scholarly journals Multisensory Configural Learning of a Home Refuge in the Whip Spider Phrynus marginemaculatus

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaylyn AS Flanigan ◽  
Daniel D Wiegmann ◽  
Eileen A Hebets ◽  
Verner P Bingman
Keyword(s):  
Terminal Phase ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Configural Learning ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Paired Stimuli ◽  
Tactile Stimuli ◽  
Multisensory Representation

ABSTRACTWhip spiders (Amblypygi) reside in structurally complex habitats and are nocturnally active yet display notable navigational abilities. From the theory that uncertainty in sensory inputs should promote multisensory representations to guide behavior, we hypothesized that their navigation is supported by a configural, multisensory representation of navigational inputs, an ability documented in a few insects and never reported in arachnids. We trained Phrynus marginemaculatus to recognize a home shelter characterized by both discriminative olfactory and tactile stimuli. In tests, subjects readily discriminated between shelters based on the paired stimuli. However, subjects failed to recognize the shelter in tests with either of the component stimuli alone. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that the terminal phase of their navigational behavior, shelter recognition, can be supported by the integration of multisensory stimuli as a configural representation. We hypothesize that multisensory configural learning occurs in the whip spiders’ extraordinarily large mushroom bodies, which may functionally resemble the hippocampus of vertebrates.

scholarly journals Multisensory integration supports configural learning of a home refuge in the whip spider Phrynus marginemaculatus

2021 ◽  
Vol 224 (3) ◽  
pp. jeb238444
Author(s):  
Kaylyn A. S. Flanigan ◽  
Daniel D. Wiegmann ◽  
Eileen A. Hebets ◽  
Verner P. Bingman
Keyword(s):  
Multisensory Integration ◽  
Terminal Phase ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Configural Learning ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Paired Stimuli ◽  
Tactile Stimuli ◽  
Multisensory Learning

ABSTRACTWhip spiders (Amblypygi) reside in structurally complex habitats and are nocturnally active yet display notable navigational abilities. From the theory that uncertainty in sensory inputs should promote multisensory representations to guide behavior, we hypothesized that their navigation is supported by a multisensory and perhaps configural representation of navigational inputs, an ability documented in a few insects and never reported in arachnids. We trained Phrynus marginemaculatus to recognize a home shelter characterized by both discriminative olfactory and tactile stimuli. In tests, subjects readily discriminated between shelters based on the paired stimuli. However, subjects failed to recognize the shelter in tests with either of the component stimuli alone. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that the terminal phase of their navigational behavior, shelter recognition, can be supported by the integration of multisensory stimuli as an enduring, configural representation. We hypothesize that multisensory learning occurs in the whip spiders' extraordinarily large mushroom bodies, which may functionally resemble the hippocampus of vertebrates.

scholarly journals Neural substrate for higher-order learning in an insect: Mushroom bodies are necessary for configural discriminations

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (43) ◽  
pp. E5854-E5862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Marc Devaud ◽  
Thomas Papouin ◽  
Julie Carcaud ◽  
Jean-Christophe Sandoz ◽  
Bernd Grünewald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Memory Storage ◽  
Learning Theories ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Insect Brain ◽  
Configural Learning ◽  
Storage And Retrieval ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
Elemental Learning

Learning theories distinguish elemental from configural learning based on their different complexity. Although the former relies on simple and unambiguous links between the learned events, the latter deals with ambiguous discriminations in which conjunctive representations of events are learned as being different from their elements. In mammals, configural learning is mediated by brain areas that are either dispensable or partially involved in elemental learning. We studied whether the insect brain follows the same principles and addressed this question in the honey bee, the only insect in which configural learning has been demonstrated. We used a combination of conditioning protocols, disruption of neural activity, and optophysiological recording of olfactory circuits in the bee brain to determine whether mushroom bodies (MBs), brain structures that are essential for memory storage and retrieval, are equally necessary for configural and elemental olfactory learning. We show that bees with anesthetized MBs distinguish odors and learn elemental olfactory discriminations but not configural ones, such as positive and negative patterning. Inhibition of GABAergic signaling in the MB calyces, but not in the lobes, impairs patterning discrimination, thus suggesting a requirement of GABAergic feedback neurons from the lobes to the calyces for nonelemental learning. These results uncover a previously unidentified role for MBs besides memory storage and retrieval: namely, their implication in the acquisition of ambiguous discrimination problems. Thus, in insects as in mammals, specific brain regions are recruited when the ambiguity of learning tasks increases, a fact that reveals similarities in the neural processes underlying the elucidation of ambiguous tasks across species.

