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Related Experiment Videos

The human Retinal Functional Unit.

Robert Galambos1, Gábor Juhász, Magor Lorincz

  • 1University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, 92093, USA. rgalambos@ucsd.edu

International Journal of Psychophysiology : Official Journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology
|May 18, 2005
PubMed
Summary

Researchers have named the unique optic nerve signal triggered by eye fixations the Retinal Functional Unit (RFU). These RFUs contain visual information and are precisely timed for cortical processing.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Vision Science
  • Ophthalmology

Background:

  • Eye movements involve fixations occurring 2-4 times per second.
  • Each fixation generates an optic nerve volley containing retinal processing information.
  • This volley, lasting up to 300 ms, is termed the Retinal Functional Unit (RFU).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To name and define properties of the Retinal Functional Unit (RFU).
  • To investigate the temporal properties of RFUs using human subjects and interstimulus interval (ISI) experiments.
  • To understand how RFUs are processed and transmitted to the cortex.

Main Methods:

  • Human subject experiments.
  • Interstimulus interval (ISI) measurements.
  • Analysis of stimulus perception changes with varying ISIs.

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Main Results:

  • RFUs can be divided into fractions based on their arrival at the cortex, dependent on ISI.
  • Perceptual thresholds for 'twoness', color, and duration change predictably with increasing ISI.
  • Visual information is transmitted from the retina to the cortex in temporally ordered volleys.

Conclusions:

  • RFUs exit the retina in a precise temporal sequence.
  • The mammalian retina processes visual stimuli in approximately 300 ms.
  • RFUs encode all photochemical information from a single fixation.
  • Monosynaptic transfer in the thalamus ensures minimal change in information-rich RFUs reaching the cortex.