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The superficial dorsal horn of birds as well as mammals contains both cholinergic and nitrergic neuronal structures as evident from the presence of the synthesizing enzymes such as choline acetyltransferase and nitric oxide synthase, which is an NADPH diaphorase. In the rat, both systems develop only postnatally. Rats are altricial at birth whereas pigeons and chickens are semiprecocial or precocial, respectively, at the time of hatching. Immunocytochemical studies of choline acetyltransferase and nitric oxide synthase in the developing avian spinal cord (starting with embryonic day 12 of 18 in the pigeon and 14 of 21 in the chicken) showed that both systems are well developed in the superficial dorsal horn at the time of hatching in both avian species. In the pigeon, choline acetyltransferase-positive superficial dorsal horn neurons appear only on the day of hatching (E18), whereas nitric oxide synthase-positive neurons can be first detected at stage E14. In the chicken, nitric oxide synthase-positive neurons are present already at stage E14, whereas choline acetyltransferase-positive neurons appear at stage E20. Autonomic and somatic motor neurons show adult-like choline acetyltransferase-immunoreactivity and/or nitric oxide synthase-immunoreactivity at the earliest stages investigated. It is concluded that the stage of maturation at birth or hatching plays an important role in the development of superficial dorsal horn cholinergic and nitrergic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Nociceptive responses to a repetitive pin-prod stimulus in goldfish and trout were assessed. Single unit recordings were taken from the spinal cord, cerebellum, tectum, and telencephalon. Neuronal responses were elicited in all these regions of the central nervous system in both species of fish during brush (mechanoceptive) and pin-prod (nociceptive) stimuli. In addition, in trout, a heated prod stimulus was used. Mechanoreceptive and nociceptive neuronal responses to various stimuli were elicited in all regions, and responses were detected as far as the telencephalon in both species. In goldfish, a noxious stimulus produced greater neuronal activity than a mechanoreceptive stimulus. This was not found in trout. The accurate setting of timed prods allowed the latency of the response to be calculated in all regions. From these data, conduction velocities suggested that A delta and C fibers were activated; both fiber groups previously have been shown to be involved in nociception in fish. This study has shown that there is neuronal activity in all brain areas including the telencephalon, suggesting a nociceptive pathway from the periphery to the higher central nervous system of fish. Perspective: This study presents novel data on telencephalic activity in fish after noxious stimulation and demonstrates the potential for pain perception in lower vertebrates. Not only is this of an evolutionary significance, but it also adds to the controversial argument about whether fish perceive pain. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Physiological studies have shown that the epidermal head and arm lines in cephalopods are a mechanoreceptive system that is similar to the fish and amphibian lateral lines (Budelmann BU, Bleckmann H. 1988. A lateral line analogue in cephalopods: Water waves generate microphonic potentials in the epidermal head lines of Sepia officinalis and Lolliguncula brevis . J. Comp. Physiol. A 164:1–5.); however, the biological significance of the epidermal lines remains unclear. To test whether cuttlefish show behavioural responses to local water movements, juvenile Sepia officinalis were exposed to local sinusoidal water movements of different frequencies (0.01–1000?Hz) produced by a vibrating sphere. Five behavioural responses were recorded: body pattern changing, moving, burrowing, orienting, and swimming. Cuttlefish responded to a wide range of frequencies (20–600?Hz), but not to all of the frequencies tested within that range. No habituation to repeated stimuli was seen. Results indicate that cuttlefish can detect local water movements (most likely with the epidermal head and arm lines) and are able to integrate that information into behavioural responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The beating activity of the molluscan heart is myogenic, but it is influenced by nervous signals of central origin. Previous studies have demonstrated changes in cardiac output during feeding and other behaviors. Here, we describe a short latency, transient cardiac response that accompanies withdrawal reflexes. When evoked by electrical stimulation of peripheral nerves, the response was detected within one or two heartbeats. Beat amplitudes increased on average 11.6%, and inter-beat intervals decreased on average 2.1%. The mean duration of the response was 28.1 s. A transient inhibitory phase often preceded the excitatory response. Results from testing various nerves and tissues show that the cardiac responses invariably occur whenever contractions of the tentacle retractor muscle are elicited. Even stimulation of the ovotestis and the kidney elicit responses despite their protected locations within the mantle cavity. Three excitatory cardioactive neurons are identified in the central nervous system ofHelix aspersa, and their involvement in the reflex response is documented. The results suggest that the heart output is initially inhibited to relax the hydroskeleton and thereby aid withdrawal movements. A delayed increase in cardiac output then facilitates the re-inflation, hence eversion, of the withdrawn body parts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amphioxus has an assortment of cells and organs for sensing light and mechanical stimuli. Vertebrate counterparts of these structures are not always apparent, and a strong case can be made for homology in only a few instances. For example, amphioxus has anatomically simple but plausible homologs of both the pineal and paired eyes of vertebrates. Placodal and neural crest derivatives are, however, more problematic: the evidence for an olfactory system in amphioxus is only circumstantial and, despite the variety of secondary sensory cell types that occur on the body surface in amphioxus, none are obvious homologs of vertebrate taste buds, neuromasts or acoustic hair cells. A useful perspective can nevertheless be gained by examining differences in amphioxus and vertebrate development, specifically how each specifies and positions sensory precursors, controls their proliferation, and deploys them through the body. The much larger size of vertebrate embryos and the need to cope developmentally with increased scale and cell numbers may account for some key vertebrate innovations, including placodes and neural crest. The presence or absence of specific structural adaptations, like the latter, is therefore less useful for judging homology between amphioxus and vertebrates than shared features of specific cell types. It is also clear that the duration of embryogenesis in vertebrates has been significantly extended in comparison with ancestral chordates so as to incorporate events that would originally have occurred during the post-embryonic growth period, including events of neurogenesis. Consequently, no scenario for the origin of vertebrates can be considered complete unless it deals explicitly with the whole of the life history and changes to it. Copyright © 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our previous studies on spider tactile hairs concentrated on the mechanical behavior of the hair shaft and the electrophysiological properties of the sensory cells. Here we focus on the structure and mechanical properties of the coupling of the hair shaft and the sensory terminals. 1. The functional “design” of the coupling provides for a combination of high sensitivity and protection against mechanical damage and overstimulation. The dendritic sheath is not directly coupled to the hair shaft. Rather, there is “terminal connecting material” between the dendrites and the hair shaft. 