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Larval lampreys possess a functional lateral line system

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Abstract

Morphology of larval lampreys’ neuromasts was found to be very similar to that of adults. Activity in the lateral line nerve, elicited by a vibrating ball, indicated a functional lateralis system. Analysis revealed at least two populations of afferents, responding to opposite directions of water flow, with adapting responses. The response magnitude increased monotonically with stimulus amplitude. Larval lampreys’ neuromasts were less sensitive than those of teleosts. At low frequencies the response showed a phase lead of 200–220° with respect to the maximum of the ball displacement and a gain that was approximately linearly proportional to frequency.

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Fig. 1
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Abbreviations

LLS:

Lateral line system

PLLN:

Posterior lateral line nerve

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Mr Timothy Maugel (University of Maryland, Electron Microscopy Laboratory) for assistance with SEM, Dr Tim Kiemel for help with the data analysis, and Dr Christopher Braun (Hunter College, CUNY) for valuable discussion. Experimental procedures were in compliance with the University of Maryland IACUC regulations. This work was supported by NIH grant 1RO1NS054271 to AHC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    S. Gelman, A. Ayali, E. D. Tytell & A. H. Cohen

  2. Institute for Systems Research, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    A. Ayali & A. H. Cohen

  3. Department of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    A. Ayali

Authors
  1. S. Gelman
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  2. A. Ayali
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  3. E. D. Tytell
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  4. A. H. Cohen
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Correspondence to S. Gelman.

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Gelman, S., Ayali, A., Tytell, E.D. et al. Larval lampreys possess a functional lateral line system. J Comp Physiol A 193, 271–277 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0183-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0183-9

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