Sensing of sound pressure gradients by C. elegans drives phonotaxis behavior.

ABSTRACT: Despite lacking ears, the nematode C. elegans senses airborne sound and engages in phonotaxis behavior, enabling it to locate and avoid sound sources.¹ How worms sense sound, however, is not well understood. Here, we report an interesting observation that worms respond only to sounds emitted by small but not large speakers, indicating that they preferentially respond to localized sound sources. Notably, sounds emitted by small speakers form a sharp sound pressure gradient across the worm body, while sounds from large speakers do not, suggesting that worms sense sound pressure gradients rather than absolute sound pressure. Analysis of phonotaxis behavior, sound-evoked skin vibration, and sound-sensitive neuron activities further support this model. We suggest that the ability to

SUBMITTER: Wang C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10575617 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature