REVIEW article
Front. Mol. Neurosci.
Sec. Methods and Model Organisms
This article is part of the Research TopicZebrafish as a model organism for neuroscience researchView all 3 articles
The Cone Visual Cycle and Its Disorders: Insights from Zebrafish
Provisionally accepted
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
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The Cone Visual Cycle and Its Disorders: Insights from Zebrafish Continuous vision relies on the recycling of visual pigment chromophore, which is photoisomerized during the process of vision. In vertebrates, this recycling is mediated by a complex network of biochemical reactions distributed across different cell types referred to as the visual cycle. In this review, we outline both historical and recent findings on the visual cycle and its connection to outer retinal dystrophies. Particular emphasis is placed on the recycling of cone, rather than rod, visual pigments, and on the utility of the zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model for such studies.
Keywords: Visual cycle, Retina, Retinoids (vitamin A derivatives), Zebrafish, cone photoreceptor, Vision
Received: 22 Oct 2025; Accepted: 07 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Koutroumpa and Neuhauss. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Stephan CF Neuhauss, stephan.neuhauss@uzh.ch
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