Ganglion cells in an isolated wholemount preparation of the
rat retina were labeled using the “DiOlistic” labeling
method (Gan et al., 2000) and were classified according to their
morphological properties. Tungsten particles coated with a
lipophilic dye (DiI) were propelled into the wholemount retina
using a gene gun. When a dye-coated particle contacted the cell
membrane, the entire cell was labeled. The ganglion cells were
classified into four types based on their soma size,
dendritic-field size, branching pattern, and level of
stratification. Broadly monostratified cells were classified
into three types: RGA cells (large soma, large dendritic
field); RGB cells (small- to medium-sized soma, small-
to medium-sized dendritic field); and RGC cells (small-
to medium-sized soma, medium-to-large dendritic field).
Bistratified cells were classified as RGD. Several
subtypes were identified within each ganglion cell group. A
number of new subtypes were discovered and added into the existing
catalog, among them were two types of bistratified cells. This
study therefore represents the most complete morphological
classification of rat retinal ganglion cells available to date.