TY - JOUR
T1 - Retinal Ganglion Cell Distribution and Spatial Resolving Power in Deep-Sea Lanternfishes (Myctophidae)
AU - De Busserolles, Fanny
AU - Marshall, N. Justin
AU - Collin, Shaun P.
N1 - KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01
Acknowledgements: We wish to thank Dr. Mike Hall (AIMS) and the masters and crews of the RV Cape Ferguson, and Prof. Hans-Joachim Wagner (University of Tubingen) and the masters and crews of the FS Sonne for sea time opportunities. We thank Prof. Lynnath Beckley (Murdoch University), Dr. Brigitte Guillaumont (Ifremer) and Dr. Adrian Flynn (The University of Queensland) for providing additional samples. We gratefully acknowledge John Paxton (Australian Museum) for providing most of the fish identification, and Adrian Flynn, Caroline Kerr and Alan Goldizen for their help during field trips. We are indebted to Joao Paolo Coimbra for his assistance with retinal wholemount preparation, immunohistochemistry and stereology analyses and to Eduardo Garza-Gisholt for his help in using his R scripts for the creation of the topographic maps. This work was funded by the Australian Research Council (Discovery Grant to S.C., the Linkage Grant to N.J.M. and S.P.C.) and the West Australian State Government (S.P.C.). F.d.B. was supported by a Scholarship for International Research Fees and a University International Stipend at The University of Western Australia.
PY - 2014/11/12
Y1 - 2014/11/12
N2 - Topographic analyses of retinal ganglion cell density are very useful in providing information about the visual ecology of a species by identifying areas of acute vision within the visual field (i.e. areas of high cell density). In this study, we investigated the neural cell distribution in the ganglion cell layer of a range of lanternfish species belonging to 10 genera. Analyses were performed on wholemounted retinas using stereology. Topographic maps were constructed of the distribution of all neurons and both ganglion and amacrine cell populations in 5 different species from Nissl-stained retinas using cytological criteria. Amacrine cell distribution was also examined immunohistochemically in 2 of the 5 species using anti-parvalbumin antibody. The distributions of both the total neuron and the amacrine cell populations were aligned in all of the species examined, showing a general increase in cell density toward the retinal periphery. However, when the ganglion cell population was topographically isolated from the amacrine cell population, which comprised up to 80% of the total neurons within the ganglion cell layer, a different distribution was revealed. Topographic maps of the true ganglion cell distribution in 18 species of lanternfishes revealed well-defined specializations in different regions of the retina. Different species possessed distinct areas of high ganglion cell density with respect to both peak density and the location and/or shape of the specialized acute zone (i.e. elongated areae ventro-temporales, areae temporales and large areae centrales). The spatial resolving power was calculated to be relatively low (varying from 1.6 to 4.4 cycles per degree), indicating that myctophids may constitute one of the less visually acute groups of deep-sea teleosts. The diversity in retinal specializations and spatial resolving power within the family is assessed in terms of possible ecological functions and evolutionary history.
AB - Topographic analyses of retinal ganglion cell density are very useful in providing information about the visual ecology of a species by identifying areas of acute vision within the visual field (i.e. areas of high cell density). In this study, we investigated the neural cell distribution in the ganglion cell layer of a range of lanternfish species belonging to 10 genera. Analyses were performed on wholemounted retinas using stereology. Topographic maps were constructed of the distribution of all neurons and both ganglion and amacrine cell populations in 5 different species from Nissl-stained retinas using cytological criteria. Amacrine cell distribution was also examined immunohistochemically in 2 of the 5 species using anti-parvalbumin antibody. The distributions of both the total neuron and the amacrine cell populations were aligned in all of the species examined, showing a general increase in cell density toward the retinal periphery. However, when the ganglion cell population was topographically isolated from the amacrine cell population, which comprised up to 80% of the total neurons within the ganglion cell layer, a different distribution was revealed. Topographic maps of the true ganglion cell distribution in 18 species of lanternfishes revealed well-defined specializations in different regions of the retina. Different species possessed distinct areas of high ganglion cell density with respect to both peak density and the location and/or shape of the specialized acute zone (i.e. elongated areae ventro-temporales, areae temporales and large areae centrales). The spatial resolving power was calculated to be relatively low (varying from 1.6 to 4.4 cycles per degree), indicating that myctophids may constitute one of the less visually acute groups of deep-sea teleosts. The diversity in retinal specializations and spatial resolving power within the family is assessed in terms of possible ecological functions and evolutionary history.
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10754/594273
UR - https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/365960
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84919862870&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1159/000365960
DO - 10.1159/000365960
M3 - Article
C2 - 25401391
SN - 1421-9743
VL - 84
SP - 262
EP - 276
JO - Brain, Behavior and Evolution
JF - Brain, Behavior and Evolution
IS - 4
ER -