Magnetosensory information encoding in the retina of migratory birds (Neu02)

• Subject Area: Experimental and Theoretical Network Neuroscience ; Molecular Biology and Physiology of Neurons and Glial Cells
• Term: since 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 395940726

To achieve a comprehensive understanding of magnetoreception and vertebrate navigation, it is important to study how light-dependent magnetic signals are represented at the level of retinal ganglion cells and how the retina separates magnetic field changes from changes in light-intensity, colour, and polarisation. According to the hypothesis of a light-dependent radical pair mechanism in the eye of migratory birds, magnetosensory information is embedded in the responses of retinal ganglion cells. We are using large-scale multi-electrode arrays to record the activity of large fractions of ganglion cells while exposing the retina to magnetic and visual stimulation. We found strong evidence of magnetosensitive ganglion cells and will build on these results to understand how magnetosensory information is encoded in ganglion cell responses.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1372: Magnetoreception and navigation in vertebrates: from biophysics to brain and behaviour
• Applicant Institution: Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg
• Project Head: Professor Dr. Martin Greschner