Kitten ganglion cells: dendritic field size at 3 weeks of age and correlation with receptive field size.

A Golgi study of beta (brisk-X type) ganglion cells has been done to compare ganglion cells in the retina of 3-week-old and adult cats. An anatomical basis for the large receptive field centers found in the immature kitten retina was sought. Kitten beta-type ganglion cells have significantly smaller dendritic spreads than adult beta cells; the dendrites of the kitten cells must still grow to reach their final adult size. Therefore a synaptic basis for the large receptive field size of the immature cells is suggested.