In this presentation, Matteo Rizzi, PhD, shows data obtained with a range of techniques and particularly with Optomotor behavior, which demonstrates the impact that lateral inhibition in the retina has on normal visual function as well as retinal degeneration.
This work has led to developing a gene therapy treatment that could be particularly valuable for conditions with focal photoreceptor loss, such as age-related macular degeneration. He will also compare data obtained in mice with data obtained in human subjects using psychophysical methods.
Learning Objectives:
- Learn how mice possess a high acuity region in their retina
- how lesions in the retina can significantly affect visual acuity, as measured with optomotor behavior
- Modulating lateral inhibition can have positive effects on remaining vision following retinal degeneration
Key Topics Include:
- Lateral inhibition is key to maintain rod-mediated vision in the appropriate operating range
- Mice do possess a high acuity region, which can be used to model aspects of conditions that affect central vision (such as AMD)
- Optomotor behavior can be flexibly used to study these aspects of vision
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Resources
Presenters
Lecturer and Group Leader
Moorfields Eye Hospital, Visual Perception and Repair Laboratory
UCL Institute of Ophthalmology
Matteo Rizzi obtained his PhD at the Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research, UCL, where he applied optogenetics to the study of hippocampal circuits.
Webinar Host
Striatech
Striatech is a young biotech company that spun off from the University of Tübingen, Germany, at the beginning of 2018. The founders – a team of neurobiologists – are all experienced vision researchers and have made it their common goal to make innovative ideas and products from vision and behavioral research accessible to scientists worldwide.
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