Number and distribution of putative cholinergic neurons in the cat retina

Schmidt, Matthias; Wässle, Heinz; Humphrey, M.F.

doi:10.1016/0304-3940(85)90137-5

Cited by 80 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The present study, demonstrating the colocalization of GABA and AcCho in amacrine cells of the rabbit retina, proves a previous speculation (41) that a population of neurons in the GCL may accumulate both cholinergic and GABAergic markers. The colocalization of GABA and AcCho in retinal cells in other species is likely on the basis of the striking overlap of the distribution of ChoAcTase-, GABA-, and GluDCase-ir processes in the IPL and the similarity in the size and appearance of their cell bodies in the INL and GCL (16,(42)(43)(44)(45). Furthermore, the widespread and prominent number of ChoAcTase-, GABA-, and GluDCase-ir cells in the nervous system (46)(47)(48) suggests that AcCho and GABA may be colocalized in other regions of the nervous system.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cholinergic amacrine cells of the rabbit retina contain glutamate decarboxylase and gamma-aminobutyrate immunoreactivity.

Brecha

Johnson

Peichl

et al. 1988

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

221

147

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The transmitters acetylcholine and yaminobutyrate (GABA) play critical roles in the formation of receptive-field properties of retinal ganglion cells. In rabbit retina, cholinergic amacrine and displaced amacrine cells were identified by immunohistochemical staining for the enzyme choline acetyltransferase and by their avid accumulation of the fluorescent dye 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole. Several GABAimmunoreactive and glutamate decarboxylase-immunoreactive cell types, including a prominent population of small, round amacrine and displaced amacrine cells, were also identified. Double-label experiments demonstrated that all amacrine and displaced amacrine cells that prominently accumulate 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole contain GABA and glutamate decarboxylase immunoreactivity. However, not all GABA-immunoreactive cells accumulate this dye. Quantitative analysis of the ganglion cell layer of whole mount preparations of the retina showed that choline acetyltransferase-immunoreactive cells and the majority of GABA-immunoreactive cells have a small, round shape and similar cell density profiles that parallel that of displaced amacrine cells. These studies establish that cholinergic cells are a major subpopulation of GABA-immunoreactive amacrine and displaced amacrine cells. The role these cells have in the formation of ganglion cell receptive-field properties may be parsimoniously explained by an excitatory postsynaptic action mediated by acetylcholine and an inhibitory presynaptic action mediated by GABA.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cholinergic amacrine cells of the rabbit retina contain glutamate decarboxylase and gamma-aminobutyrate immunoreactivity.

Brecha

Johnson

Peichl

et al. 1988

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

221

147

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“…This arrangement is to be contrasted with the cholinergic amacrine cells: these cells are also situated in either the GCL or the INL, they have comparable morphologies, and usually have similar soma size distributions. Unlike the dopaminergic amacrine cells, however, these two populations arborize in distinct sublaminae within the IPL where they participate in functionally distinct ON and OFF visual pathways (Masland and Mills, 1979;Schmidt et al, 1985;Pourcho and Osman, 1986;Famiglietti and Tumosa, 1987;Brandon, 1987;Rodieck and Marshak, 1992). In the absence of any data directly addressing the functional contributions of the dopaminergic amacrine cells in the INL and GCL, one cannot be sure that, despite their similar pharmacological and anatomical signatures within the IPL, they are not functionally independent cell types.…”

mentioning

confidence: 89%

Dopaminergic amacrine cells in the inner nuclear layer and ganglion cell layer comprise a single functional retinal mosaic

