Receptive fields have a center and concentric surround that stimulate the firing of action potentials in opposition to one another.Given this arrangement, the response and pattern of firing would you expect from an off-center retinal ganglion cell when a spot of light hits the center of its receptive field is that the ganglion cell would
A) be excited and would decrease its firing rate.
B) be inhibited and would increase its firing rate.
C) increase its firing rate, even though the photoreceptors would be inhibited.
D) be excited and its firing rate would increase.
E) be inhibited, and its firing rate would decrease.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

An off-center retinal ganglion cell has a center-surround receptive field where the center is inhibited and the surround is excited. When a spot of light hits the center of its receptive field, the photoreceptors in the center are inhibited, leading to the inhibition of the ganglion cell. Therefore, the ganglion cell would be inhibited and its firing rate would decrease. This is in opposition to the firing pattern when the spot of light hits the periphery of the receptive field, which would lead to excitation of the ganglion cell and an increase in firing rate.

Receptive Fields Have a Center and Concentric Surround That Stimulate