2025 Seed Grant
Anna L. Vlasits, Ph.D.
University of Illinois, Chicago
The visual system is constantly collecting information about the world around us. One part of the eye, called the retina, detects light from the world to send to the brain. The retina is multiple layers of neurons at the back of the eye. The neurons detect things like movement, color, contrast, and edges, and then send that information to the brain for sight. One thing that we do not know is whether each kind of information is sent to the brain separately or whether different kinds of information are bundled together in groups to help us see. When information is combined, or “multiplexed,” it can be shared with the brain more efficiently and make things easier to see. For example, color can help certain objects stand out, making it easier to notice moving objects. This project is trying to find out if the neurons in the retina combine color and motion information together. We will study this in mice because their eyes are set up to sense color in a unique way: mice have color vision in one half of the retina and no color vision in the other half. We will look at whether neurons in the mouse retina react differently to movement depending on the color of the moving object and background. Then we will test if mice are better at noticing moving objects—like prey and predators—in certain colors. This study will help us learn how the eye handles different kinds of information at the same time, and how that helps animals survive. It may also help us understand how human vision works, especially the difference between our central vision and peripheral vision. Understanding how the retina works will help us to design diagnostic tests, therapies, and prosthetics to help people with blinding diseases.