2. The hair shaft forms a first-order lever. Its acentric axis of rotation is located ca.3.5 μm from its inner end. Displacement of the hair tip is scaled down by a factor of ca.750:1, not even considering the outer hair shaft’s bending. 3. At threshold the dendrite sheath displacement is ca. 0.05 μm by forces in the order of 0.4–4×10-6 N. 4. The hair shaft bends within the socket even before contacting it. The elasticities representing its suspension and bending in the socket can be described quantitatively by measuring the hair’s restoring moments (range: 10-9 Nm) and bending at different degrees of deflection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although stomatopod crustaceans use their chemical senses in many facets of behavior, little is known about their chemosensory neural pathways, especially in comparison to the better-studied decapod crustaceans. We examined the stomatopod Neogonodactylus oerstedii to determine organizational aspects of peripheral and central neural pathway of antennules, which is a major chemosensory organ. We describe the three flagella of the triramous antennule as the medial, dorsolateral, and ventrolateral flagella. The primary branch point is between the medial flagellum and lateral flagella, and the secondary branch point is at the junction of the dorsolateral and ventrolateral flagella. The antennule bears at least three types of setae, based on their external morphology. Simple setae are present only on the medial flagellum and ventrolateral flagellum, organized as a tuft of 10–15 setae on each flagellar annulus. Aesthetasc setae and asymmetric setae occur only on the distal annuli of the dorsolateral flagellum, with each annulus bearing a row of three aesthetascs and one asymmetric seta. DiI fills of the antennular nerve near the junction of the flagella show that sensory neurons in the antennular flagella project to two neuropils in the ipsilateral midbrain—the olfactory lobe (OL) and lateral antennular neuropil (LAN). The OL is glomerular and has rich serotonergic innervation, a characteristic of the OL in decapods. The LAN is bi-lobed and stratified as it is in decapods. However, the LAN of stomatopods differs from that of decapods in being relatively large and containing extensive serotonergic innervation. The median antennular neuropil of stomatopods has sparse serotonergic innervation, and it is more diffusely organized compared to decapods. No accessory lobes were found in N. oerstedii. Thus, the stomatopod antennular flagella have the same two, highly organized parallel pathways common to decapods—the OL pathway and the LAN pathway. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

All animals generate progressively larger forces as they increase in size and mass. Their abilities to detect these forces must be similarly adjusted. In insects, campaniform sensilla monitor strains in the exoskeleton and provide information about forces acting upon the legs. Each sensory neuron possesses a dendrite that inserts into a cuticular cap in the exoskeleton. The cap is the site of mechanotransduction. We measured the sizes and numbers of receptor caps on the cockroach hindleg at different developmental stages. Our goal was to identify morphological features that could be correlated with the range of forces that must be detected. As cockroaches increase in size through successive molts, the number of cuticular caps in each group increases. The tibial group, for example, has two sensilla in first instar animals and 10–12 in the adult. There is also an increase in the range of cap sizes within each group. Observations of animals and their molted exoskeletons suggest that this increase occurs as the caps of existing receptors increase in size and smaller ones are added with each molt. These changes may be important in increasing the range of forces the receptors can signal while retaining sensitivity to low levels of force. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The ability of observers to detect temporal gaps in bursts of sinusoids or bursts of band-limited noise was measured to assess the temporal acuity of Pacinian (P) and non-Pacinian (NP) tactile information processing channels. The P channel was isolated by delivering high frequency sinusoids or high frequency noise through a large 1.5-cm 2 contactor to the thenar eminence. The NP channels were isolated from the P channel by delivering these stimuli as well as stimuli with lower frequencies through a small 0.01-cm 2 contactor to the same site. Gap detection thresholds were higher for gaps in noise than for gaps in sinusoids but did not differ among conditions designed to isolate P and NP channels. The finding that temporal acuity does not differ among channels supports the hypothesis that, after termination of a stimulus, the P and NP channels exhibit the same amount of neural persistence. Also consistent with this hypothesis are the earlier findings that the enhancement of the sensation magnitude of a stimulus by a prior stimulus (Verrillo and Gescheider, Percept Psychophys 18: 128-136, 1975 ) and the duration of sensation after the termination of a stimulus (Gescheider et al ., J Acoust Soc Am 91: 1690-1696, 1992) are independent of stimulus frequency. One important implication of this hypothesis, if true, is that the presence of temporal summation in the P channel and its absence in the NP channels, results, not from the lack of neural persistence in the NP channels, but instead, in marked contrast to the P channel, from the lack of a mechanism for integrating persistent neural activity over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trigeminal somatosensory receptors have not been characterised in teleost fish and studies in elasmobranchs have failed to identify nociceptors. The present study examined the trigeminal nerve of a teleost fish, the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to determine what types of somatosensory receptors were present on the head of the trout specifically searching for nociceptors. Single unit recordings were made from receptive fields on the head of the fish innervated by the trigeminal nerve. Each receptive field was tested for sensitivity to mechanical, thermal and chemical stimulation. Five different receptor types were found: fast adapting receptors responding to mechanical stimulation; slowly adapting receptors responding to mechanical stimuli; polymodal nociceptors responding to mechanical, noxious thermal and chemical stimulation; mechanothermal nociceptors responding to mechanical stimulation and noxious heat; and mechanochemical receptors responsive to mechanical and chemical stimulation. Mechanical thresholds, receptive field diameter, conduction velocities and thermal thresholds of the receptors were determined and there was no significant difference between the receptor types in terms of these properties. Three shapes of action potential (AP) were recorded from these receptors: type 1 with no inflexion; type 2 with an inflexion on depolarisation; and type 3 with an inflexion on repolarisation. Conduction velocity, amplitude and duration of the APs, afterhypolarisation amplitude and duration, as well as the maximum rate of depolarisation were measured for each action potential type. No major differences were found when making comparisons within receptor type and between receptor types. The fish nociceptors had similar physiological properties to nociceptors found in higher vertebrates. