Retinal Areas of Color Perception by Rods and Long-Wave Cones and Selective Isomerization of Rhodopsin Photoproducts

摘要

This report consists of two section examining two properties of the visual system. The first determined over what areas of the central retina the rods and long-wave cones can interact to produce color sensations. The experiments consisted of selectively bleaching areas of the retina with brilliant flashes of light. These flashes caused a particular area of the retina to be flash blinded yet the subject could still see with the unbleached portion. The rods and long-wave cones can interact to produce color sensations from 5 degrees to 20 degrees radius for most observers tested. The second investigated the hypothesis that selective irradiation of the photoproducts of rhodopsin might reduce the afterimage generated by the bleaching of rhodopsin. A xenon flash device was built that was capable of delivering large quantities of energy in 300 microseconds. This device was used to see whether the addition of energy could increase the rate of fading of an afterimage. The addition of either long-wave or short-wave visable energy did not increase the rate of fading of the afterimage under the described conditions. (Author)