The retina of the eye contains may classes of nerve cells besides just the photoreceptors. These cells participate in networks that utilize a variety of neurotransmitter compounds for communication and modulation of the cellular responses. An important transmitter is dopamine, and goldfish provide a retina where one class of cells produces dopamine. Other important neuroactive compounds are the peptides, which often in other networks are modulators of neural activity. This project uses biochemistry, pharmacology, and microscopic anatomy on the goldfish retina as a model to examine the circuits formed by the cells utilizing these compounds. The goldfish retina has provided extensive data on the presence of these compounds, but their functions are largely unknown; this study will clarify their functional role in transmission and modulation of signals in the visual pathway. Because of the widespread occurrence of these compounds elsewhere in the brain, this work on the goldfish retina not only provides a useful model system for increasing our understanding of visual processing, but also will have impact on neuroscience in general.
