ArticlePloS one2018
Daily visual stimulation in the critical period enhances multiple aspects of vision through BDNF-mediated pathways in the mouse retina.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- Model of naturally occurring refractive error (NORE) in mice.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Learning as the unifying mechanism of psychedelic action.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2026Review
- Non-aversive Animal Restraint Enabling Recording of Optomotor Reflex in Ground Squirrels.Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE · 2025Article
- Spontaneous running wheel exercise during pregnancy prevents later neonatal-anoxia-induced somatic and neurodevelopmental alterations.IBRO neuroscience reports · 2024Article
- Olfactory Critical Periods: How Odor Exposure Shapes the Developing Brain in Mice and Flies.Biology · 2024Review
- High-Contrast Stimulation Potentiates the Neurotrophic Properties of Müller Cells and Suppresses Their Pro-Inflammatory Phenotype.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- Review
- Light Environment Influences Developmental Programming of the Metabolic and Visual Systems in Mice.Investigative ophthalmology & visual science · 2021Article
- Effect of amblyopia treatment on macular microvasculature in children with anisometropic amblyopia using optical coherence tomographic angiography.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Acupuncture for pediatric bilateral amblyopia.Integrative medicine research · 2020Article
- Behavioral Assessment of Visual Function via Optomotor Response and Cognitive Function via Y-Maze in Diabetic Rats.Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE · 2020Article
- MEF2C and HDAC5 regulateNeuronal signaling · 2020Article
- TrkB Activation during a Critical Period Mimics the Protective Effects of Early Visual Experience on Perception and the Stability of Receptive Fields in Adult Superior Colliculus.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2019Article
- Male offspring born to mildly ZIKV-infected mice are at risk of developing neurocognitive disorders in adulthood.Nature microbiology · 2018Article
- Neuroprotective strategies for retinal disease.Progress in retinal and eye research · 2018Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Visual experience during the critical period modulates visual development such that deprivation causes visual impairments while stimulation induces enhancements. This study aimed to determine whether visual stimulation in the form of daily optomotor response (OMR) testing during the mouse critical period (1) improves aspects of visual function, (2) involves retinal mechanisms and (3) is mediated by brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and dopamine (DA) signaling pathways. We tested spatial frequency thresholds in C57BL/6J mice daily from postnatal days 16 to 23 (P16 to P23) using OMR testing. Daily OMR-treated mice were compared to littermate controls that were placed in the OMR chamber without moving gratings. Contrast sensitivity thresholds, electroretinograms (ERGs), visual evoked potentials, and pattern ERGs were acquired at P21. To determine the role of BDNF signaling, a TrkB receptor antagonist (ANA-12) was systemically injected 2 hours prior to OMR testing in another cohort of mice. BDNF immunohistochemistry was performed on retina and brain sections. Retinal DA levels were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography. Daily OMR testing enhanced spatial frequency thresholds and contrast sensitivity compared to controls. OMR-treated mice also had improved rod-driven ERG oscillatory potential response times, greater BDNF immunoreactivity in the retinal ganglion cell layer, and increased retinal DA content compared to controls. VEPs and pattern ERGs were unchanged. Systemic delivery of ANA-12 attenuated OMR-induced visual enhancements. Daily OMR testing during the critical period leads to general visual function improvements accompanied by increased DA and BDNF in the retina, with this process being requisitely mediated by TrkB activation. These results suggest that novel combination therapies involving visual stimulation and using both behavioral and molecular approaches may benefit degenerative retinal diseases or amblyopia.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.