Summary
A new type of sensory cell in the body wall of Ceriantheopsis americanus is described. Its dendrite bears a cilium within a circle of stereocilia which are surrounded by a sheath-like projection of the dendrite. The sensory apparatus is embedded in the soma of a muscle cell which forms two sheaths that interdigitate with that of the dendrite. The sensory cell receives an efferent innervation, presumably inhibitory, from the same type of nerve cell that innervates the musculature. It is suggested that the sensory cell is a mechanoreceptor sensitive to body wall distortion due to mechanical stimulation and to tilt of the body relative to gravity.
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This work was supported by grant MH-11218 from the U.S. Public Health Service.
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Peteya, D.J. A possible proprioceptor in Ceriantheopsis americanus (cnidaria, ceriantharia). Z.Zellforsch 144, 1–10 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00306682
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00306682