Abstract
The S-cone system is closely linked to the perception of blue/yellow. The trichromatic system of Old-World monkeys and humans has relatively few S-cones in the fovea. In this study, we investigated the distribution of putative S-cone afferents in macaques primary visual cortex (V1) which form a characteristic honeycomb arrangement in layer 4A. It was hypothesized that if there were a low number of S-cone opponent projecting neurons in central vision then this would be seen as a reduction in afferents in foveal layer 4A. Recent studies have shown that the vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGlut2) is a marker for thalamic afferent terminals in cortex. The distribution of VGlut2-immunoreactive (-ir) terminals was studied in the foveal and perifoveal representation of V1. It was found that there was a substantial reduction in the terminal density in the foveal representation: the density was 5–6 times lower in the foveal V1 than in regions representing perifoveal eccentricities of 1°–2° and beyond. These findings may provide the cortical substrate of foveal tritanopia, the reduced blue perceptual ability for small fields in the center of gaze.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 2783-2796 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | Brain Structure and Function |
Volume | 220 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 28 2015 |
Keywords
- Macaque
- S-cones
- Thalamic afferents
- Vesicular glutamate transporter
- Visual cortex
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Anatomy
- General Neuroscience
- Histology