Prolonged Response to Calling Songs by the L3 Auditory Interneuron in Female Crickets (Acheta domesticus): Intracellular Evaluation

The L3 auditory interneuron in female Acheta domesticus, produces two different responses to the male calling song: an immediate response and a prolonged response. The prolonged response exhibited spiking activity and a correlated prolonged depolarization, both of which are clearly seen in intracellular recordings. The morphology revealed by intracellular staining was clearly the L3 neuron. The amplitude of the prolonged depolarization associated with the prolonged response increased with increases in sound intensity, resulting in increased spiking rates. Both depolarization and sound presentation increased the spiking rate and the slope of pre-potentials (thus leading to spiking threshold more quickly). Injecting hyperpolarizing current had the expected opposite effect. The effects of positive current injection and sound presentation were additive, resulting in spiking rates that were approximately double the rates in response to sound alone. Short postsynaptic potentials (PSPs), whose duration ranged from 15-60 ms, which may lead to action potentials were also observed in all recordings and summated with the prolonged depolarization, increasing the probability of spiking.