Discrete potential waves in the photoreceptors of a gastropod mollusc, Hermissenda crassicornis.

Intracellular recording of dark adapted photoreceptors of Hermissenda crassicornis (Opisthobranchia, Gastropoda, Mollusca) revealed the occurrence of depolarizing waves even after blockade of synaptic transmission and postsynaptic potentials by application of low Ca2+ and high Mg2+ solution. Dim illumination increased the frequency of depolarizing waves. These observations show that Hermissenda photoreceptors have discrete waves which have been demonstrated mainly in arthropod photoreceptors. An histogram of intervals between successive discrete waves under continuous dim illumination was exponential, which is characteristic of a Poisson process. Frequency of discrete waves increased linearly depending on numbers of incident photons to the eye. Comparison of probabilities of eliciting a response to brief dim flashes of various intensities to theoretical Poisson sum curves, together with statistical analysis, indicate that the absorption of single photon is sufficient to evoke a discrete wave.