Visual pigments in the human macula assessed by imaging fundus reflectometry

Multispectral imaging fundus reflectometry and multiple linear regression fitting routines were used to simultaneously assess the spatial distributions of cone visual pigment and rhodopsin in the human macula. As expected from anatomic studies, the cone visual pigment distribution showed a peak in the central fovea and was elliptical, with the broader axis along the horizontal meridian. The rhodopsin distribution showed a minimum in the fovea and the rhodopsin density increased with eccentricity. Both visual pigment distributions showed striking variability among individuals. These data provide visual pigment distributions in the relatively unexplored parafoveal region.