucial roles in hyperalgesia. However, whether and how the AP-independent continuous neurotransmission contributes to hyperalgesia remains largely unknown.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To investigate the repeatability of optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) parameters in participants with different severities of glaucoma.

Methods: Subjects with open-angle glaucoma were enrolled prospectively and categorised into mild (mean deviation [MD] of 24-2 visual field test ≥ -6 dB), moderate to advanced (-6 > MD ≥ -20 dB) and severe glaucoma groups (MD < -20 dB). OCTA was performed three times within a single visit to obtain superficial and deep macular vessel density (VD) and peripapillary vessel and capillary density.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aim: Tissue clearance is a rapidly evolving technology that allows for the three-dimensional imaging of intact biological tissues. Preexisting tissue-clearing techniques, such as Passive Clarity Technique (PACT) and Clear Unobstructed Brain Imaging Cocktails and Computational Analysis (CUBIC), clear tissues adequately but have distinct disadvantages, such as taking extensive time to clear tissues and degradation of endogenous tissue fluorescence. We developed a new tissue-clearing technique combining PACT and CUBIC protocols to map the neural lineages expressing the transient receptor potential vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1) receptor.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI)-induced neuropathic pain (NP) is a severe disease with high prevalence in clinics. Gene reprogramming and tissue remodeling in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and spinal cord (SC) drive the development and maintenance of neuropathic pain (NP). However, our understanding of the NP-associated spatial molecular processing landscape of SC and the non-synaptic interactions between DRG neurons and SC cells remains limited.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!