scholarly journals Presynaptic developmental plasticity allows robust sparse wiring of the Drosophila mushroom body

eLife ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Najia A Elkahlah ◽  
Jackson A Rogow ◽  
Maria Ahmed ◽  
E Josephine Clowney
Keyword(s):  
Mushroom Body ◽  
Developmental Plasticity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Set Convergence ◽  
Limited Size ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Kenyon Cells ◽  
Complex Stimuli ◽  
Developmental Patterning

In order to represent complex stimuli, principle neurons of associative learning regions receive combinatorial sensory inputs. Density of combinatorial innervation is theorized to determine the number of distinct stimuli that can be represented and distinguished from one another, with sparse innervation thought to optimize the complexity of representations in networks of limited size. How the convergence of combinatorial inputs to principle neurons of associative brain regions is established during development is unknown. Here, we explore the developmental patterning of sparse olfactory inputs to Kenyon cells of the Drosophila melanogaster mushroom body. By manipulating the ratio between pre- and post-synaptic cells, we find that postsynaptic Kenyon cells set convergence ratio: Kenyon cells produce fixed distributions of dendritic claws while presynaptic processes are plastic. Moreover, we show that sparse odor responses are preserved in mushroom bodies with reduced cellular repertoires, suggesting that developmental specification of convergence ratio allows functional robustness.

scholarly journals Effects of spatiotemporal stimulus properties on spike timing correlations in owl monkey primary somatosensory cortex

2012 ◽  
Vol 108 (12) ◽  
pp. 3353-3369 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie L. Reed ◽  
Pierre Pouget ◽  
Hui-Xin Qi ◽  
Zhiyi Zhou ◽  
Melanie R. Bernard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Stimulus Onset ◽  
Spike Timing ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Spatial Proximity ◽  
Electrode Arrays ◽  
Paired Stimuli ◽  
Tactile Stimuli ◽  
Source Of Information

The correlated discharges of cortical neurons in primary somatosensory cortex are a potential source of information about somatosensory stimuli. One aspect of neuronal correlations that has not been well studied is how the spatiotemporal properties of tactile stimuli affect the presence and magnitude of correlations. We presented single- and dual-point stimuli with varying spatiotemporal relationships to the hands of three anesthetized owl monkeys and recorded neuronal activity from 100-electrode arrays implanted in primary somatosensory cortex. Correlation magnitudes derived from joint peristimulus time histogram (JPSTH) analysis of single neuron pairs were used to determine the level of spike timing correlations under selected spatiotemporal stimulus conditions. Correlated activities between neuron pairs were commonly observed, and the proportions of correlated pairs tended to decrease with distance between the recorded neurons. Distance between stimulus sites also affected correlations. When stimuli were presented simultaneously at two sites, ∼37% of the recorded neuron pairs showed significant correlations when adjacent phalanges were stimulated, and ∼21% of the pairs were significantly correlated when nonadjacent digits were stimulated. Spatial proximity of paired stimuli also increased the average correlation magnitude. Stimulus onset asynchronies in the paired stimuli had small effects on the correlation magnitude. These results show that correlated discharges between neurons at the first level of cortical processing provide information about the relative locations of two stimuli on the hand.

