title: Biocytin wide-field bipolar cells in rabbit retina selectively contact blue cones.
abstract: The biocytin wide-field bipolar cell in rabbit retina has a broad axonal arbor in layer 5 of the inner plexiform layer and a wide dendritic arbor that does not contact all cones in its dendritic field. The purpose of our study was to identify the types of cones that this cell contacts. We identified the bipolar cells by selective uptake of biocytin, labeled the cones with peanut agglutinin, and then used antibodies against blue cone opsin and red-green cone opsin to identify the individual cone types. The biocytin-labeled cells selectively contacted cones whose outer segments stained for blue cone opsin and avoided cones that did not. We conclude that the biocytin wide-field bipolar cell is an ON blue cone bipolar cell in the rabbit retina and is homologous to the blue cone bipolar cells that have been previously described in primate, mouse, and ground squirrel retinas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, York College of the City University of New York and the CUNY Graduate Center, Jamaica, New York 11451, USA. macneil@york.cuny.edu
authors.forename: Margaret A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: MacNeil
authors.forename: Paulette A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Gaul
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002450:Cell Communication; D003118:Color Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D003712:Dendrites; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008239:Lysine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D017729:Presynaptic Terminals; D011817:Rabbits / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D051245:Retinal Bipolar Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017949:Retinal Cone Photoreceptor Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017299:Rod Opsins / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D017299:Rod Opsins; C095855:long-wavelength opsin; C095854:middle-wavelength opsin; C095853:short-wavelength opsin; C013411:biocytin; D008239:Lysine