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The red drum Sciaenops ocellatus Linnaeus is an exoticaquaculture species in Taiwan. As a carnivore it preys on a varietyof food organisms, including fishes and invertebrates. Isolatingthe sensory mechanisms that govern its predatory behavior wouldhelp clarify its feeding habit. The present study focused on predationresponses influenced by vision, olfaction and lateral line in captivejuvenile red drum. Results showed that the lateral line had themost significant influence on predatory behavior of the fish. Blockingmechanoreception of the lateral line system resulted in completeloss of ability to catch prey. Ablation of olfaction, in contrast,caused a booster effect on the predation rate. Experimental fishwith scorched olfactory rosettes showed active predatory behavior. Nearor complete darkness had insignificant influence on the predationrate. When the lateral line system was blocked, the fish could notprey normally, even when vision and olfaction were left intact. Itwas concluded that mechanoreception plays the primary role and visionthe secondary role in predatory behavior of the red drum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review focuses on the structure and function of a single mechanoreceptor organ in the cuticle of spiders. Knowledge emerging from the study of this organ promises to yield general principles that can be applied to mechanosensation in a wide range of animal systems. The lyriform slit sense organ on the antero-lateral leg patella of the spider Cupiennius salei is unusual in possessing large sensory neurons, whose cell bodies are close to the sites of sensory transduction, and accessible to intracellular recording during mechanotransduction. This situation, combined with recent technical developments, has made it possible to observe and experiment with all the major stages of mechanosensation. Important findings include the approximate size, number and ionic selectivity of the ion channels responsible for mechanotransduction, the types of voltage-activated ion channels responsible for action potential encoding, and the mechanisms controlling the dynamic properties of transduction and encoding. Most recently, a complex efferent system for peripheral modulation of mechanosensation has been discovered and partially characterized. Much remains to be learned about mechanosensation, but the lyriform slit sense organ system continues to offer important opportunities to advance our understanding of this crucial sense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lateral line of fish is composed of neuromasts used to detect water motions. Neuromasts occur as superficial neuromasts on the skin and as canal neuromasts in subepidermal canals. Fibres of the lateral line nerves innervate both. There have been extensive studies on the responses of lateral line nerve fibres to dipole stimuli applied in still water. However, despite the fact that many fish live in rivers and/or swim constantly, responses of lateral line nerve fibres to dipole stimuli presented in running water have never been recorded. We investigated how the peripheral lateral line of still water fish (Carassius auratus) and riverine fish (Oncorhynchus mykiss) responds to minute sinusoidal water motions while exposed to unidirectional water flow. Both goldfish and trout have two types of posterior lateral line nerve fibres: Type I fibres, which most likely innervate superficial neuromasts, were stimulated by running water (10 cm s–1). The responses of type I fibres to water motions generated by a vibrating sphere were masked if the fish was exposed to running water. Type II fibres, which most likely innervate canal neuromasts, were not stimulated by running water. Consequently, responses of type II fibres to a vibrating sphere were not masked under flow conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thresholds were measured for the detection of vibratory stimuli of variable frequency and duration applied to the index fingertip and thenar eminence through contactors of different sizes. The effects of stimulus frequency could be accounted for by the frequency characteristics of the Pacinian (P), non-Pacinian (NP) I, and NP III channels previously determined for the thenar eminence (Bolanowski et al., J Acoust Soc Am 84: 1680-1694, 1988; Gescheider et al., Somatosens Mot Res 18: 191- 201, 2001). The effect of changing stimulus duration was also essentially identical for both sites, demonstrating the same amount of temporal summation in the P channel. Although the effect of changing stimulus frequency and changing stimulus duration did not differ for the two sites, the effect of varying the size of the stimulus was significantly greater for the thenar eminence than for the fingertip. The attenuated amount of spatial summation on the fingertip was interpreted as an indication that the mechanism of spatial summation consists of the operations of both neural integration and probability summation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impaired sensory perception is a well-established stigma of aging and whereas loss of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons is marginal there is a specific pattern of reduced peripheral sensory innervation. To resolve if similar regressive processes occur in the central innervation, peripheral nerves were injected with markers for unmyelinated (isolectin B4) or myelinated (cholera toxin B subunit; CTB) DRG neurons. The results were a dramatic decrease of primary sensory endings in the spinal cord of aged rats following transganglionic labeling with CTB, and also to a lesser degree with B4. Profile counting and frequency estimates showed that the reduction of CTB labeled profiles not was caused by impaired axonal uptake, slowed axonal transport of CTB, or by a loss of myelinated fibers in the peripheral nerve. At the ultrastructural level, peripheral nerves showed the classical hallmarks of aging, with more pronounced alterations in myelinated than unmyelinated axons. Taken together, sensory deprivation in senescence appears to be a distal process in DRG neurons involving both peripheral and central target disconnection. Finally, preliminary data indicates that the substantial reduction in mechanoreceptive input to the central nervous system co-varies with the degree of sensorimotor impairment of the aged individuals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In the avian lumbosacral spinal cord there are segmentally organized accessory lobes which protrude into the vertebral canal. These lobes consist of neurons and of glycogen cells. The neurons have been suggested to function as mechanosensitive elements in an extra-labyrinthine sense organ of equilibrium. To test this view, extracellular electrophysiological recordings were done during vibratory stimuli applied to the whole body of anesthetized pigeons. Single unit activity was analyzed with regard to interval distribution (interval histograms) and entrainment to the frequency of the stimulus (autocorrelograms). Most neurons were driven by a 100 or 75 Hz stimulus and there was a tight coupling to the phase of the stimulus. Neurons in the adjacent spinal gray substance did not respond to this stimulus. This strongly supports a mechanosensitive function of the lobe neurons. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The vast majority of higher flies — the brachycerans — is endowed with strikingly similar antennal morphologies and elaborate antennal mechanosensory organs. Thus far, however, the function of audition has been attributed only to the antennae of Drosophilid and Tephritid flies. Antennal mechanical sensitivity to sound is now documented in a broad range of fly species. These results highlight the wide occurrence of audition in as many as 120,000 species of higher Diptera. Antenna-based audition, as defined by the capacity of sensing the mechanical vibrations of the antenna in response to sound, thus appears to constitute an ubiquitous sensory capacity among higher flies. Functionally, antennal hearing can be used in the contexts of intraspecific acoustic signalling, flight control, and putatively close-range echolocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used isolated but functionally intact preparations of the lyriform slit-sense organ VS-3 from the leg of the spider, Cupiennius salei Keys, to examine the role of prominent fine-structural elements for mechanosensory transduction and adaptation. Slit sensilla act as strain sensors in the cuticular exoskeleton; each slit is innervated by two mechanosensitive neurons. Punctate mechanical deformation at four points along the dendrites demonstrated that mechanical excitability is confined to membrane sites at the extreme dendrite tips that are enclosed by cuticular slit structures. Depletion of microtubules in VS-3 neurons by prolonged mechanical stimulation