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Science 13 August 1982:
Vol. 217. no. 4560, pp. 635 - 637
DOI: 10.1126/science.217.4560.635
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Articles

Androgens Alter the Tuning of Electroreceptors

J. HARLAN MEYER 1 and HAROLD H. ZAKON 2

1 Scripps Institution of Oceanography, A002, La Jolla, California 92093
2 Neurobiology Unit, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, A001, and Department of Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla 92093

Weakly electric fish possess electroreceptors that are tuned to their individual electric organ discharge frequencies. One genus, Sternopygus, displays both ontogenetic and seasonal shifts in these frequencies, possibly because of endocrine influences. Systemic treatment with androgens lowers the discharge frequencies in these animals. Concomitant with these changes in electric organ discharge frequencies are decreases in electroreceptor best frequencies; hence the close match between discharge frequency and receptor tuning is maintained. These findings indicate that the tuning of electroreceptors is dynamic and that it parallels natural shifts in electric organ discharge frequency.

Submitted on March 23, 1982
Revised on May 5, 1982


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Androgen-Induced Changes in the Response Dynamics of Ampullary Electrosensory Primary Afferent Neurons.
J. A. Sisneros and T. C. Tricas (2000)
J. Neurosci. 20, 8586-8595
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Plasticity of the electric organ discharge: implications for the regulation of ionic currents.
H Zakon, L Mcanelly, G. Smith, K Dunlap, G Lopreato, J Oestreich, and W. Few (1999)
J. Exp. Biol. 202, 1409-1416
   Abstract »    PDF »
Hormonal control of sexual differentiation: changes in electric organ discharge waveform.
A. Bass and C. Hopkins (1983)
Science 220, 971-974
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