Dendritic tree structure and dendritic hypertrophy during growth of the crucian carp eye.

The areas of the ganglion cell dendritic trees were determined in Golgi-stained, flatmounted retinas of crucian carp ranging in age from one summer to 7 years. The dendritic trees of small ganglion cells (S-GC), forming the majority of retinal ganglion cells, add new branches as the retina grows. The increase in dendritic tree area exactly compensates for the decrease in ganglion cell density during growth of the eye so that the number of dendritic trees covering a particular point remains constant. While the retinal diameter increases by a factor of 2.5, the mean diameter of the S-GC dendritic fields increases by a factor of 1.9 and the visual angle covered by one S-GC dendritic tree decreases from 1.6 degrees to 1.2 degrees. The number of branching points of the S-GC dendrites is significantly higher in the ventral retina than in the dorsal. In general the dendrites of the S-GCs tend to grow towards the retinal margin. Dendritic orientation patterns of large (LGC) and large displaced (LDGC) ganglion cells closely resemble those of the amacrines, being oriented parallel to the retinal margin over a wide peripheral region, while the SGCs rapidly lose their tangential orientation. The dendrites of the SGCs are restricted mainly to the proximal sublayer of the inner plexiform layer, suggesting they are ON-cells, while LGC, LDGC, and amacrine cell dendrites are distributed in depth bimodally. As determined from Golgi-stained sections the crucian carp has the same basic IPL organization as the carp and cat.