Research

Group Kretz

The visual system of the tree shrew
and the chick


Project description
Processing of visual information is crucial for creatures with a highly developped visual system. The goal of our research is to elucidate the morphological and physiological basis of vision. We study the developing and mature structures such as the retina, the optic nerve, chiasm and tract, the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus, the optic tectum, and the primary visual cortex. Our laboratory animals are the tree shrew Tupaia belangeri, the closest relative to the primates, and the chick. We investigate the structural and physiological organization of the visual system using a broad range of methods such as light and electron microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy, localization of tracer substances, immunoreactivity of early genes, immunocytochemical visualization of neurotransmitter receptors (in collaboration), single cell electrophysiological studies in anaesthetized animals, morphometry and 3-D reconstructions of the whole brain and/or specific brain structures, biostatistics, and optical imaging of intrinsic signals (in collaboration).