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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Measuring Connectivity in the Primary Visual Pathway in Human Albinism Using Diffusion Tensor Imaging and Tractography
Published on: August 11, 2016
Decreased gray matter concentration in the lateral geniculate nuclei in human amblyopes
Gareth R Barnes1, Xingfeng Li, Benjamin Thompson
1Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, London, United Kingdom.
Purpose:
In a group of humans with strabismic amblyopia, the relationship was examined between the structure and function of different brain regions. Three question were addressed: (1) Is the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) in humans with amblyopia structurally as well as functionally abnormal? (2) Do structural anomalies in the visual cortex correlate with the previously reported cortical functional losses? (3) Is there a link between the functional anomalies in the visual cortex and any structural anomalies in the geniculate?
Methods:
The structure was compared by using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and the function by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
Results:
The results showed that the geniculate is structurally abnormal in humans with strabismic amblyopia.
Conclusions:
These findings add further weight to the role of the LGN in the cortical deficits exhibited in human strabismic amblyopes.
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