Electrical Stimulation of Mammalian Retinal Ganglion Cells Using Dense Arrays of Small-Diameter Electrodes

Current epiretinal implants contain a small number of electrodes with diameters of a few hundred microns. Smaller electrodes are desirable to increase the spatial resolution of artificial sight. To lay the foundation for the next generation of retinal prostheses, we assessed the stimulation efficacy of micro-fabricated arrays of 61 platinum disk electrodes with diameters 8–12 μm, spaced 60 μm apart. Isolated pieces of rat, guinea pig, and monkey retina were placed on the multi-electrode array ganglion cell side down and stimulated through individual electrodes with biphasic, charge-balanced current pulses. Spike responses from retinal ganglion cells were recorded either from the same or a neighboring electrode. Most pulses evoked only 1–2 spikes with short latencies (0.3–10 ms), and rarely was more than one recorded ganglion cell stimulated. Threshold charge densities for eliciting spikes in ganglion cells were typically below 0.15 mC/cm2 for pulse durations between 50 and 200 μs, corresponding to charge thresholds of ∼ 100 pC. Stimulation remained effective after several hours and at frequencies up to 100 Hz. Application of cadmium chloride did not abolish evoked spikes, implying direct activation. Thus, electrical stimulation of mammalian retina with small-diameter electrodes is achievable, providing high temporal and spatial precision with low charge densities.