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Introductory article
Article Contents
. Introduction
The eye is a small yet multifaceted unit of anatomical machinery in which each structure
works in accord with the next, refracting, constricting, dilating and chemically reacting to
convert patterns of light into discernible images. Eyes can be divided into two broad
categories: the simple eye of vertebrates and the compound eye of invertebrates.
Introduction
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
Figure 1 (a) Three-dimensional representation of the structures of the human eye. (b) Cross-section of the human eye, and an enlarged view of the
various layers of the retina.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
Figure 2 Cross-section of a compound eye illustrating a group of ommatidia, and an enlarged view of a single ommatidium.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
Figure 3 (a) Top: cross-section of the newt (vertebrate) eye. Bottom: scanning electron micrograph of a cross-section of the newt eye; 35
magnification. Evident structures include the retina (R), iris (I), cornea (C), and lens (L).
(b) Top: cross-section of a small area of the Drosophila compound eye. Bottom: scanning electron micrograph of a cross-section of the Drosophila eye;
648 magnification. Evident structures include the cornea (C), and ommatidium (O). The thin, hair-like structures are setae (S), and are believed to reduce
glare.
(c) Top: cross-section of the squid (invertebrate) eye, illustrating the striking resemblances to the vertebrate eye. Bottom: scanning electron microscope
composite image of a cross-section of the squid eye; 5 magnification. Evident structures include the retina (R) and lens (L).
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net
Eye Anatomy
Summary
Following the light path through the vertebrate and
invertebrate eye, we have compared the light-focusing
structures as well as the light-transforming cells in both the
vertebrate eye and the compound eye of invertebrates. The
dierent evolutionary trends that shaped the eyes of the
world have also been discussed.
Charles Darwin asserted that the eye is both perfect and
complex. The eye is a small yet multifaceted unit of
anatomical machinery, with intricate design and function.
Further Reading
Dawkins R (1996) The forty-fold path to enlightenment. Climbing
Mount Improbable, pp. 138197. New York: WW Norton.
Kessel D and Kardon RH (1979) Tissues and Organs: A Text-atlas of
Scanning Electron Microscopy. San Francisco: WH Freeman.
Marmor MF and Wolfensberger TJ (1998) The Retinal Pigment
Epithelium. New York: Oxford University Press.
Oyster CD (1999) The Human Eye. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer
Associates.
Sinclair S (1985) How Animals See. New York: Facts On File.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SCIENCES / & 2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd, Nature Publishing Group / www.els.net