Biomaterial Database

The response of macaque ganglion cells and human observers to heterochromatically modulated lights: the effect of stimulus size. 1994

J Kremers, and T Yeh, and B B Lee

Department of Neurobiology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany.

Psychophysical sensitivity of human observers closely resembles responsivity of retinal ganglion cells of the magnocellular (MC-) pathway as a function of the relative phase of heterochromatically modulated lights. The MC-pathway phase effect is absent if the receptive field centre alone is stimulated. Here we confirm this physiological result, and show that the psychophysical phase shift is also abolished with small stimuli. The space constant of the psychophysical effect is consistent with a surround diameter for MC-pathway cells in the fovea of about 50 min arc, about 10 times estimated centre diameter. On changing retinal illuminance, the amplitude of the physiological and psychophysical phase shifts also changed in a parallel manner. These experiments support the hypothesis that the physiological origin of psychophysical phase shifts is in the MC-pathway, and indicate the spatial frequency (c. 2c/deg) below which the psychophysical phase shift should become apparent.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008027	Light	That portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the visible, ultraviolet, and infrared range.	Light, Visible,Photoradiation,Radiation, Visible,Visible Radiation,Photoradiations,Radiations, Visible,Visible Light,Visible Radiations
D008252	Macaca fascicularis	A species of the genus MACACA which typically lives near the coast in tidal creeks and mangrove swamps primarily on the islands of the Malay peninsula.	Burmese Long-Tailed Macaque,Crab-Eating Monkey,Cynomolgus Monkey,M. f. aurea,M. fascicularis,Macaca fascicularis aurea,Monkey, Crab-Eating,Monkey, Cynomolgus,Crab-Eating Macaque,Burmese Long Tailed Macaque,Crab Eating Macaque,Crab Eating Monkey,Crab-Eating Macaques,Crab-Eating Monkeys,Cynomolgus Monkeys,Long-Tailed Macaque, Burmese,Macaque, Burmese Long-Tailed,Macaque, Crab-Eating,Monkey, Crab Eating
D008297	Male		Males
D010775	Photic Stimulation	Investigative technique commonly used during ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY in which a series of bright light flashes or visual patterns are used to elicit brain activity.	Stimulation, Photic,Visual Stimulation,Photic Stimulations,Stimulation, Visual,Stimulations, Photic,Stimulations, Visual,Visual Stimulations
D011601	Psychophysics	The science dealing with the correlation of the physical characteristics of a stimulus, e.g., frequency or intensity, with the response to the stimulus, in order to assess the psychologic factors involved in the relationship.	Psychophysic
D003118	Color Perception	Mental processing of chromatic signals (COLOR VISION) from the eye by the VISUAL CORTEX where they are converted into symbolic representations. Color perception involves numerous neurons, and is influenced not only by the distribution of wavelengths from the viewed object, but also by its background color and brightness contrast at its boundary.	Color Perceptions,Perception, Color,Perceptions, Color
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D012165	Retinal Ganglion Cells	Neurons of the innermost layer of the retina, the internal plexiform layer. They are of variable sizes and shapes, and their axons project via the OPTIC NERVE to the brain. A small subset of these cells act as photoreceptors with projections to the SUPRACHIASMATIC NUCLEUS, the center for regulating CIRCADIAN RHYTHM.	Cell, Retinal Ganglion,Cells, Retinal Ganglion,Ganglion Cell, Retinal,Ganglion Cells, Retinal,Retinal Ganglion Cell
D012858	Size Perception	The sensory interpretation of the dimensions of objects.	Perception, Size,Perceptions, Size,Size Perceptions