Microelectrode depth study of the electroretinographic oscillatory potentials in the frog retina

The depth profile of the electroretinographic oscillatory potentials was studied in the isolated frog retina. The intraretinal electrode was introduced from the receptor side, and the reference electrode was placed on the vitreal side. The electroretinogram, recorded either transretinally or with the electrode tip in the receptor layer, showed 4 to 10 oscillatory potential wavelets. As the electrode was advanced proximally, the wavelets disappeared as a function of retinal depth. The wavelets with longer peak latencies disappeared earlier, and only the first one or two wavelets could be identified when the electrode was in the inner plexiform layer. These findings indicate that the oscillatory potentials are generated between the inner and outer plexiform layers and that the earlier wavelets originate in the more proximal retina. The results are consistent with the notion that the oscillatory potentials are generated by synaptic feedback circuits.