and application of 5 mmol l–1 colchicine did not disrupt the generation of a receptor potential. Hence, putative gating mechanisms of the mechanically activated membrane channels at the dendrite tips appear to be largely independent of microtubular structures. The discrete adaptation pattern in each of the two partner neurons, rapidly adapting versus slowly adapting, did not depend on the distinct mode of dendrite attachment to cuticular slit structures, and even persisted in isolated neurons after their dendrite tips and auxiliary structures were lost. We suggest that the two discrete adaptation patterns are based on intrinsic differences in the action potential encoding process rather than differences in stimulus transformation or mechanotransduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The frequency selectivity of the P, NP I, and NP II channels of the four-channel model of mechanoreception for glabrous skin was measured psychophysically by an adaptation tuning curve procedure. The results substantially extend the frequency range over which the frequency selectivity of these channels is known and further confirm the hypothesis that the input stage of each of these channels consists of specific sensory nerve fibers and associated receptors. Specifically, the frequency characteristics of Pacinian nerve fibers, rapidly adapting (RA) nerve fibers, and slowly adapting Type II (SA II) nerve fibers were found to be the peripheral neurophysiological correlates of the P, NP I, and NP II channels, respectively. The finding that the tuning characteristic for a test stimulus of 250 Hz delivered through a small (0.008 cm[sup 2]) contactor depended dramatically on the duration of the test stimulus whereas the detection threshold did not, provides new evidence in support of the hypothesis that separate NP II and P channels exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been reported that superficial neuromasts, a type of lateral line organ, mediate rheotaxis in fish. These studies used Co2+ at 2 mmol l–1 for 3 h to ablate the entire lateral line system. The recommended concentration is 0.1 mmol l–1. The present study shows that at 2 mmol l–1 Co2+ is highly toxic to blind Mexican cave fish. Fish exposed to this concentration died in less than 17 h, and produced copious mucus. No control fish died. No cobalt treated fish died after 3 h exposure, but cobalt-treated fish swam about their aquaria faster than control fish and tended to swim at the surface. Hence, both survival and behavior were changed by the excessive concentration of Co2+. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gravid females of the parasitoid fly species Ormia ochracea (Diptera: Tachinidae) rely on their sense of hearing to detect and localize their hosts, field crickets of the genus Gryllus. As in any hearing insect species, the fly's auditory system consists of a rather complex cascade of mechanical and physiological mechanisms, starting with the conversion of the acoustic energy in the sound field into mechanical vibrations that, in turn, are sensed in the auditory sensory organs by multicellular mechanoreceptive units – the scolopidia. This article reports on the histological architecture of the sensory organs using conventional histological serial sections and their three-dimensional reconstructions, and confocal laser microscopy. The scolopidia's spatial distribution and the three-dimensional organization of the actin-containing attachment cells are described. Morphometric measurements show that individual scolopales vary in their size and shape. Pronounced intersexual differences have been previously shown to exist in auditory function, in particular with respect to frequency sensitivity, peripheral auditory anatomy, and notably behavior. The present results show that intersexual differences in the histoarchitecture of the sensory organs are small. Results are compared with some other insect auditory systems and are also discussed in terms of their significance for frequency sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forces exerted by a leg in support and propulsion can vary considerably when animals stand upon or traverse irregular terrains. We characterized the responses of the cockroach tibial campaniform sensilla, mechanoreceptors which encode force via strains produced in the exoskeleton, by applying forces to the leg at controlled magnitudes and rates. We also examined how sensory responses are altered in the presence of different levels of static load. All receptors exhibit phasico-tonic discharges that reflect the level and rate of force application. Our studies show that: (1) tonic discharges of sensilla can signal the level of force, but accurate encoding of static loads may be affected by substantial receptor adaptation and hysteresis; (2) the absolute tonic sensitivities of receptors decrease when incremental forces are applied at different initial load levels; (3) phasic discharges of sensilla accurately encode the rate of force application; and (4) sensitivities to changing rates of force are strictly preserved in the presence of static loads. These findings imply that discharges of the sensilla are particularly tuned to the rate of change of force at all levels of leg loading. This information could be utilized to adapt posture and walking to varying terrains and unexpected perturbations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spike discharge activity was recorded from low-threshold, rapidly adapting, skin mechanoreceptive afferents (RA afferents) dissected from the median (forelimb) or tibial (hindlimb) nerves in anesthetized monkeys and cats. The spike activity was evoked by delivery of controlled sinusoidal vertical skin displacement ("flutter") stimuli to the receptive field (RF). The stimuli (15-30 Hz; 30-400 mum peak-to-peak amplitude; duration 0.8-15 s) were superimposed on a static skin indentation (0.5-1.0 mm) which was either maintained continuously throughout the run or applied trial-by-trial. The neural activity and the analog signal of the position of the stimulator probe were digitized at 10 kHz resolution and stored for off-line analysis. The main goal was to determine whether changes in the RA afferent response to skin flutter stimulation may be responsible for the enhanced capacity to discriminate stimulus frequency that accompanies a relatively brief (approximately equal to 1 min) pre-exposure to such stimulation in humans. To this end, the spike train data were evaluated using methods that enabled independent measurement of entrainment and responsivity. Responsivity (response intensity) was measured as the average number of spikes/stimulus cycle, while entrainment (the degree to which evoked spike train activity is phase-locked to the stimulus) was quantitatively assessed using statistical techniques developed for the analysis of "circular" (directional) data, supplemented by methods based on the calculation of power spectra from point process data. The methods are demonstrated to enable quantification of RA afferent entrainment over a range of stimulus durations and amplitudes substantially greater than reported in previous studies. While RA afferent responsivity was found to decline to a minor extent (10-20%) both across and within stimulus trials, entrainment remained consistently high and stable, and exhibited no temporal trends or dependence on any other measured factor. The average phase angle of the entrained RA afferent response also remained stable both within and across trials, showing only a tendency to increase slightly during the initial 100-500 ms after stimulus onset. The results imply that the improved capacity to discriminate stimulus frequency that develops in response to an exposure to cutaneous flutter stimulation is not attributable to a change in RA afferent entrainment per se. