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Postsynaptic Modulation Of Rectifying Electrical Synaptic Inputs To The Lg Escape Command Neuron In Crayfish, Donald H. Edwards, William J. Heitler, Esther M. Leise, Russell A. Fricke

Neuroscience Institute Faculty Publications

The lateral giant (LG) tail-flip escape system of crayfish is organized to provide a massive convergence of mechanosensory inputs onto the LG command neuron through electrical synapses from both mechanosensory afferents and interneurons. We used electrophysiological techniques to show that the connections between three major mechanosensory interneurons and LG rectify, and that their inputs to LG can be reduced by postsynaptic depolarization and increased by postsynaptic hyperpolarization. The mechanosensory afferents and interneurons are excited by sensory nerve shock, and the components of the resulting LG PSP can be similarly modulated by the same postsynaptic potential changes. Because these inputs are …