Abstract
The outer segments of vertebrate rod photoreceptor cells are specialized organelles that function in visual excitation by transducing light into electrical signals. These organelles contain thousands of closely stacked disc membranes, with distinctive protein compositions in their lamellar and rim regions: the lamellae host the visual receptors (opsins), and peripherin/rds (rds, retinal degeneration slow) and a similar transmembrane protein, Rom1, inhabit the rims. The precise structural organization of photoreceptor cells is critical to the visual process; disc flattening maximizes the area available for photoreception and allows efficient renewal of the rod outer segments. Thus, visual processing depends on the correct formation and maintenance of this structure.
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