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visual and mechanosensory development of three sciaenid species was investigated to examine possible correlations between sensory morphology and patterns of habitat use. Although the three species have different migration patterns as early larvae, few differences in sensory morphology occurred between species until late in the larval period. Atlantic croaker, Micropogonias undulatus, were distinguished by enhancements of visual morphology (large eyes, abundant photoreceptors, and best summation of the three species). Croaker arrive inshore later in the larval period and, after settlement, appear to use deeper water habitats than do the other two species. Spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus, had the fewest enhancements of visual morphology but had more free neuromasts than the other two species late in the larval period. After settlement, seatrout are primarily associated with seagrass habitats. Red drum, Sciaenops ocellatus, did not have pronounced specialization of one sensory system, as did the other two species. For part of the larval period, neuromast numbers were higher in red drum than in the other two species. Later, enhancements of visual morphology did occur, but only eye and lens size were the same as those of Atlantic croaker. Red drum larvae appear to use a wider variety of habitats than do the other two species. In none of the species examined did sensory changes correlate with offshore to inshore movements, and only initial rod formation occurred prior to settlement. Distinct sensory changes did not occur concurrent with habitat changes, probably due to constructional and phylogenetic constraints. Rather, sensory differences are related to the environmental conditions in the predominant inshore habitat occupied by each species after settlement, when morphological limitations are less severe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Behavioral development of three species of marine sciaenid fish larvae was examined and related to their sensory morphology and habitat. Anti-predator behavior o:i the larvae was examined under different experimental conditions to isolate the roles of vision and mechanoreception. Spotted seatrout larvae maintained high levels of responsiveness even without visual cues but performed very poorly without mechanoreception. Loss of visual cues had no impact on the distance at which seatrout responded to the stimulus. Atlantic croaker generally performed best when vision was available. This species had low responsiveness without visual stimuli, and had smaller reactive distances when unable to use vision. Red drum were the most flexible in their use of sensory systems. For almost the entire larva period, responsiveness of red drum was equally high regardless of which sensory system was not available. In addition, reactive distances were unaffected when either visual or mechanoreceptive stimuli were eliminated. Thus, seatrout and croaker are sensory specialists, and red drum are sensory generalists. This is corroborated by previous studies on the sensory morphology of these species which showed that seatrout had more mechanosensory specialization, croaker had more visual specialization, and red drum were intermediate, with some enhancement of both systems. Behavioral data are interpreted in terms of habitat usage of the three species. Seatrout have the most restricted distribution over seagrass beds, croaker have a somewhat more flexible distribution, encompassing more open water habitats, and red drum have the most flexible range of habitats, using both vegetated and unvegetated portions of the estuary. These results indicate that even closely related species can exhibit different behaviors in order to better exploit the habitats in which they occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twenty-five taste and 35 mechanoreceptive neurons were recorded from the parvicellular part of the posteromedial ventral nucleus (VPMpc) in rats. Among them, 14 (56%) of the taste and 7 (18.4%) of the mechanoreceptive neurons were antidromically activated from the cortical taste area (CTA) with a latency of 1-4 ms and identified as thalamocortical (TC) relay neurons. No significant differences were evident in the receptive field properties or in the location in the VPMpc between the TC and non-TC neuron groups. Two classes of TC neurons were recognized: one class consisted of neurons which were most excited by NaCl among the four basic taste stimuli with receptive fields (RFs) confined to a part of the oral cavity, e.g. the anterior tongue, and the other class contained neurons which were most excited by sucrose or HCl, with RFs over a wide area of the oral cavity. Both the TC and non-TC neurons showed similar effects of CTA stimulation: post-stimulus time histograms revealed a long lasting inhibition followed by a rebound facilitation of spontaneous discharge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A total of 66 taste and 33 mechanoreceptive neurons were isolated from the parabrachial nucleus (PB) of rats. Among them, 39 taste and 8 mechanoreceptive neurons were identified as parabrachio-thalamic relay (P-T) neurons on the basis of antidromic activation from either or both sides of the thalamic taste areas (TTAs). On average, the P-T taste neurons produced larger response magnitudes than the non-P-T taste neurons, and whereas about half the P-T taste neurons were NaCl-best, only a small number of the non-P-T taste neurons were NaCl-best. Both the P-T and non-P-T taste neurons showed a similar breadth of responsiveness to four basic taste stimuli. The response magnitudes of the P-T taste neurons to all taste stimuli were ca. 3 times larger than those of the solitario-parabrachial relay (SP) neurons (afferents to the PB); in particular, the response magnitudes of the NaCl-best P-T neurons were 4-5 times larger than those of the NaCl-best SP neurons. The response magnitudes and breadth of taste responsiveness of the P-T taste neurons were reciprocally correlated with the antidromic latencies from either side of the TTAs. A histological examination revealed that the P-T taste neurons in the ventral part of the PB had a shorter antidromic latency from the ipsilateral TTA than those in the dorsal part of the nucleus. Mechanoreceptive neurons were excited by stroking the tissue in the oral cavity or perioral tissue, or by pinching them with non-serrated forceps. The mechanoreceptive P-T neurons were also activated from either or both sides of the TTAs. No particular relation was noticed between the antidromic latency of the mechanoreceptive P-T neurons and their response properties or locations in the nucleus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Receptive fields (RFs) of 36 taste (the 22 parabrachio-thalamic relay (P-T) and 14 non-P-T) and 23 mechanoreceptive neurons (7 P-T and 16 non P-T) were located in the oral cavity of rats. All of the taste and most of the mechanoreceptive units examined had an RF on the ipsilateral side of the tongue or palate, but some mechanoreceptive P-T and non-P-T units had RFs bilaterally. When the RFs of taste neurons were examined with the most effective of the four basic taste (the best stimulus) and non-best stimuli, no difference was noticed in the location of RFs between the P-T and non-P-T neurons. Though most of the P-T neurons (7/11) and all of the non-P-T neurons (6/6) had an RF for non-best stimuli at a region similar to that for the best stimulus, some P-T neurons (4/11) had an RFs for non-best stimulus outside the RF for the best stimulus and/or on the region separate from the RF for the best stimulus. The P-T neurons, responding vigorously to non-optimal stimuli as well as to the best stimulus, had an RF outside the RF for the best stimulus. RFs for mechanical stimulation were also examined in some taste and mechanoreceptive neurons. The mechanoreceptive P-T units rarely had an RF exclusively on the palate. Some mechanoreceptive units had an RF on the region where no taste RF has been found, e.g. the intermolar eminence and the folium of the hard palate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physiological characteristics of 45 taste and 15 mechanoreceptive units were examined in the solitary tract nucleus (NTS) of rats decerebrated at the pre-or midcollicular level, and compared with previous findings in the intact rat. The rostro-caudal extent of the area, where taste and mechanoreceptive neurons were recorded, was almost the same in the decerebrate rat as that in intact rat. The spontaneous discharge rate was significantly lower in the decerebrate rat than in the intact rat. The taste profile of the NTS units in decerebrate rats was quite different from that in intact rats; significant decreases in correlation coefficients were found between certain pairs of taste stimuli and spontaneous discharge rate, e.g. NaCl-quinine, sucrose-quinine. A large number of taste (18 of 31) and mechanoreceptive (12 of 15) units examined had receptive fields (RFs) on the palate, and four taste and two mechanoreceptive units on the circumvallate area. This contrasts with the findings in the intact rat. Some taste (n = 1) and mechanoreceptive units (n = 2) had large RFs. Taste units with different RF locations showed different taste profiles. Acute i.v. injection of amobarbital sodium affected only the response magnitude of taste units, suggesting that most of the differences between intact and decerebrate rats might be caused by decerebration. The present findings indicate that neural structures above the pre- or midcollicular level have tonic inhibitory or facilitatory effects on the response properties of NTS taste units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A total of 311 units, responsive to natural stimulation of the oral cavity, were isolated from the rostral part of the solitary tract nucleus (NTS) of rats. Of these, 169 'taste neurons', activated by taste stimulation, and 142 mechanoreceptive units, exclusively sensitive to mechanical stimulation of the oral cavity, were found. Most taste units (62.3%) were also excited by mechanical stimulation. Forty-three (34.1%) of the 126 taste units examined were identified as solitario-parabrachial relay (SP) neurons by antidromic stimulation from the ipsilateral dorsal pons, while only eleven (12.6%) of the 87 mechanoreceptive units were SP neurons. Taste SP neurons could be divided into two subgroups according to their antidromic latency; the fast SP units with an antidromic latency shorter than 9 ms and slow SP units with a longer antidromic latency. These two subgroups were not differentiated in any physiological properties except that the fast SP neurons were frequently excited by sucrose. Taste neurons were classified according to the best stimulus of the four basic taste solutions to produce the largest number of discharges in each neuron. All types of taste neurons were found among the SP and non-SP neurons, but only a small number of quinine-best neurons (n = 2) were found in the SP neuron group compared to the number of quinine-best neurons in the non-SP neuron group (n = 10). A histological examination of the recording sites revealed that taste relay neurons were found at the central or dorsal part of the nucleus but mechanoreceptive relay neurons were found at the peripheral part, although relay and non-relay neurons of either class were intermingled in the nucleus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The receptive field (RF) of 67 taste and 85 mechanoreceptive neurons in the solitary tract nucleus (NTS) were located in the oral cavity in albino rats. All of the taste and most (62.4%) of the mechanoreceptive neurons examined had an RF on the ipsilateral side of the tongue and/or the palate. Regardless of whether they were solitario-parabrachial relay (SP) neurons or non-SP neurons, RFs of taste neurons were found on the anterior as well as the posterior tongue. But there were some differences in the RF distribution between the SP and non-SP mechanoreceptive neurons. Most of the mechanoreceptive SP neurons (9 of 11) had an RF on the tongue, while ca. half of the mechanoreceptive non-SP neurons (43 of 79) had an RF on the tongue and palate, but the rest had an RF on other tissue. Most of the neurons studied had a small restricted RF, but complex RFs, e.g. two separate RFs on the tongue, were found in a relatively small number of neurons (four taste and five mechanoreceptive neurons). An inhibitory RF, usually in a remote place from the excitatory RFs, was found in four mechanoreceptive neurons but no inhibitory RFs for taste neurons. Electrical stimulation of the epithelium in the RF with a low current of short duration evoked a few spikes in most units. Two of the three units, giving rise to a vigorous response to taste stimulation, but having single restricted RFs on the anterior tongue, produced a train of spikes lasting more than 20 ms in response to electrical stimulation of the RF. Neurons with RFs on the anterior tongue and those with RFs on the posterior tongue were located in different regions in the NTS, suggesting a possible somatotopic representation of the oral cavity in the nucleus. RFs of neither taste neurons nor mechanoreceptive neurons could be found in the tongue region containing the circumvallate papilla. The possible reasons are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The localization of peptidergic, catecholaminergic, and nitroxidergic nerve fibers in the ventral leptomeningeal connective tissue compartment was studied in whole-mount preparations and serial semithin and ultrathin sections. For immunocytochemistry, whole-mount preparations of the leptomeninges and ventral brain slices with the meninges were incubated as free-floating specimens with primary antibodies against protein gene product 9.5 (PGP 9.5), substance P (SP), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DβH), vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP), neuropeptide Y (NPY), and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase method. Based on the regional differences of the connective tissue organization, the leptomeninx is subdivided into the pial, trabecular, and adventitial leptomeninx. The antibody PGP 9.5 stains all unmyelinated nerve fibers in the leptomeninx. Although the highest density of nerve fibers occurs in the adventitial leptomeninx, nerve fibers, and terminals are additionally present in the trabecular and pial leptomeninx. DβH-, NPY-, VIP- and NOS-immunoreactive (IR) nerve fibers occur exclusively in the adventitial leptomeninx forming neuromuscular junctions. CGRP- and SP-IR nerve fibers are localized in all three leptomeningeal compartments where they terminate close to the subarachnoid space (type 1) or within the connective tissue (type 2). Due to their morphological and immunocytochemical characterization a possible chemo-, mechano- or nociceptive function is discussed in the context of pathophysiological aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the ant genus Diacamma, all workers eclose from their cocoons with little clublike thoracic appendages, called gemmae. Whether these gemmae are mutilated determines individual behaviour, and ultimately reproductive role, in two of the three species examined. The gemmae are covered with sensory hairs, which probably serve a mechanoreceptive function. The sensory afferents arising from these hairs were stained and traced into the central nervous system (CNS). They feature widely distributed collaterals invading all three thoracic ganglia as well as the suboesophageal and the second abdominal ganglia. The multisegmental arborization pattern of the gemma afferents is very similar to that of wing-hair afferents of other ants (queens and males) or other insects in general. This implies that gemmae and wings are homologous structures. We discuss the morphology of the gemma afferents with respect to their possible involvement in the behavioural changes associated with mutilation. The neuronal processing may be modulated by (1) the decrease of sensory input onto interneurons (suggested by the afferents' extensive arborizations); or (2) by the effect of neuromodulatory substances (suggested by the finding that terminals occur within the cell body rind of the ganglion). