Photons to energize rhodopsin & trigger a nerve impulse

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A single photon is sufficient to isomerize retinal in a rhodopsin molecule, thereby activating it. Individual rod cells in the retina can respond to just one photon. However, while the activation of rhodopsin by a single photon is crucial for initiating the visual process, downstream neurons in the visual pathway may require signals from multiple rod cells to trigger a nerve impulse to the brain. This indicates a complex interplay between the initial photon detection and the subsequent neural processing involved in vision.
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I am wondering how many photons must be captured by a rhodopsin molecule to energize it, and also to trigger a nerve impulse to the brain or to deeper in the eyes neural system?
 
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It takes only one photon to isomerize the retinal in rhodopsin, and activate the rhodopsin molecule. Individual rod cells are capable of responding to an individual photon (http://journals.aps.org/rmp/abstract/10.1103/RevModPhys.70.1027), but as Pythagorean's link points out, some of the downstream neurons responsible for processing visual simuli may not be triggered by the signal from a single rod cell.
 

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