Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42002760›Full record

ReviewEye and vision (London, England)2026

From pineal photoreception to optogenetics: functional colour opponency based on a pineal bistable opsin.

Seiji Wada, Emi Kawano-Yamashita, Mitsumasa Koyanagi, Akihisa Terakita

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Eye and vision (London, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Seiji WadaDepartment of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka, 558-8585, Japan.
Emi Kawano-YamashitaDepartment of Chemistry, Biology, and Environmental Science, Faculty of Science, Nara Women's University, Nara, 630-8506, Japan.
Mitsumasa KoyanagiDepartment of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka, 558-8585, Japan. koyanagi@omu.ac.jp.
Akihisa TerakitaDepartment of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka, 558-8585, Japan. terakita@omu.ac.jp.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8379-8913

Funding

JSPS KAKENHI JP15H05777JSPS KAKENHI JP16K14778JSPS KAKENHI JP18H02482JSPS KAKENHI JP18K14751JSPS KAKENHI JP20K15844JSPS KAKENHI JP22H02663JSPS KAKENHI JP22K06321JSPS KAKENHI JP23H02516JST CREST JPMJCR1753JST PRESTO JPMJPR13A2
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Most animals sense light through opsins, which are photosensitive G protein-coupled receptors that utilize light information to regulate various physiological functions. In vertebrates, a representative example of such functions is vision, which is based on photoreception by visual opsins expressed in rod and cone photoreceptor cells of the retina. Accumulating photobiological evidence has gradually revealed the significance of the molecular properties of these opsins, as well as those of signal transduction-related molecules such as transducin, rhodopsin kinases, and arrestins, and their collective contribution to the functional characteristics of retinal photoreceptor cells. Furthermore, electrophysiological studies of animal photoreception have demonstrated that pineal-related organs in many vertebrates exhibit photosensitivity. Consequently, these organs are referred to as the "third eye," in addition to the bilateral eyes. Light responses in pineal-related organs have been electrophysiologically described across various vertebrates, from lampreys to birds. In particular, species ranging from lampreys to lizards commonly exhibit two characteristic types of responses: "achromatic" and "chromatic." Since the 1990s, genome projects have identified numerous opsin genes in diverse animal species and revealed their remarkable diversity. This has led to rapid advances in the study of "non-visual" opsins and their associated physiological functions. Along with these developments, the opsin repertoire in pineal-related organs has been shown to differ from that in the eyes. In this article, we review electrophysiological evidence of photosensitivity in pineal-related organs and describe the molecular basis underlying this sensitivity. Furthermore, we discuss the role of the pineal-specific opsin parapinopsin, which possesses molecular properties distinct from those of visual opsins, in photoreceptor cells, as well as examples of its application in optogenetics. Overall, this review highlights the molecular and physiological significance of pineal opsins and emphasises their emerging potential in optogenetic applications.

Indexed as

Bistable natureColour opponencyOpsinOptogeneticsPineal organ

Identifiers

PMID42002760
PMCPMC13094114

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Registered trials

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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.