Melanopsin regulates axonal translation underlying retinohypothalamic circuit assembly.

Melanopsin coordinates retinohypothalamic tract development by regulating local translation in developing ipRGC axons.

• Loss of melanopsin disrupts local translation in axons while sparing translation in cell bodies.
• Affected axonal translation involves transcripts that encode proteins for cytoskeletal regulation, adhesion, and transport.
• Knockout mice exhibited impaired axonal growth and reduced synapses in the suprachiasmatic nucleus.
• Developmental gene expression programs were altered across the retina and associated brain regions in knockout mice.
• Changes in gene expression timing showed region-specific differences linked to reduced visual drive.

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