Macula

Macula, which is also known as macula lutea, is an oval-shaped pigmented area near the center of the retina of the human eye and, in addition, in other animals. The macula is part of the retina at the back of the eye. Moreover, it is only about 5mm across; however, it is responsible for our central vision, most of our color vision, and the fine detail of what we see. The macula has a very high concentration of photoreceptor cells; consequently, these cells detect light. Subsequently, they send signals to the brain, which interprets them as images. On the other hand, the rest of the retina processes our peripheral, or side vision.

Composition

The macula is the center of your retina; specifically, it is the thin, light-sensitive layer at the back of your eye. Moreover, it’s a round, yellow spot that has a slight oval shape. In fact, most people’s maculae are only 5 millimeters (less than 1/4 of an inch) wide.

Furthermore, the macula (and the rest of your retina) is made of photoreceptor cells. Within these cells, there are rods and cones. On one hand, rods are photoreceptors that process black and white light. Additionally, they also help you see at night and in dim light. On the other hand, cones process color and make up most of your usual vision.

Consequently, both types of cells work together to give a clear, accurate picture of what you’re seeing. Notably, the macula has a high concentration of cones, which help you process the details in your vision.

What Does the Macula Do?

The macula (like the rest of your retina) translates light that enters your eye into the images you see. In fact, it’s responsible for your central vision that lets you see objects directly in front of you.

Light passes through the lens at the front of your eye and, subsequently, hits the retina. Photoreceptors — cells inside your retina that react to light — change light energy into an electrical signal. This signal, in turn, travels through your optic nerve and into your brain to become the picture of the world you see.

Moreover, the macula handles the most specific parts of images directly in front of you. Furthermore, it helps you understand specific details like:

  • First, telling the difference between faces
  • Next, tiny movements
  • Finally, specific colors

Why is the Macula Important?

In addition, the macula lets you see small details and focus on very specific aspects of what you’re looking at. Like the rest of your retina, the macula converts light into a signal your brain can process and understand.

For instance, if your whole retina processes information like a spray from a garden hose, then your macula is an eye dropper that focuses on a very specific amount of information (the small details and what’s right in front of you).

Consequently, without a macula, or with a damaged macula. Moreover, your eye might still function (it would still take in light); however, your vision would be blurry and lack details.

Conditions and Disorders

Furthermore, any condition that damages your eye can affect the macula. Specifically, conditions that affect the macula include:

  • Age-related macular degeneration
  • Macular pucker (also known as epiretinal membrane)
  • Macular holes
  • Cystoid macular edema

Additionally, issues that affect your whole retina can harm your macula, as well, including:

  • Retinitis pigmentosa
  • Eye floaters and flashes
  • Retinal vein occlusion
  • Posterior vitreous detachment
  • Retinal detachment

Symptoms

Following re some of the eye symptoms affecting the macula:

  • First, blurry vision
  • Second, double vision (diplopia)
  • Moreover, new pain that doesn’t go away in a few days
  • Furthermore, light sensitivity (photophobia)
  • In addition, your vision is getting noticeably worse

Biospecimens

biospecimens

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in providing researchers with high quality, clinical grade, fully characterized human tissue samples, bio-specimens, and human bio-fluid collections.

Moreover, human biospecimens are available including tumor tissue, serum, plasma and PBMC samples from most other therapeutic areas.

Furthermore, Bay Biosciences maintains and manages its own biorepository, the human tissue bank (biobank) consisting of thousands of diseased samples (specimens) and likewise normal healthy donors for controls. Additionally, available in all formats and types.

In fact, our biobank procures and stores fully consented, de-identified and institutional review boards (IRB) approved human tissue samples, human biofluids such as serum samples, plasma samples from various diseases and matched controls.

Also, all our human tissue collections, human biospecimens and human biofluids are provided with detailed, samples associated patient’s clinical data.

In fact, this critical patient’s clinical data includes information relating to their past and current disease, treatment history, lifestyle choices, biomarkers, and genetic information.

Additionally, researchers find the patient’s data associated with the human biospecimens extremely valuable and use it to help identify new effective treatments (drug discovery & development) in oncology, as well as in other therapeutic areas and diseases.

Bay Biosciences banks wide variety of human tissue samples and human biological samples, including fresh frozen human biospecimens cryogenically preserved at – 80°C.

For example fresh frozen tissue samples, tumor tissue samples, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE), tissue slides, with matching human bio-fluids, whole blood and blood-derived products such as human serum, human plasma and human PBMCs.

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in collecting and providing human tissue samples according to the specified requirements and customized, tailor-made collection protocols.

Please contact us anytime to discuss your special research projects and customized human tissue sample requirements.

Types of Biospecimens

Bay Biosciences provides human tissue samples (human specimens) and human biofluids from diseased and normal healthy donors which includes:

Moreover, we can also procure most human biospecimens and human biofluids, special collections and requests for human samples that are difficult to find. All our human tissue samples and human biofluids are procured through IRB-approved clinical protocols and procedures.

In addition to the standard processing protocols, Bay Biosciences can also provide human biofluids such as  human plasma, human serum, and human PBMCs bio-fluid samples using custom processing protocols; you buy donor-specific collections in higher volumes and specified sample aliquots from us.

Bay Biosciences also provides human biospecimens from normal healthy donors; volunteers, for controls and clinical research, Contact us Now.