Representation of the visual field in the anterior thalamus of the leopard frog, Rana pipiens

Skorina, Laura K; Recktenwald, Eric W.; Dudkin, Elizabeth A.; Saidel, William M.; Gruberg, Edward R.

doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2016.03.057

Cited by 2 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…As we described previously [Skorina et al, 2016], labeled cells were found in both retinas following unilateral HRP application into the NCZ. In the contralateral retina, labeled cells were restricted to the nasal region, which mediates visual input from the ipsilateral visual hemifield of that eye.…”

Section: Application Of Hrp To Ncz Retrograde Labelingsupporting

confidence: 71%

“…On the other hand, the NCZ responds to sustained illumination of ambient white light only with a phasic burst of firing. We have further found that there is no obvious retinotopic map within the NCZ, unlike the optic tectum [Skorina et al, 2016].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 59%

“…The similarities continue in the physiological domain. Recorded units in both vLGN and NCZ tend to have large receptive fields and respond to a stationary visual stimulus with tonic activity [Spear et al, 1977;Skorina et al, 2016]. The NCZ and the vLGN both respond preferentially to the onset of a blue light stimulus [Muntz, 1962;Hughes and Chi, 1981;Skorina et al, 2016]; this is also a property of the avian visual thalamus [Maturana and Varela, 1982;Wakita et al, 1992].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…In this paper, we mapped the connections of the NCZ, a physiologically defined neuropilar area in the anterior thalamus that includes 2 adjacent retinal recipient areas and their surrounding region [Skorina et al, 2016]. The NCZ has efferent connections to the neuropil of the posterolateral ventral thalamus at the level of the posterior tubercle and to a superficial area in the anterior ventral medulla at the level of the posterior cerebellum.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The microelectrode was lowered into the diencephalon to identify locations that responded to the on of light with the characteristic electrophysiological responses of the NCZ [Skorina et al, 2016]. The microelectrode was then removed from the micromanipulator and replaced with an HRP-tipped micropipette that was lowered to the same coordinates as the recording microelectrode.…”

Section: Surgical Preparation and Hrp Applicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Connections of Anterior Thalamic Visual Centers in the Leopard Frog, Rana pipiens

Recktenwald

Dudkin

Skorina³

et al. 2017

Brain Behav Evol

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The amphibian retina projects to two discrete regions of neuropil in the anterior thalamus: the neuropil of Bellonci and the corpus geniculatum. These retinorecipient areas are encompassed within a larger zone of surrounding neuropil we call the NCZ (for neuropil of Bellonci/corpus geniculatum zone). The NCZ is characterized electrophysiologically by a distinctive tonic oscillatory response to blue light; it appears to be a visual module involved in processing the stationary visual environment. Using horseradish peroxidase (HRP), we mapped the connections of the NCZ. Retrogradely labeled cell bodies are found in: (1) the contralateral anterior thalamus; (2) both retinas; and (3) the posterior medial dorsal thalamus (PMDT). Anterogradely labeled fibers are found in: (1) the contralateral anterior thalamus; (2) the ipsilateral PMDT; (3) the ipsilateral neuropil lateral to the posterior tuberculum in the ventrolateral posterior thalamus; and (4) the ipsilateral anterior medulla. There are no direct connections between the NCZ and the telencephalon, the tectum, or the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Applying HRP to the PMDT, we found that its inputs are limited to the contralateral and ipsilateral NCZ and the contralateral PMDT. Thus, PMDT appears to be a satellite of the NCZ. Blue light elicits tonic oscillatory electrical responses in the PMDT quite similar to the responses to blue light in the NCZ. We discuss how the leopard frog NCZ and the mammalian ventral lateral geniculate nucleus share anatomical and physiological properties.

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Section: Application Of Hrp To Ncz Retrograde Labelingsupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 59%