Go with the flow -- but only in one direction.
Retinotopic maps form prior to the development of vision, when retinal waves serve as a robust source of correlated neural activity. Two recent studies provide critical insights into the features of retinal waves that may be instructive for the formation of retinotopic maps.
Anishchenko
Anastacia
A
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and the Helen Wills Neurosciences Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94705, USA.
Feller
Marla B
MB
D000818:Animals; D001931:Brain Mapping; D008959:Models, Neurological; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000502:physiology; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000502:physiology*