Colour Sensitivity, Contrast and Polarity of the Retinal Elements

Abstract

SINCE the time of Purkinje and Ritter, it has been known and often confirmed that a galvanic current passed through the eye elicits a sensation of bluishviolet when the electrode on the bulb is an anode, of greenish-yellow when it is a cathode. Kravkov and Galochkina¹ have recently shown that the anodal pole (on the eye) enhances the sensitivity to short wavelengths and depresses that to long wavelengths, whereas the cathodal pole has opposite effects. In view of the results on different polarity in retinal elements isolated by the micro-electrode technique, reported above², it was thought to be of interest to combine polarization of the retina with measurements of the colour sensitivity of such elements. The micro-electrode technique and the cat's eye were used, as above². The strength of the current was 1.0 mA.