Skip to main content
PMC home page
The Journal of General Physiology logoLink to The Journal of General Physiology
. 1973 Oct 1;62(4):430–447. doi: 10.1085/jgp.62.4.430

Dark Adaptation and Visual Pigment Regeneration in Human Cones

M Hollins 1, M Alpern 1
PMCID: PMC2226127  PMID: 4755849

Abstract

Foveal threshold elevation and red-green cone pigment regeneration have been studied in the dark after a wide range of bleaches in normal man with a view to probing the limits of the application of the Dowling-Rushton relation: i.e., the direct proportionality between log threshold elevation and fraction of unregenerated pigment. Cone pigment regeneration (and threshold recovery) is much faster after short bleaches than expected from the kinetics of a simple monomolecular reaction. Recovery is faster after a fixed (short) duration bleach the weaker it is. Except for the first 30 s after relatively weak bleaches and the entire recovery after a very brief (<0.001 s) saturating bright flash which bleaches a little more than 50%, the results are accurately fit by the Dowling-Rushton relation over the entire range tested with only one arbitrary constant (the proportionality factor). Theory predicts too low threshold in comparison with what is obtained, for both of these exceptions

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (990.6 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Alpern M., Holland M. G., Oba N. Rhodopsin bleaching signals in essential night blindness. J Physiol. 1972 Sep;225(2):457–476. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1972.sp009949. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Alpern M., Maaseidvaag F., Oba N. The kinetics of cone visual pigments in man. Vision Res. 1971 Jun;11(6):539–549. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(71)90075-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Alpern M. Rhodopsin kinetics in the human eye. J Physiol. 1971 Sep;217(2):447–471. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1971.sp009580. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Alpern M., Rushton W. A., Torii S. The attenuation of rod signals by bleachings. J Physiol. 1970 Apr;207(2):449–461. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1970.sp009072. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Alpern M., Torii S. The luminosity curve of the deuteranomalous fovea. J Gen Physiol. 1968 Nov;52(5):738–749. doi: 10.1085/jgp.52.5.738. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Baumann C. Sehpurpurbleichung und Stäbchenfunktion in der isolierten Froschndtzhaut. 3. Die Dunkeladaptation des skotopischen Systems nach partieller Sehpurpurbleichung. Pflugers Arch Gesamte Physiol Menschen Tiere. 1967;298(1):70–81. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Blakemore C. B., Rushton W. A. The rod increment threshold during dark adaptation in normal and rod monochromat. J Physiol. 1965 Dec;181(3):629–640. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1965.sp007787. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. DOWLING J. E. Chemistry of visual adaptation in the rat. Nature. 1960 Oct 8;188:114–118. doi: 10.1038/188114a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. DOWLING J. E. NEURAL AND PHOTOCHEMICAL MECHANISMS OF VISUAL ADAPTATION IN THE RAT. J Gen Physiol. 1963 Jul;46:1287–1301. doi: 10.1085/jgp.46.6.1287. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Donner K. O., Reuter T. Dark-adaptation processes in the rhodopsin rods of the frog's retina. Vision Res. 1967 Jan;7(1):17–41. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(67)90023-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Dowling J. E., Ripps H. Adaptation in skate photoreceptors. J Gen Physiol. 1972 Dec;60(6):698–719. doi: 10.1085/jgp.60.6.698. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Dowling J. E., Ripps H. Visual adaptation in the retina of the skate. J Gen Physiol. 1970 Oct;56(4):491–520. doi: 10.1085/jgp.56.4.491. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Du Croz J. J., Rushton W. A. The separation of cone mechanisms in dark adaptation. J Physiol. 1966 Mar;183(2):481–496. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1966.sp007878. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Frank R. N. Properties of "neural" adaptation in components of the frog electroretinogram. Vision Res. 1971 Oct;11(10):1113–1123. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(71)90115-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Grabowski S. R., Pinto L. H., Pak W. L. Adaptation in retinal rods of axolotl: intracellular recordings. Science. 1972 Jun 16;176(4040):1240–1243. doi: 10.1126/science.176.4040.1240. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Hood C., Rushton W. A. The Florida retinal densitometer. J Physiol. 1971 Aug;217(1):213–229. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1971.sp009567. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. MOTE F. A., RIOPELLE A. J. The effect of varying the intensity and the duration of preexposure upon foveal dark adaptation in the human eye. J Gen Physiol. 1951 May;34(5):657–674. doi: 10.1085/jgp.34.5.657. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. RUSHTON W. A., BAKER H. D. EFFECT OF A VERY BRIGHT FLASH ON CONE VISION AND CONE PIGMENTS IN MAN. Nature. 1963 Nov 2;200:421–423. doi: 10.1038/200421a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. RUSHTON W. A. CONE PIGMENT KINETICS IN THE PROTANOPE. J Physiol. 1963 Sep;168:374–388. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1963.sp007198. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. RUSHTON W. A. Kinetics of cone pigments measured objectively on the living human fovea. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1959 Nov 12;74(2):291–304. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1958.tb39552.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. RUSHTON W. A. Rhodopsin measurement and dark-adaptation in a subject deficient in cone vision. J Physiol. 1961 Apr;156:193–205. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1961.sp006668. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Rinalducci E. J., Higgins K. E., Cramer J. A. Nonequivalence of backgrounds during photopic dark adaptation. J Opt Soc Am. 1970 Nov;60(11):1518–1524. doi: 10.1364/josa.60.001518. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Rushton W. A., Fulton A. B., Baker H. D. Dark adaptation and the rate of pigment regeneration. Vision Res. 1969 Dec;9(12):1473–1479. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(69)90063-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Rushton W. A., Henry G. H. Bleaching and regeneration of cone pigments in man. Vision Res. 1968 Jun;8(6):617–631. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(68)90040-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Rushton W. A., Powell D. S. The early phase of dark adaptation. Vision Res. 1972 Jun;12(6):1083–1093. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(72)90099-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Rushton W. A., Powell D. S. The rhodopsin content and the visual threshold of human rods. Vision Res. 1972 Jun;12(6):1073–1081. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(72)90098-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Weale R. A. Cone pigment regeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and light deprivation. Vision Res. 1972 Apr;12(4):747–752. doi: 10.1016/0042-6989(72)90168-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of General Physiology are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES