From studies of the action potentials in single fibres of the optic nerve, Granit formed his "dominator-modulator" theory of colour vision. In this theory he proposed that in addition to the three kinds of photosensitive cones--the colour receptors in the retina--which respond to different portions of the light spectrum, some optic nerve fibres (dominators) are sensitive to the whole spectrum while others (modulators) respond to a narrow band of light wavelengths and are thus colour-specific. Granit also proved that light could inhibit as well as stimulate impulses along the optic nerve. His book Sensory Mechanisms of the Retina (1947) is a classic work in the field of retinal electrophysiology. Granit then turned his attention to the study of the control of movement, specifically the role of muscle sense-organs called muscle spindles and tendon organs. He helped to determine the neural pathways and processes by which these internal receptors regulate and coordinate muscle action.
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