Title
Absorption of the eye lens and macular pigment derived from the reflectance of cone photoreceptors
Author
Zagers, N.P.A.
van Norren, D.
Publication year
2004
Abstract
We measured the amplitude of the directional component of the bleached fundus reflectance, the so-called optical Stiles-Crawford effect, as a function of wavelength. The directional reflectance originates from within the outer segments of the photoreceptors. Thus only two anterior absorbers are of importance: Macular pigment and the crystalline lens. Analysis of spectra obtained in pseudophakes established that the cone photoreceptors act as spectrally neutral reflectors. The reflectance spectra, expressed in density units, resembled the macular pigment density spectrum. Studying age effects in the lens of normal subjects resulted in a description of the optical density of the lens in terms of a "young" and an "aged" template. The young template represents the pigment O-β-glucoside of 3-hydroxykynurenine, which dominates the light absorption in young eyes and decreases with age. The aged template represents the pigments accumulating in the lens with age. The total optical density increased with age, but it was lower in the wavelength region 500-650 nm than was previously assumed on the basis of psychophysical studies. Analysis of the spectra also provided precise individual estimates of the optical density of macular pigment. Finally, we observed a decrease in the photoreceptor reflectivity with age, possibly reflecting a degradation of the photoreceptors. © 2004 Optical Society of America.
Subject
Density (optical)
Error analysis
Least squares approximations
Light absorption
Mathematical models
Spectrum analysis
Statistical methods
Cone photoreceptors
Optical Stiles-Crawford effect
Light reflection
biological marker
visual pigment
computer assisted diagnosis
lens capsule
pathophysiology
photoreceptor
pseudophakia
reproducibility
retina cone
retina macula lutea
sensitivity and specificity
spectroscopy
validation study
Aging
Algorithms
Biological Markers
Cones (Retina)
Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted
Lens Capsule, Crystalline
Macula Lutea
Photoreceptors
Pseudophakia
Reproducibility of Results
Retinal Pigments
Sensitivity and Specificity
Spectrum Analysis
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DOI
https://doi.org/10.1364/josaa.21.002257
TNO identifier
238244
ISSN
1084-7529
Source
Journal of the Optical Society of America A: Optics and Image Science, and Vision, 21 (12), 2257-2268
Document type
article