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First published online April 23, 2004
Journal of Experimental Biology 207, 1803-1810 (2004)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2004
doi: 10.1242/jeb.00974
Control of planula migration by LWamide and RFamide neuropeptides in Hydractinia echinata

1 Ishinomaki Senshu University, Ishinomaki 986-8580, Japan
2 Hachinohe Institute of Technology, Hachinohe 031-8501, Japan
3 Zoological Institute, University of Munich, 80333 Munich,
Germany
4 Zoological Institute, Department of Cell Biology, University of
Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
* Author for correspondence at present address: Zoologisches Institut der Universitaet Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 230, W-69120 Heidelberg, Germany (e-mail: katsukura{at}zoo.uni-heidelberg.de)
Accepted 10 March 2004
Planula larvae of Hydractinia echinata (Cnidaria) settled on a substratum migrate toward light. We observed that planula migration is not a continuous process. Instead, it consists of repeating cycles of active migration (about 8 min on average) and inactive resting periods (about 26 min on average). This pattern of periodic migration is regulated by LWamide and RFamide neuropeptides. LWamide (10-8 mol l-1) stimulates migration primarily by making the active periods longer, whereas RFamide (10-7 mol l-1) inhibits migration by blocking the initiation and also shortening the length of the active periods. Since sensory neurons containing LWamides and RFamides are present in planula larvae, it appears likely that planula migration is regulated by the release of endogenous neuropeptides in response to environmental cues.
Key words: Hydractinia echinata, planula migration, RFamide neuropeptide, LWamide neuropeptide
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