Unit 2 Week 3 Flashcards
(74 cards)
What is the retinofugal projection?
the visual pathways from the eye to the brain
Retina to optic nerve to optic chiasm to optic tract ot LGN to optic radiation to primary visual cortex (V1)
What is Decussation?
The crossing of a fiber bundle from one side to the other side
Where do ganglion cell axons from the nasal retina cross?
optic chiasm
What is the visual pathway that mediates conscious visual perception?
Retina to LGN to Primary Visual Cortex (V1)
left hemifield projects to right side of brain
right hemifield projects to left side of brain
What is Retinotopy?
position on retina projects to position along LGN and primary visual cortex
the topographic organization of visual pathway in which neighboring cells in the retinal send information to neighboring cells in a target brain structure
What is the purpose of a sensory map for visual pathway?
provide spatial information of the visual field
How can we tell where neurons send their information to?
anterograde tracing
What is anterograde tracing?
identify neural connections from their source (cell body) to their point of termination (the synapse)
How can we tell where neurons receive their information from?
retrograde tracing
What is retrograde tracing?
to identify neural connections from their point of termination (the synapse) to their source (the cell body)
Where do RGC neurons from both eyes send their projections in the brain?
all layers of the LGN, the neurons are monocular
What does it mean if a neurons is monocular?
each LGN neuron only responds to light in one eye
What are the cell types of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs)?
M-type RGCs (larger)
P-type TGCs (smaller)
nonM-nonP RGCs
How are the different layers within the LGN organized?
inputs segregated by eye and ganglion cell type
Describe the receptive fields of Receptive Field LGN neurons
Receptive fields of LGN neurons: almost identical to the ganglion cells that feed them
-ON-center/surround
-OFF-center/ON-surround
Describe the receptive fields of Magnocellular LGN neurons
Magnocellular LGN neurons: large center-surround receptive field with transient response
Describe the receptive fields of Parvocellular LGN neurons
small center-surround receptive fields with sustained response
What is another name for the primary visual cortex?
striate cortex
Where do RGC neurons from both eyes send their projections in the brain?
studied with transneuronal autoradiography from ratina, to LGN, to striate cortex, using anterograde tracing
Where do most inputs from LGNs go in the striate cortex? Give examples
layer 4
Magnocellular LGN neurons project primarily to layer IVC(alpha)
Parvocellular LGN neurons project to layer IVC(beta)
Where do few LGN neurons go in the striate cortex?
Give examples.
layer 2/3
Koniocellular LGN axons make synapses primarily in layers 2 and 3
What are ocular dominance columns?
eye-specific LGN projections into layer 4 of striate cortex- not in layers like in LGN, but in cortex along surface
Where are most binocular neurons found?
layer III of striate cortex
Describe the physiology of monocular receptive fields of the striate cortex
Layer IVC: similar to LGN cells
One receptive field- respond to light only in one eye (receive inputs from only one eye)