It is remarkable how well the oculomotor system is able to maintain precise alignment of the two eyes. If all eye movements were between distant targets and required equal movements in the two eyes the task would be relatively simple. However, naturally occurring eye movements are very often between targets that differ in viewing distance and eccentricity and so require a disconjugate component. Good binocular alignment may also be affected by development, disease, and injury. The proposed experiments examine the processes by which subsystems such as vergence, smooth pursuit, and saccades interact to produce the requisite changes in binocular alignment. For example, despite the claims of some investigators, it is still not certain whether all horizontal vergence movements are the result of control by the horizontal vergence system or if there is some capacity for disconjugate movements by the pursuit or saccade systems. Similarly, it is not clear whether the so-called disconjugate adaptation of saccades is really disconjugate adaptation of the saccadic pulse or step or is simply the addition of vergence movements onto conjugate saccades. We will address some common problems with the interpretation of prior experimentation in this area. The proposed experiments fall into three general categories: The first is a series of experiments that represents a continuation of our adaptation experiments on vertical vergence and examines the neural control of disconjugate smooth pursuit. The second will examine more closely the binocular control of saccades and the interaction of saccades with horizontal and vertical vergence movements. The third continues our exploration of the binocular control of eye movements during head tilt and the relationship between ocular counterroll and vertical skew. The results of these experiments should provide definitive answers to several longstanding questions concerning the coordination of binocular control.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Eye Institute (NEI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01EY003532-25
Application #
6998430
Study Section
Visual Sciences B Study Section (VISB)
Program Officer
Hunter, Chyren
Project Start
1981-09-30
Project End
2007-11-30
Budget Start
2005-12-01
Budget End
2006-11-30
Support Year
25
Fiscal Year
2006
Total Cost
$329,721
Indirect Cost
Name
University of California Berkeley
Department
Type
Schools of Optometry/Ophthalmol
DUNS #
124726725
City
Berkeley
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
94704
Keay, Lisa; Edwards, Katie; Stapleton, Fiona (2009) Signs, symptoms, and comorbidities in contact lens-related microbial keratitis. Optom Vis Sci 86:803-9
Schor, Clifton M (2009) Charles F. Prentice award lecture 2008: surgical correction of presbyopia with intraocular lenses designed to accommodate. Optom Vis Sci 86:E1028-41
Schor, Clifton M (2009) Neuromuscular plasticity and rehabilitation of the ocular near response. Optom Vis Sci 86:E788-802
Schreiber, Kai M; Hillis, James M; Filippini, Heather R et al. (2008) The surface of the empirical horopter. J Vis 8:7.1-20
Nguyen, Dorothy; Vedamurthy, Indu; Schor, Clifton (2008) Cross-coupling between accommodation and convergence is optimized for a broad range of directions and distances of gaze. Vision Res 48:893-903
Hernandez, Teresa D; Levitan, Carmel A; Banks, Martin S et al. (2008) How does saccade adaptation affect visual perception? J Vis 8:3.1-16
Schreiber, Kai M; Schor, Clifton M (2007) A virtual ophthalmotrope illustrating oculomotor coordinate systems and retinal projection geometry. J Vis 7:4.1-14
Bharadwaj, Shrikant R; Hoenig, M Pia; Sivaramakrishnan, Viswanathan C et al. (2007) Variation of binocular-vertical fusion amplitude with convergence. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 48:1592-600
Weiler, Julia A; Maxwell, James S; Schor, Clifton M (2007) Illusory contrast-induced shifts in binocular visual direction bias saccadic eye movements toward the perceived target position. J Vis 7:3.1-18
Schor, Clifton M; Bharadwaj, Shrikant R; Burns, Christopher D (2007) Dynamic performance of accommodating intraocular lenses in a negative feedback control system: a simulation-based study. Comput Biol Med 37:1020-35

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