The Regeneration and Renewal of Visual Pigment in Vertebrates
The Regeneration and Renewal of Visual Pigment in Vertebrates
复制标题
脊椎动物视觉色素的再生和更新
DOI：
10.1007/978-3-642-65066-6_10
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发表时间：
1972
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
C. Baumann
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
C. Baumann
In the very first report on a visual pigment, Boll (1876) wrote: “Prolonged action of direct sunlight completely decolourizes the retina. In darkness, the intense purple colour is soon restored.”1 As is now known, the colour of the retina Boll referred to is due to a photolabile pigment, rhodopsin, situated in the rods. The action of light upon rhodopsin (as upon all other visual pigments) is to change its molecular configuration. Because of this, the pigment molecule becomes unstable and breaks down sequentially into a number of photoproducts. In the frog retina, which Boll worked with, the final breakdown products are retinol and opsin, a protein of unknown structure. Both these substances are colourless and consequently the retina loses its colour as their formation proceeds. The process underlying the restoration of colour is called regeneration and is the principal topic of this chapter.
