The effect of unilateral deprivation on visual centers in rats

✍ Scribed by E. Fifková

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1970
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 525 KB
• Volume: 140
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0021-9967
• DOI: 10.1002/cne.901400404

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The effect of unilateral visual deprivation by lid suture on visual centers was studied in rats. In animals with previous visual experience this caused a decrease in volume of the dorsal nucleus of the lateral geniculate body and nucleus lateralis pars posterior of 10% and 8% respectively, a decrease in the thickness of layers II to IV of the visual cortex of 8% and an increase in cell density in cortical layers III and IV of 12% and 10% respectively. These changes were of the same magnitude as in rats which had no previous visual experience. Quantitative changes in deprived visual centers were detectable ten days after lid suture; the process reached its maximum after 30 days. The number of spines on the apical dendrites of pyramidal cells of layer V, observed in layer IV, was reduced by 17% after ten days of visual deprivation and by 28% after 30 days. Reopening of the eye for 10 and 30 days following two months of lid closure caused no recovery in the deprived visual centers.