In-Vivo Characterization of S-cone Topography Across the Human Macula

Abstract

Patterns of S-cone topography, the arrangement of short-wavelength sensitive photoreceptors in the retina, have long fascinated vision scientists. Many aspects of human S-cone topography are not well understood due to paucity of data. In this body of work, we examined S-cone topography from ROIs spanning the central ~1-12deg of the retina in two subjects. This comprises the largest dataset of human S-cone topography period, let alone within individuals. We developed novel approaches to characterize the semi-regular topography of S-cones, which led to the discovery of a novel pattern: that they are unlikely to be found within two concentric rings of cones surrounding S-cones. In addition, we found that S-cones are likely to have significantly far neighbors in the central retina (< 3 deg), and likely to have significantly near neighbors more peripherally. In total, this work provides a number of new analytic and simulation methods that show promise for the study of cone topography, and reveals robust insights into the patterns underlying human S-cone topography.