Effects of Early Unilateral Blur on the Macaque's Visual System. II
The Journal of Neuroscience, May 1987, 7(5): 1327-l 339 Effects of Early Unilateral Blur on the Macaque’s Visual System. II. Anatomical Observations Anita E. Hendrickson,lB2 J. Anthony Movshon, 4 Howard M. Eggers,5 Martin S. Gizzi,4,a Ronald G. Boothe,3,b and Lynne Kiorpes3zc Departments of ‘Biological Structure, 20phthalmology, and 3Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195; 4Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York 10003; and 5Harkness Eye Institute, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, New York 10036 We studied the effects of early unilateral blur on the ana- natal blur preferentially affects the parvocellular layers of tomical organization of the visual pathways in 8 macaque the LGN and layer 4Cfl of striate cortex, which are the por- monkeys. Blur was induced in one eye, beginning 2-14 d af- tions of the central visual system associated with the pro- ter birth, by 0.5% atropine twice a day. Atropiniration was cessing of information concerning fine spatial detail. These stopped at 6-8 months of age, and the animals were studied anatomical changes are consistent with the high spatial fre- for anatomy 3-24 months later. The retina and all other eye quency loss of vision demonstrated behaviorally and elec- tissues showed normal histology. In the dorsal lateral ge- trophysiologically in the atropine eye-driven visual system niculate nucleus (LGN), cells in parvocellular layers receiv- of these same animals. ing input from the atropine-treated eye were 9-32% smaller and were more lightly stained than those in layers innervated Amblyopia is a lossof visual function that is not due to optical by the untreated eye.
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