Regulation of response properties and operating range of the AFD thermosensory neurons by cGMP signaling.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The neuronal mechanisms that encode specific stimulus features in order to elicit defined behavioral responses are poorly understood. C. elegans forms a memory of its cultivation temperature (T(c)) and exhibits distinct behaviors in different temperature ranges relative to T(c). In particular, C. elegans tracks isotherms only in a narrow temperature band near T(c). T(c) memory is in part encoded by the threshold of responsiveness (T∗(AFD)) of the AFD thermosensory neuron pair to temperature stimuli. However, because AFD thermosensory responses appear to be similar at all examined temperatures above T∗(AFD), the mechanisms that generate specific behaviors in defined temperature ranges remain to be determined.

Results

Here, we show that the AFD neurons respond to th

SUBMITTER: Wasserman SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3057529 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature