Effects of early discordant binocular vision on the postnatal development of parvocellular neurons in the monkey lateral geniculate nucleus

The effects of early discordant binocular vision on the fidelity of signal transfer in parvocellular neurons of the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) were investigated in rhesus monkeys reared with ocular misalignment (strabismus). Unilateral convergent strabismus (esotropia) was surgically induced in four infant monkeys between 20 and 30 days of age and the animals were reared in a normally lighted environment until they were adults. Extracellular microelectrode recordings were made in individual units of anesthetized and paralyzed subjects. Drifting sinusoidal gratings were used as visual stimuli. Within-unit comparisons of the LGN action potentials (LGN output) and S potentials (retinal input) were performed to determine the accuracy of signal transfer in the LGN. Contrary to the previous findings in the cat LGN, the signal transfer characteristics of parvocellular units in strabismic monkeys were normal regardless of stimulus spatial frequency, temporal frequency, or contrast. The differences between cats and monkeys in LGN circuitry and the relative maturity of the central visual pathway at the onset of strabismus may have contributed to the apparent species differences in the functional development of the LGN.