The ganglion cell layer (ganglionic layer) is a layer of the

retina The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which then ...

that consists of

retinal ganglion cell A retinal ganglion cell (RGC) is a type of neuron located near the inner surface (the ganglion cell layer) of the retina of the eye. It receives visual information from photoreceptors via two intermediate neuron types: bipolar cells and reti ...

s and displaced

amacrine cell Amacrine cells are interneurons in the retina. They are named from the Greek roots ''a–'' ("non"), ''makr–'' ("long") and ''in–'' ("fiber"), because of their short neuronal processes. Amacrine cells are inhibitory neurons, and they projec ...

s. The cells are somewhat flask-shaped; the rounded internal surface of each resting on the

stratum opticum The retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) or nerve fiber layer, stratum opticum, is formed by the expansion of the fibers of the optic nerve; it is thickest near the optic disc, gradually diminishing toward the ora serrata. As the nerve fibers pass t ...

, and sending off an

axon An axon (from Greek ἄξων ''áxōn'', axis), or nerve fiber (or nerve fibre: see spelling differences), is a long, slender projection of a nerve cell, or neuron, in vertebrates, that typically conducts electrical impulses known as action ...

which is prolonged into it. From the opposite end numerous dendrites extend into the

inner plexiform layer The inner plexiform layer is an area of the retina that is made up of a dense reticulum of fibrils formed by interlaced dendrites of retinal ganglion cells A retinal ganglion cell (RGC) is a type of neuron located near the inner surface (the g ...

, where they branch and form flattened arborizations at different levels. The ganglion cells vary much in size, and the

dendrites Dendrites (from Greek δένδρον ''déndron'', "tree"), also dendrons, are branched protoplasmic extensions of a nerve cell that propagate the electrochemical stimulation received from other neural cells to the cell body, or soma, of the ...

of the smaller ones as a rule arborize in the inner plexiform layer as soon as they enter it; while those of the larger cells ramify close to the

inner nuclear layer The inner nuclear layer or layer of inner granules, of the retina, is made up of a number of closely packed cells, of which there are three varieties, viz.: bipolar cells, horizontal cells, and amacrine cells. Bipolar cells The bipolar cells, by ...

References

External links

* Human eye anatomy {{eye-stub