Visual and electric spiking responses of seven types of rabbit retinal ganglion cells.

Electric stimulation of the retina via retinal implants is currently the only commercially available method to restore vision in patients suffering from a wide range of outer retinal degenerations. To improve the quality of retinal implants, it is desirable to better understand how different retinal cell classes and types respond to electric stimuli so that more effective stimulation strategies can be developed. Here, we measured the response of seven major types of retinal ganglion cells to electric stimulation. A simple series of light stimuli were used to classify cells into known types. Electric stimulation produced unique responses in almost all ganglion cell types and the electric responses typically matched elements of the corresponding light responses.