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On the function of the common inhibitory neurone in the walking legs of the crab,Eriphia spinifrons

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Summary

  1. 1.

    The activity of the motor axons innervating the closer and opener muscles in walking legs of the crabEriphia spinifrons was recorded on the trailing side during sideways walking on a treadmill.

  2. 2.

    During walking the ‘slow’ excitatory axon (SCE) to the closer and the ‘specific’ inhibitory axon (OI) to the opener discharged at about the same time in rhythmic, fairly discrete bursts and approximately reciprocally with the discharge of the single excitatory axon (OE) to the opener muscle. The ‘fast’ excitatory axon (FCE) to the closer was rarely active.

  3. 3.

    The common inhibitory neurone (CI) innervating both the closer and opener muscles was identified as being the smallest and most slowly conducting unit in the closer and opener nerves.

  4. 4.

    CI was active in walking crabs. In individuals stepping at low rates CI usually discharged tonically at an irregularly, low frequency throughout the step cycle.

  5. 5.

    The significance of CI activity for mechanical performance was investigated by stimulating the closer muscle of isolated recipient legs with artificial patterns or with naturally occurring activity in SCE and CI obtained from walking donor crabs.

  6. 6.

    The effect of CI was to increase relaxation between SCE evoked contractions with a small or no reduction in the amplitude of individual contractions.

  7. 7.

    The results suggest that one function of CI is to promote a phasic pattern of contractions in the limb muscle of walking crabs by eliminating the slow build up of tension in populations of tonic fibres.

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Abbreviations

CI :

common inhibitory neurone

FCE :

‘fast’ closer excitor

OE :

opener excitor

OI :

opener inhibitor

SCE :

‘slow’ closer excitor

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Author notes

  1. D. Ballantyne

    Present address: 1. Physiologisches Institut, Universität Heidelberg, D-6900, Heidelberg, Germany

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fakultät für Biologie, Universität Konstanz, D-7750, Konstanz, Germany

    D. Ballantyne & W. Rathmayer

  2. Stazione Zoologica, I-80121, Naples, Italy

    D. Ballantyne & W. Rathmayer

Authors
  1. D. Ballantyne
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  2. W. Rathmayer
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Additional information

The technical assistance of Mr. D. Ruhrmann as well as Mrs. C. Dittrich is gratefully acknowledged. We would also like to thank the director of the Zoological Station at Naples, Prof. Dr. A. Monroy, and Dr. A de Santis for hospitality and support during our stays at Naples, and Dr. W.J.P. Barnes for reading an earlier draft of this paper. This investigation was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB 138).

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Ballantyne, D., Rathmayer, W. On the function of the common inhibitory neurone in the walking legs of the crab,Eriphia spinifrons . J. Comp. Physiol. 143, 111–122 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00606074

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00606074

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