Introduction to Neuroscience 1

(COGS1000)
ONLINE VISION LAB 1: Mapping retinal
circuits

Activity Sheet

PART 1
For Part 1 of the Lab, you should primarily consult your textbook.

1. List the 5 main classes of neurons in the retina and describe 2 facts
about each?

1- Photoreceptors:

 has two types (rods and cones).

 Absorption of light by the photopigment results in change in

membrane potential.

2- Bipolar cells:

 communicate via graded potentials rather than action

potentials.

 Glutamate, which inhibits (hyperpolarizes) the ON bipolar cells

and excites (depolarizes) the OFF bipolar cells.

3- Ganglion cells:

 Have a long axon that extends into the brain.

 Axons form the optic nerve, optic chiasm, and optic tract.

4- Horizontal cells:

 laterally interconnecting neurons.

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  Inhibitory feedback to rod and cone photoreceptors

5- Amacrine cells:

 Inhibitory neurons

 They interact with retinal ganglion cells and/or bipolar cells.

2. Draw a simple diagram of the retina and label all the different types of
retinal neurons. Using arrows, also label the direction of incoming
light and outgoing signals to the optic nerve.

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3. Compare and contrast rods and cones. Describe at least 2 facts about
each.

Rods
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  Only one type, therefore, only shades from dark to light
 Optimal in darker light conditions
 Narrower than cones
 Majority in the periphery
 Many rods connect to one bipolar cell
 About 20 times more than comes

Cones
 Three types that respond to different light frequencies resulting
in colour vision
 Optimal in brighter light conditions
 Wider than rods
 Majority in the fovea region (central vision)
 One to one connection with bipolar cells

4. Explain the difference between On-centre and Off-centre bipolar cells.

Light on the cone cell results in Hyperpolarization and less glutamate is

released
- Glutamate inhibits the ON bipolar cells: Less glutamate results in
depolarization
- Glutamate excites the OFF bipolar cells: Less glutamate results in
hyperpolarization

Dark on the cone cell results in depolarization and more glutamate is

released
- Glutamate inhibits the ON bipolar cells: more glutamate results in
hyperpolarization
- Glutamate excites the OFF bipolar cells: more glutamate results in
depolarization

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PART 2
For Part 2 of the lab, you will need to go to eyewire.org and set up a free

account. Eyewire is an interactive game in which you help map the 3D

structure of neurons in the mouse retina and contribute to crowd-
sourced scientific discovery.
For step-by-step video instructions on how to get set up and play
Eyewire, go here. For clear instructions on how to map a neuron, go
here.

Once you have an account and are logged in, you should complete the
self-paced tutorial and practice exercises and answer the associated
questions below. After that, feel free to continue to compete to see how
good you can get at mapping retinal circuits!

1. What type of retinal neuron(s) did you map?

Synapses and dendrites.

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2. Include 3 different screenshots of neurons that you helped to map.

To access screenshots within

Eyewire, once you finish
mapping a particular cube,
click on the “?” button at the
lower right corner of the
window.

Then click on the “3D” button to generate a screenshot of 3D

reconstruction. It should look something
like this:

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3. Read this brief Eyewire webpage on the science of mapping neuron
connections. Briefly explain how Eyewire uses Artificial Intelligence
(AI) to help reconstruct neurons and their connections?

A special type of neural network is trained to detect and label image

features such as dark smudges as synapses. Once trained, the network
can rapidly and automatically identify relevant structural features of
neurons such as synapses and dendrites.