Other Neuroscience and Neurobiology Commons^™

Mechanisms Underlying Variable Responses To The Neuropeptide C-Type Allatostatin (Ast-C) Across Isoforms And Among Individuals In The American Lobster, Homarus Americanus, Audrey J. Muscato

Honors Projects

Central pattern generators (CPGs) produce patterned outputs independent of sensory input. The cardiac neuromuscular system of the American lobster (Homarus americanus) is driven by a CPG called the cardiac ganglion (CG), which is composed of nine neurons, making it a model system of study. Modulation of CPGs allows for functional flexibility. One neuropeptide family that modulates the CG is C-type allatostatin (AST-C I-III). Previous research has shown variation in the responses of the CG across the three isoforms and among individuals. First, we investigated why AST-C I and III elicit responses that are more similar to each other than they …