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the spiny eel, Macrognathus aculeatus, anterodorsal and (to a lesser degree) anteroventral lateralline nerves project massively to the granular layer of the valvula cerebelli, throughout its rostrocaudal extent. The posterior lateral-line nerve terminates in the corpus cerebelli. Thus, valvula and corpus cerebelli are supplied with mechanosensory input of different peripheral origins. An analysis of the taxonomic distribution of experimentally determined primary lateral-line input to the three parts of the teleostean cerebellum reveals that the eminentia granularis always receives such input, and that the corpus cerebelli is the recipient of primary lateral-line input in many teleosts. The valvula, however, receives primary lateral-line afferents in only two examined species. In M. aculeatus, the massive lateral-line input to the valvula probably originates in mechanoreceptors located in the elongated rostrum of the upper jaw, a characteristic feature of mastacembeloid fishes. This projection to the valvula may therefore represent a unique specialization that arose with the evolution of the peculiar rostrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anterior oesophageal sensilla (AOS) of Astacus astacus are short cuticular cylinders with a terminal pore. Three sensory cells belong to each AOS, two of them having a dendritic ciliary segment of about 2 μm length (A-cells), the third having this segment about 12 μm long (B-cell). The ciliary A-tubules in the B-cells only possess arms and an electron-dense core. The dendritic inner segments of the A-cells terminate 3-6 μm distal of the B-cells. The dendritic tips of most A-cells are connected by desmosomes. All dendritic inner segments contain a ciliary rootlet and are accompanied by a scolopale within the innermost enveloping cell. There are four enveloping cells, three of which form thin subepithelial columns together with the enclosed sensory cells. Recordings from the posterior branch of the anterior oesophageal nerve containing the axons of the AOS revealed the presence of three types of sensory cells, two being chemosensitive and one mechanosensitive. One chemoreceptor is specifically sensitive to nicotinamide, but responded also to β-NAD, 6-aminonicotinamide, nicotinamide methyl esther and nicotin. It was blocked by p(4)-acetylpyridine. The second chemoreceptor responded only to crayfish gastric fluid. The mechanoreceptors reacted to stretch of the oesophageal wall adapting only slowly to maintained stimuli. It is assumed that the A-cells are the chemosensitive cells and the B-cells the mechanosensitive ones. The latter show only a small number of modality-specific characteristics. Several structural features appear to be correlated with the location of the AOS within a flexible surface, which undergoes considerable dilation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modified cilium (dendrite) of epithelial mechanoreceptors of insects contains microtubules in different arrangements: (1) microtubules distributed over the entire receptor and not fixed in a special configuration, therefore called free microtubules, (2) densely packed, interconnected microtubules called the tubular body, and (3) 9 doublet microtubules. These groups of microtubules have been discussed in relation to mechanotransduction. In a preceding paper the free microtubules were proved to be not involved in mechanotransduction. In this paper the hypothesis is examined that the tubular body may be essential to mechanotransduction. For this purpose the effect of the microtubule-disassembling drug vinblastine on both the tubular body and the sensitivity is examined in a femoral mechanoreceptor of the cricket Acheta domesticus. After 6- to 26-h exposure to vinblastine the tubular body is partially or totally destroyed. Simultaneously, mechanical sensitivity decays to zero. In contrast, the pacemaker property for nerve impulses of the apical dendritic segment is only slightly altered. We conclude from these results that the tubular body is essential to mechanotransduction. Three experiments in which a (small) response persisted, despite a totally destroyed tubular body, suggest that receptor potentials can in principle be evoked without an intact tubular body. In addition to the irreversible reduction of receptor sensitivity, vinblastine causes a reversible reduction during repetitive stimulation. This adaptation is supposed to be the consequence of altered properties of the tubular body. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microtubules (Mt) are present in the modified cilium of epithelial mechanoreceptors of insects in three different arrangements: (1) 9 doublet Mt in the proximal region of the outer segment, (2) densely packed, interconnected Mt of the tubular body in the dendritic tip receiving the adequate stimuli, and (3) Mt between ciliary neck and tubular body, which are not fixed in a special configuration and therefore called free Mt. The free Mt are considered by some authors to be elements of intracellular signal transmission. This hypothesis was examined by electrophysiological and morphological studies on a tibial hair-mechanoreceptor of a cricket ( Acheta domesticus). Exposure of the receptor from the apical side to vinblastine disassembled the free Mt within 2 to 4 h, while Mt of the tubular body were only little affected during this time interval. In this state of Mt disassembly (up to 7 h of application) mechanosensitivity of the receptor is only slightly reduced or not at all. The pacemaker property of the dendrite for nerve impulse is also preserved. It is concluded that the free Mt are not elements of intracellular signal transmission and are not directly involved in mechanotransduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The setae on the inner edges of the pereiopod chelae of Austropotamobius torrentium contain eight receptor-cell endings. Two units are mechanosensitive, four react only to amino acids, to amines, or to pyridines. The remaining two units are most probably also chemoreceptors. All sensory cells possess long dendritic outer segments that extend to the tip of the seta, where a small pore is found. Structurally, two units differ from the other six by having (1) densely packed microtubules in their dendritic outer segments, (2) dense A-tubules with arms in their ciliary segments, (3) a well-developed ciliary rootlet in their dendritic inner segments, and (4) desmosomal junctions between the dendritic inner segment and the inner enveloping cell, which contains a scolopale. These features are probably general characteristics of crustacean mechanoreceptors. The mechanoreceptors respond only to strong mechanical stimuli. This corresponds to the structural features of the setae, which lack specialized socket structures. Deflection of the setae may lead to longitudinal stress to the dendrites; the latter seem to be attached proximally to the inner enveloping cell and distally to the cuticle. Thus, the mechanoreceptor structure suggests a function analogous to scolopidial receptors. The chemoreceptors are accessible to chemical stimuli via the subterminal pore. The walls of the setae, however, may be permeable as well. It seems probable that action potentials were recorded also from the dendrites of the sensory cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanosensory lateral line units recorded from the medulla (medial octavolateralis nucleus) and midbrain (torus semicircularis) of the bottom dwelling catfish Ancistrus sp. responded to water movements caused by an object that passed the fish laterally. In terms of peak spike rate or total number of spikes elicited responses increased with object speed and sometimes showed saturation (Figs. 7, 14). At sequentially greater distances the responses of most medullary lateral line units decayed with object distance (Fig. 11). Units tuned to a certain object speed or distance were not found. The signed directionality index of most lateral line units was between −50 and +50, i.e. these units were not or only slightly sensitive to the direction of object motion (Figs. 10, 17). However, some units were highly directionally sensitive in that the main features of the response histograms and/or peak spike rates clearly depended on the direction of object movement (e.g. Fig. 9C, D and Fig. 16). Midbrain lateral line units of Ancistrus may receive input from more than one sensory modality. All bimodal lateral line units were OR units, i.e., the units were reliably driven by a unimodal stimulus of either modality. Units which receive bimodal input may show an extended speed range (e.g. Fig. 18). