In the center of the fovea, how many cones does each cone bipolar cell collect signals from?

• A. One
• B. Two
• C. Three
• D. Many

Answer: (A)

In the foveal center, vision is wired for the highest spatial detail by minimizing convergence. Each cone forms a direct, private line to its own cone bipolar cell, meaning one cone feeds one cone bipolar cell. This one-to-one wiring preserves precise location of the signal as it moves toward the ganglion cells, which is why the fovea has such sharp vision. Outside the center, signals from several cones are pooled into fewer bipolar cells, which increases sensitivity but reduces acuity. So, the number of cones per cone bipolar cell in the foveal center is one.