Microspectrophotometry studies show that zebrafish
(Danio rerio) possess four cone photopigments.
The purpose of this study was to determine the cone contributions
to the zebrafish photopic increment threshold spectral-sensitivity
function. Electroretinogram (ERG) b-wave responses
to monochromatic lights presented on a broadband or chromatic
background were obtained. It was found that under the broadband
background condition, the zebrafish spectral-sensitivity
function showed several peaks that were narrower in sensitivity
compared to the cone spectra. The spectral-sensitivity
function was modeled with L − M and M − S opponent
interactions and nonopponent S- and U-cone mechanisms.
Using chromatic adaptation designed to suppress the contribution
of the S-cones, a strong U-cone contribution to the spectral-sensitivity
function was revealed, and the contributions of the S-cones
to the M − S mechanism were reduced. These results
show that the b-wave component of the ERG receives
input from all four cone types and appears to reflect color
opponent mechanisms. Thus, zebrafish may possess the fundamental
properties necessary for color vision.