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What is an OFF-center ganglion cell receptive field? Why is it organized they way it is?

• OFF-center: area of retinal cells that respond to a decrease in light perception; surrounded by ON-responsive cells that respond to an increase in light perception

• ganglion cell: retinal neurons that receive and summarize sensory information from photoreceptors

• receptive field: area of environment perceived by ganglion cells (not photoreceptors)

So that OFF-center + ganglion cell + receptive field = area of retinal neurons that responds most to a decrease in light from its perceived environment.

An OFF-center field is organized to recognize differences in perceived light, and thus identify edges that can signify depth, shadows, borders, etc. This ability is enhanced by its surrounding of ON-center cells that respond to increases in light. Furthermore, the receptive fields may be organized in patterns such as bars, and thus be able to detect differences more effectively.