Analysis of Synaptic Integration in Peg Sensilla of Scorpion Pectines

Safra Shakir; Biology; Safra.F.Shakir‐1@ou.edu

Faculty mentor: Douglas Gaffin; Biology; ddgaffin@ou.edu
Pectines are complex chemosensory organs located on the ventral side of the scorpion abdomen. The
pectines are composed of teeth that each contain tens to hundreds of microscopic peg sensilla that detect
stimuli when they brush against the ground (Gaffin & Brownell 1992, Gaffin & Brownell 1997a). The peg
sensilla contain both chemosensory and mechanosensory receptors (Foelix & Müller-Vorholt 1983). It
appears that most of the pegs along a pecten respond identically to the same chemicals (Knowlton &
Gaffin 2011).
Previous electrophysiological research on the peg sensilla of the sand scorpions Paruroctonus utahensis
and Smeringurus mesaensis revealed that the pegs contain three spontaneously active cells, named A1,
A2, and B (Gaffin 2010; Gaffin & Brownell 1997b). An interesting phenomenon is that these cells appear
to interact synaptically. Most notably, the activity of B cells inhibits the A cells for tens of milliseconds,
followed by an inhibitory rebound at about 100 ms. It has been suggested that this local network may
serve to enhance sensory information (Gaffin & Brownell 1997a), similar to lateral inhibitory circuits in
various sensory systems (Hartline & Ratliff 1958, Kuffler 1953, Urban 2002). However, during long baseline
recordings, or with increased A cell activity through stimulation, cross‐correlograms of A cells relative to
B cells show not only an inhibitory effect of B on A, but a peak in the A cells just prior to the firing of the
B cells. This suggests that there might be an excitatory effect of the A cells onto B cells. One possibility is
that the A cells are the main carriers of the chemosensory information with the B cells serving as a
governor to maintain the A cells within a sensitive range, such as during tracking of pheromonal signals
(Taylor et al. 2012).
We used desert grassland scorpions (Paruroctonus utahensis) captured from sandy areas near Monahans,
Texas. The animals were first immobilized by cold and placed ventral side up on a microscope slide to
allow access to the pectines. The pectines were adhered to half of a coverslip with double‐sided tape
which was held in position with clay. An electrode of silver wire was inserted into the tail to access the
hemolymph. Tungsten electrodes were electrolytically carved to a tip diameter of about 1 micron that
could insert into the base of individual peg sensilla. The ends of the silver indifferent electrode and
tungsten recording electrode were connected to a differential amplifier (DAM 70, World Precision
Instruments), and the signal was amplified (10,000 times) and band pass filtered between 300 Hz and 1
kHz. The signal was then relayed to an oscilloscope and to an A‐D converter (micro 1401, Cambridge
Electronics Design), which sent the recording to a computer for analysis (Spike 2 software, Cambridge
Electronics Design). The raw records were saved using special software (Spike2) and the action potentials
were isolated from background noise within the “New Wavemark” module. The data were then
transferred from the Spike2 program to a specially created MatLab program for accurately spike
classification.
The MatLab program allowed us to tag superimposed expanded waveforms within short pieces of record
and save the timestamps of the tagged spikes were to separate files. We then assessed the accuracy of
the spike classifications by autocorrelation. In this process, auto-correlograms were constructed by
centering each spike in a record within a short‐duration time windows and tallying the occurrence of other
spikes relative to the referenced spikes. Patterns emerge after summing all such windows across a record.
If the spikes are accurately classified, a characteristic clearing emerges around the referenced spikes,
which represents the spike refractory period (in other words, spikes cannot occur on top of themselves).
Through this iterative process we were confident that the A1, A2, and B spikes in our records were
accurately classified.
We made long‐term, extracellular recordings of spontaneous activity of peg sensilla from several animals.
After carefully isolating the three cell types we sub‐divided the records based on spiking frequency of the
A cells. We then assessed the activity of the B cells during short time windows relative to the different A
cell activity levels. The work is ongoing, but we predict that higher spiking frequencies of the A cells will
be directly correlated with increased firing frequency of the B cells. What seems to be emerging is a simple
feedback loop where increased firing frequency of the A1 and A2 cells excites the B cell which in turn
inhibits the A1 and A2 cells. This pattern appears to be repeated across the thousands of peg sensilla on
the scorpion’s pectines. While it is possible that this pattern may assist males in tracking pheromone trails
to females, females have pectines too. We will discuss some additional ideas relative to recent hypotheses
on the use of the pectines in home burrow navigation (Gaffin & Brayfield 2017).
References
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