Developing a Vision Test for Fish: a Homebrew Device to Measure Optokinetic Response — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

Instructions

Student presentations must have a faculty sponsor.

Abstracts must include a title and a description of the research, scholarship, or creative work. The description should be 150-225 words in length and constructed in a format or style appropriate for the presenter’s discipline.

The following points should be addressed within the selected format or style for the abstract:

A clear statement of the problem or question you pursued, or the scholarly goal or creative theme achieved in your work.
A brief comment about the significance or uniqueness of the work.
A clear description of the methods used to achieve the purpose or goals for the work.
A statement of the conclusions, results, outcomes, or recommendations, or if the work is still in progress, the results you expect to report at the event.

Presenter photographs should be head and shoulder shots comparable to passport photos.

Additional Information

More information is available at carthage.edu/celebration-scholars/. The following are members of the Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Committee who are eager to listen to ideas and answer questions:

Jun Wang
Kim Instenes
John Kirk
Nora Nickels
Andrew Pustina
James Ripley

Developing a Vision Test for Fish: a Homebrew Device to Measure Optokinetic Response

Name: Ashley Franklin
Major: Neuroscience
Hometown: Franklin Park, IL
Faculty Sponsor: Steven Henle
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Name: Ashley Hermans
Major: Neuroscience
Hometown: Neenah, WI
Faculty Sponsor: Steven Henle
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Abstract

The optokinetic response (OKR) is a reflex where your eyes track an object in your surroundings, while your head remains stationary. The OKR is a useful assessment for understanding visual function, as it requires no conditioning and can be repeatedly induced in a way that provides quantifiable data of visual acuity. With an apparatus that simulates a moving object, such as repeating stripes, the OKR of our model organism, the zebrafish, can be analyzed to screen visual system function. Typically, instruments that measure OKR are expensive or difficult to use. We sought to develop a relatively economic and open-source vision test for fish that would enable screening of visual system function by undergraduates in teaching and research labs. To this end, we used 3D printing to create a drum that was controlled by an Arduino motor and software that displays rotating stripes. Video of eye movements of the larval zebrafish placed within the drum are captured and analyzed using open-source Matlab code (Scheetz et al., 2017). This software will then generate a quantitative assessment of how well the fish is able to see. Future studies may include screening for genetic or chemical treatments that could potentially alter vision, as well as testing for restoration of vision after optic nerve injury within zebrafish.

Poster file