Biomechanics and Neuromuscular Control

目前脊椎动物的神经肌肉系统是以前存在的系统的后代，经过修改以服务于新的功能。祖籍情况和修改的细节是其功能的重要方面。这个项目的目标是研究青蛙在进食行为演变过程中功能变化的神经肌肉基础。这是一个很好的模型系统，因为：1)人们很好地了解了青蛙的进化关系，物种之间的行为多样性很高；2)与摄食行为相关的感觉加工在青蛙身上已经得到了很好的研究，但运动输出受到的关注较少。将由Kiisa Nishikawa博士进行的实验集中在7个物种上，这些物种被选为能够对摄食系统中的功能变化进行系统发育分析。将学习肌肉骨骼解剖学、神经支配、运动核团的组织和运动神经元的细胞结构。运动学分析将用于研究神经肌肉事件的顺序和持续时间。肌肉功能将通过去神经实验进行研究。总之，这些实验将确定神经肌肉系统在系统发育过程中的进化变化，并阐明其解剖学和生理学基础。

Current neuromuscular systems in vertebrates are the descendants of previously existing systems, modified to serve new functions. The ancestral condition and the details of modification are important aspects of their function. The goal of this project is to study the neuromuscular basis for functional shifts during the evolution of feeding behavior in frogs. This is an excellent model system because: 1) evolutionary relationships of frogs are well understood and the behavioral diversity among species is high; and 2) sensory processing associated with feeding behavior has been well studied in frogs, but motor output has received less attention. The experiments to be performed by Dr. Kiisa Nishikawa focus on seven species chosen to permit phylogenetic analysis of functional shifts in the feeding system. Musculoskeletal anatomy, innervation, organization of motor nuclei, and cytoarchitecture of motor neurons will be studied. Kinematic analysis will be used to study the sequence and duration of neuromuscular events. Muscle function will be studied using denervation experiments. In total, these experiments will identify evolutionary changes in the neuromuscular system during phylogeny, and elucidate their anatomical and physiological basis.