Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Videos

Mixed cells in the cat lateral geniculate nucleus: functional convergence or error in development?

Brain, Behavior and Evolution

|January 1, 1985

Summary

Most cat dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus relay cells are X or Y type. A small fraction show mixed properties, likely due to developmental errors in retinal axon convergence, not functional pathways.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

The effects of phenytoin on the performance of rats in a delayed match-to-place task.

Integrative physiological and behavioral science : the official journal of the Pavlovian Society·2006

Same author

Discrete and contextual cue alterations eliminate the instrumental appetitive-to-aversive transfer impairment in phenytoin-treated rats.

Integrative physiological and behavioral science : the official journal of the Pavlovian Society·2005

Same author

The effects of estradiol on avoidance learning in ovariectomized adult rats.

Integrative physiological and behavioral science : the official journal of the Pavlovian Society·2005

Same author

Lesions of the rat nucleus basalis magnocellularis disrupt appetitive-to-aversive transfer learning.

Integrative physiological and behavioral science : the official journal of the Pavlovian Society·2004

Same author

Acute reductions in GABAA receptor binding in layer IV of adult primate somatosensory cortex after peripheral nerve injury.

Brain research·2002

Same author

Somatotopic reorganization in the brainstem and thalamus following peripheral nerve injury in adult primates.

Brain research·2001

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Visual System Research
Cellular Biology

Background:

The dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) is a key relay center in the mammalian visual pathway.
Relay cells in the LGN process visual information from retinal ganglion cells.
Retinal ganglion cells are classified into X and Y types based on their physiological properties.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the classification of relay cells in the A laminae of the cat dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus.
To determine the incidence and origin of relay cells exhibiting mixed X and Y properties.

Main Methods:

Electrophysiological recordings from LGN relay cells in cats.
Classification of cells based on response properties to visual stimuli.
Analysis of axonal convergence patterns from retinal inputs.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

Most LGN relay cells in the A laminae could be clearly identified as either X or Y type.
A small but significant proportion of relay cells displayed mixed X and Y response characteristics.
These mixed-property cells likely result from the convergence of both X- and Y-type retinal axons onto single relay neurons.

Conclusions:

The presence of mixed-property relay cells in the cat LGN suggests a developmental mechanism.
This convergence of X and Y retinal inputs onto single relay cells is proposed to be a developmental error rather than a functional adaptation.
Understanding these developmental anomalies provides insight into the precise wiring of the visual system.