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Equilibrated Paramecium caudatum cells exposed to a constant DC gradient reorient with their depolarized anterior ends toward the cathode (galvanotaxis). Voltage gradients were applied to cells swimming either horizontally or vertically. Their velocity and orientation were recorded and compared to unstimulated cells. The DC field increased the horizontal velocity (= reference) up to 175% (galvanokinesis). Swimming velocities saturated after 1 min and were unchanged during the following 4 min. The upward and downward swimming velocities of stimulated cells were below those of horizontal swimmers. The difference in vertical rates (determining gravikinesis) was independent of variations in absolute velocity. Normalization of vertical velocities to horizontal velocities (= 100%) separated DC-field dependent changes from gravity-induced changes in velocities. A weak voltage gradient (0.3 V/cm) was most effective in raising downward gravikinesis up to threefold (-202 μm/s) above the unstimulated reference (-66 μm/s) and to change sign of gravikinesis in upward swimmers (-43 μm/s →+33 μm/s). We conclude that DC-field stimulation is equivalent to a depolarizing bias on gravikinetic responses of Paramecium. The stimulation does not directly interfere with mechanoreception, but modulates somatic Ca entry to induce contraction of the cell soma. This presumably affects the gating of gravisensory transduction channels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whereas the function of mechanoreceptors is well known in birds there are no detailed investigations of central processing. Therefore the characteristics of neurones in a first relay, the dorsal column nuclei (nuclei gracilis et cuneatus and the nucleus cuneatus externus), were studied electrophysiologically by recording responses from individual neurones to mechanical stimulation of skin and deep tissue. Of 140 units 84 were cutaneous neurones. The remainder were tap- and deep-neurones. Tap-neurones were activated by sharp brief taps. Activity in deep-neurones was comparable to joint and tendon receptors but not to muscle spindles. Thirty-four cutaneous neurones were vibration sensitive neurones, 36 were slowly adapting neurones and 14 neurones were rapidly adapting and fast habituating cells. Vibration sensitive neurones were most sensitive to 200 to 500 Hz. Frequencies above 100 Hz elicited phase coupled responses. Within the nn. gracilis et cuneatus 61 were cutaneous neurones, 13 were deep-neurones and 7 were tap-cells. Within n. cuneatus externus 17 were cutaneous units, 21 were deep-neurones and 11 were tap-neurones. No vibration sensitive neurones were found within n. cuneatus externus. This means that coding for vibration is represented in the nn. gracilis et cuneatus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neurons in the olfactory deutocerebrum of the spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, were recorded intracellularly and filled with biocytin. Recorded neurons arborized in the olfactory lobe (OL), a glomerular neuropil innervated by olfactory and some presumptive mechanosensory antennular afferents. The neurons responded to chemosensory input from the lateral antennular flagellum bearing the olfactory sensilla but not the medial flagellum bearing many non-olfactory chemosensory sensilla. Many neurons received additional mechanosensory input. Thus the OL integrates specifically olfactory with mechanosensory input. OL neurons had multiglomerular arborizations restricted to one or two of the three horizontal layers of the columnar glomeruli. OL local interneurons comprised 'core' neurons with tree-like neurites and terminals in the base of the glomeruli and 'rim' neurons with neurites surrounding the OL and terminals in the cap/subcap. The somata of OL local interneurons lay in the medial soma cluster (100000 somata). OL projection neurons arborized in the base of the glomeruli and ascended via the olfactory glomerular tract to the lateral protocerebrum. A parallel projection pathway is constituted by projection neurons of the accessory lobe, a glomerular neuropil without afferent innervation but intimate links to the OL. The projection neuron somata constituted the lateral soma cluster (200000 somata). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamic ranges and stimulus-response properties of a large sample of cereal filiform receptors in Acheta domesticus were investigated electrophysiologically. The relation between receptor response and stimulus velocity was a sigmoid function, the log-linear portion of which spanned 1-1.5 log units of peak air-current velocity. Different receptors responded over different but overlapping velocity ranges, such that the system velocity sensitivity range spanned at least 2.5 log units. Plots of receptor response amplitude vs. stimulus direction were sinusoidal, with a period of 360°. Long-hair receptors responded in phase with air-current velocity, and intermediate-hair receptors responded in phase with air-current acceleration. These results extend those of Shimozawa and Kanou (1984a) and Kämper and Kleindienst (1990), in which the dynamics of receptor responses were shown to depend on hair length. When individual hairs were directly mechanically deflected, their receptors responded in phase with the first derivative of hair deflection. The signal transform between the air-current stimulus and the receptor response is comprised of two processes, one biomechanical/aerodynamic and one membrane biophysical. The results of this study suggest that the parametric sensitivities of receptors are primarily determined by hair biomechanical/aerodynamic properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Each cercus on the adult cricket Acheta domesticus bears 1000-2000 filiform hair mechanoreceptors. In order to determine the extent of 'identifiability' of individual hair receptors, the structural characteristics of ten putative identified hairs were measured in 21-25 different animals. For these ten hairs, the sets of preferred directions and circumferential locations had standard deviations of 6.8° and 5.9°, respectively. There was no significant inter-animal covariance between a hair's preferred direction and its circumferential location. The preferred directions of 246 different identified hairs were then measured from 16 animals in order to characterize the distribution of preferred directions of hairs on a single typical cercus. These data were transformed from the frame of reference of the cercus into that of the cricket, generating an estimate of the representation of air-current stimulus direction provided by the entire ensemble of filiform hairs on both cerci. The distribution of hair directional sensitivities was continuous but extremely non-uniform, and more complex than previous studies had suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anterior depolarizing mechanoreceptor potential and the correlated receptor currents have been studied in the marine ciliate Euplotes vannus. Mechanical stimuli that mimicked cell-cell collisions depolarized the resting potential of about - 25 mV to maximally - 5 mV, with a speed of 1.2 mV/ms, a delay to the stimulus of about 15 ms, and a repolarization within 30 to 300 ms. The power-stroke direction of the cirri-beat reversed from backward to forward during this response. The receptor current rose to an average amplitude of 1.4 nA with a speed of 0.1-0.3 nA/ms and decayed with a single exponential time course with a time constant between 7 and 9 ms. Similar current-reversal potentials, after substitution of extracellular Ca by Mg and vice versa, indicate that the mechanically activated conductance is identical for Ca or Mg. The current can be carried by Ba as well, but not by K or Na. Decirriation experiments have shown that the mechanosensitivity is located within the soma membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]