Ex vivo functional evaluation of synaptic transmission from rods to rod bipolar cells in mice

Abstract

Mice have been widely used as a model organism to study mechanisms of phototransduction and synaptic transmission in the retina. Genetic manipulations and electrophysiological techniques for analysis of photoreceptor and rod bipolar cell function in mice are uniquely advanced. Here, we describe a set of biochemical and electrophysiological techniques for evaluation of synaptic transmission at the rod–rod bipolar cell synapse, which represents the first and key step in the processing of dim-light visual information.