Abstract
Graded refractive index lenses are inherent to advanced visual systems in animals. By understanding their formation and local optical properties, significant potential for improved ocular healthcare may be realized. We report a novel technique measuring the developing optical power of the eye lens, in a living animal, by exploiting the orthogonal imaging modality of a selective plane illumination microscope (SPIM). We have quantified the maturation of the lenticular refractive index at three different visible wavelengths using a combined imaging and ray tracing approach. We demonstrate that the method can be used with transgenic and vital dye labeling as well as with both fixed and living animals. Using a key eye lens morphogen and its inhibitor, we have measured their effects both on lens size and on refractive index. Our technique provides insights into the mechanisms involved in the development of this natural graded index micro-lens and its associated optical properties.
Highlights
The zebrafish eye lens is a biological micro-lens that starts to form 16 hours post fertilization [1] via a complex physical, chemical and biological process
Graded refractive index lenses are inherent to advanced visual systems in animals
We report a novel technique measuring the developing optical power of the eye lens, in a living animal, by exploiting the orthogonal imaging modality of a selective plane illumination microscope (SPIM)
Summary
The zebrafish eye lens is a biological micro-lens that starts to form 16 hours post fertilization (hpf) [1] via a complex physical, chemical and biological process. As the lens grows its refractive power develops, focusing light onto the photoreceptor layer of the retina from about 3 days post fertilization (dpf) [2], leading to a visual (opto-kinetic) response by 4 dpf [3]. In order to achieve these optical properties, the radius of curvature must be matched by the appropriate refractive index relative to the humours of the anterior and posterior chambers for light to be focused onto the retina. As the lens grows during development, so its radius of curvature increases and this would lower its refractive power. The refractive index (RI) increases during lens development as a result of the expression of lens crystallins [5, 6]. FGF-signaling determines the optical properties of the lens by regulating crystallin expression [11]
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