Multisensory Effects on Illusory Self-Motion (Vection): the Role of Visual, Auditory, and Tactile Cues

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Brandy Murovec ◽  
Julia Spaniol ◽  
Jennifer L. Campos ◽  
Behrang Keshavarz
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cues ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Tactile Stimuli ◽  
Visual Phenomenon ◽  
Sensory Cue ◽  
Tactile Cues ◽  
Multisensory Cues ◽  
Four Levels ◽  
Self Motion

Abstract A critical component to many immersive experiences in virtual reality (VR) is vection, defined as the illusion of self-motion. Traditionally, vection has been described as a visual phenomenon, but more recent research suggests that vection can be influenced by a variety of senses. The goal of the present study was to investigate the role of multisensory cues on vection by manipulating the availability of visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli in a VR setting. To achieve this, 24 adults (Mage = 25.04) were presented with a rotating stimulus aimed to induce circular vection. All participants completed trials that included a single sensory cue, a combination of two cues, or all three cues presented together. The size of the field of view (FOV) was manipulated across four levels (no-visuals, small, medium, full). Participants rated vection intensity and duration verbally after each trial. Results showed that all three sensory cues induced vection when presented in isolation, with visual cues eliciting the highest intensity and longest duration. The presence of auditory and tactile cues further increased vection intensity and duration compared to conditions where these cues were not presented. These findings support the idea that vection can be induced via multiple types of sensory inputs and can be intensified when multiple sensory inputs are combined.

scholarly journals Coincident postsynaptic activity gates presynaptic dopamine release to induce plasticity in Drosophila mushroom bodies

eLife ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kohei Ueno ◽  
Ema Suzuki ◽  
Shintaro Naganos ◽  
Kyoko Ofusa ◽  
Junjiro Horiuchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Dopamine Release ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Simultaneous Stimulation ◽  
Postsynaptic Activity ◽  
Dopamine Signaling ◽  
Stimulation Of

Simultaneous stimulation of the antennal lobes (ALs) and the ascending fibers of the ventral nerve cord (AFV), two sensory inputs to the mushroom bodies (MBs), induces long-term enhancement (LTE) of subsequent AL-evoked MB responses. LTE induction requires activation of at least three signaling pathways to the MBs, mediated by nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs), NMDA receptors (NRs), and D1 dopamine receptors (D1Rs). Here, we demonstrate that inputs from the AL are transmitted to the MBs through nAChRs, and inputs from the AFV are transmitted by NRs. Dopamine signaling occurs downstream of both nAChR and NR activation, and requires simultaneous stimulation of both pathways. Dopamine release requires the activity of the rutabaga adenylyl cyclase in postsynaptic MB neurons, and release is restricted to MB neurons that receive coincident stimulation. Our results indicate that postsynaptic activity can gate presynaptic dopamine release to regulate plasticity.

scholarly journals Presynaptic developmental plasticity allows robust sparse wiring of the Drosophila mushroom body

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Najia A. Elkahlah ◽  
Jackson A. Rogow ◽  
Maria Ahmed ◽  
E. Josephine Clowney
Keyword(s):  
Mushroom Body ◽  
Developmental Plasticity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Set Convergence ◽  
Limited Size ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Kenyon Cells ◽  
Complex Stimuli ◽  
Developmental Patterning

AbstractIn order to represent complex stimuli, principle neurons of associative learning regions receive combinatorial sensory inputs. Density of combinatorial innervation is theorized to determine the number of distinct stimuli that can be represented and distinguished from one another, with sparse innervation thought to optimize the complexity of representations in networks of limited size. How the convergence of combinatorial inputs to principle neurons of associative brain regions is established during development is unknown. Here, we explore the developmental patterning of sparse olfactory inputs to Kenyon cells of the Drosophila melanogaster mushroom body. By manipulating the ratio between pre- and post-synaptic cells, we find that postsynaptic Kenyon cells set convergence ratio: Kenyon cells produce fixed distributions of dendritic claws while presynaptic processes are plastic. Moreover, we show that sparse odor responses are preserved in mushroom bodies with reduced cellular repertoires, suggesting that developmental specification of convergence ratio allows functional robustness.

Articulatory Intervention for the Visually Impaired

1979 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 139-144
Author(s):  
Cheri L. Florance ◽  
Judith O’Keefe
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
School Students ◽  
Handicapped Children ◽  
Paired Stimuli ◽  
Visually Handicapped ◽  
Parent Program

A modification of the Paired-Stimuli Parent Program (Florance, 1977) was adapted for the treatment of articulatory errors of visually handicapped children. Blind high school students served as clinical aides. A discussion of treatment methodology, and the results of administrating the program to 32 children, including a two-year follow-up evaluation to measure permanence of behavior change, is presented.

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