A new approach to examining scorpion peg sensilla: the mineral oil flood technique

All scorpions possess jointed, ventral appendages called pectines. These organs have chemosensory, peg-shaped sensilla that detect substrate-borne chemicals. Previous physiological studies show that neurons within peg sensilla respond to an assortment of volatile organic chemical stimulants blown ac...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of arachnology 2009-01, Vol.37 (3), p.379-382
Main Authors: Knowlton, Elizabeth D., Gaffin, Douglas D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Appendages
Chemoreception
chemosensory
Electrophysiology
Ethanol
Floods
Liquids
mineral oil
Mineral oils
Neural networks
Neurons
Pectines
Physiological aspects
Pipettes
Scorpiones
Scorpions
Sensilla
Short Communication
Short Communications
stimulant
Stimulants
Volatiles
Zoology
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:All scorpions possess jointed, ventral appendages called pectines. These organs have chemosensory, peg-shaped sensilla that detect substrate-borne chemicals. Previous physiological studies show that neurons within peg sensilla respond to an assortment of volatile organic chemical stimulants blown across the sensillar opening. We developed an improved method of chemical stimulant delivery called the mineral oil flood technique to further investigate the neural circuitry of scorpion pectines. The new mineral oil flood technique allows us to deliver chemical stimulants directly to individual sensilla by introducing a polar, liquid substance under non-polar mineral oil. Unlike previous methods of stimulant delivery, the mineral oil flood technique allows for precise control over the duration of direct contact between a liquid stimulant of known concentration and a sensillum.
ISSN:0161-8202
1937-2396
DOI:10.1636/SH08-79SC.1