Eglen

Raven

Tamrazian

et al. 2003

J of Comparative Neurology

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Many types of retinal neuron are distributed in an orderly manner across the surface of the retina. Indeed, the existence of such regularity amongst a population of neurons, termed a retinal mosaic, may be a defining feature of functionally independent types of retinal neuron. We have examined the spatial distribution of dopaminergic amacrine cells in the ferret retina both in the inner nuclear layer (INL) and in the ganglion cell layer (GCL) to determine whether the cells in each layer form an independent retinal mosaic as evidence of whether they should be considered as two separate types. Ferret retinas contain approximately 1,900 dopaminergic amacrine cells, of which 27% are located in the GCL, and the rest in the INL. Based on analysis of their Voronoi domains as well as autocorrelation analysis and tests for complete spatial randomness, we found that the distribution of INL cells was statistically regular, while that of the GCL cells was not. However, by using cross-correlation analysis, these two groups of cells were found to be spatially dependent: an exclusion zone was detected in the cross-correlogram of roughly the same size as that found in the autocorrelograms of both INL and GCL cells. Such a pattern would be expected if dopaminergic amacrine cells in the INL and GCL were members of a single regular population differing only in their somatic depth. By using computer simulations, we tested this hypothesis directly, confirming that a random assignment of 27% from the total population produces cross-correlograms that are indistinguishable from those of the biological mosaics. We conclude, therefore, that the cells in the two layers form a single functional population; those in the GCL appear to be misplaced. Somatic positioning with respect to depth within the retina is not, by itself, a reliable guide for functional classification.

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“…Cholinergic amacrine cells are wide-field neurons that stratify in one of two layers within the inner plexiform layer (IPL). Because of their dendritic extent, these neurons typically exhibit dendritic coverage factors far in excess of the other neurons mentioned above, ranging from 10 to 70 depending on the species (Tauchi & Masland, 1984;Vaney, 1984;Schmidt et al, 1985;Voigt, 1986;Rodieck & Marshak, 1992;Sandmann et al, 1997). How these cells regulate their dendritic extent, as well as their positioning, is unclear, but their density and dendritic field size should permit ample opportunity for interactions with neighboring cells during development.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cellular positioning and dendritic field size of cholinergic amacrine cells are impervious to early ablation of neighboring cells in the mouse retina

et al. 2004

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We have examined the role of neighbor relationships between cholinergic amacrine cells upon their positioning and dendritic field size by producing partial ablations of this population of cells during early development. We first determined the effectiveness of l-glutamate as an excitotoxin for ablating cholinergic amacrine cells in the developing mouse retina. Subcutaneous injections (4 mg0g) made on P-3 and thereafter were found to produce a near-complete elimination, while injections at P-2 were ineffective. Lower doses on P-3 produced only partial reductions, and were subsequently used to examine the effect of partial ablation upon mosaic organization and dendritic growth of the remaining cells. Four different Voronoi-based measures of mosaic geometry were examined in l-glutamate-treated and normal (saline-treated) retinas. Partial depletions of around 40% produced cholinergic mosaics that, when scaled for density, approximated the mosaic geometry of the normal retina. Separate comparisons simulating a 40% random deletion of the normal retina produced mosaics that were no different from those experimentally depleted retinas. Consequently, no evidence was found for positional regulation in the absence of normal neighbor relationships. Single cells in the ganglion cell layer were intracellularly filled with Lucifer Yellow to examine the morphology and dendritic field extent following partial ablation of the cholinergic amacrine cells. No discernable effect was found on their starburst morphology, and total dendritic field area, number of primary dendrites, and branch frequency were not significantly different. Cholinergic amacrine cells normally increase their dendritic field area after P-3 in excess of retinal expansion; despite this, the present results show that this growth is not controlled by the density of neighboring processes.

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Number and distribution of putative cholinergic neurons in the cat retina

Cited by 80 publications

References 11 publications

Cholinergic amacrine cells of the rabbit retina contain glutamate decarboxylase and gamma-aminobutyrate immunoreactivity.

Cholinergic amacrine cells of the rabbit retina contain glutamate decarboxylase and gamma-aminobutyrate immunoreactivity.

Dopaminergic amacrine cells in the inner nuclear layer and ganglion cell layer comprise a single functional retinal mosaic

Cellular positioning and dendritic field size of cholinergic amacrine cells are impervious to early ablation of neighboring cells in the mouse retina

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