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Somatosensory evoked potentials in the telencephalon of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) following galvanic stimulation of the tail

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Abstract

Electric activity in the brain which is time-locked to a given stimulation of the somatosensory system can be recorded as a somatosensory evoked potential (SEP). We investigated whether a galvanic stimulation of the tail base in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) would elicit a SEP in the telencephalon. The telencephalon is central in learning and memory, and activity here may be a prerequisite for processing of external stimuli on a cognitive or emotional level. Anaesthetized salmon (n = 11) were subjected to craniotomy and a recording electrode was inserted into the telencephalon. The fish were given stimulations of four intensities, i.e., 2, 5, 10 and 20 mA. A SEP was elicited in the contralateral dorsal telencephalon for all intensities. This result agrees with findings in other fish species. Furthermore, there was a significant difference between the maximum peak amplitude and mean amplitude of the SEP elicited by putative non-noxious (2 mA) and putative noxious (20 mA) stimulation intensities (P < 0.01). The stronger stimulation intensities also tend to introduce longer-latencies components in the SEP. The results added to the body of literature indicates that the exteroceptive senses are represented by processing within the telencephalon of the fish.

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Abbreviations

SEP:

Somatosensory evoked potential

ISI:

Inter stimulus interval

Emax :

Maximum effect

ES50 :

Stimulus strength giving 50% effect

S:

Stimulus strength (mA)

mA:

milli ampere

Dd:

Dorsal zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

Dd+Dl-d:

Dorsal plus dorsolateral zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

Dl:

Lateral zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

Dm:

Medial zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

Dc:

Central zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

Dp:

Posterior zone of the dorsal (pallial) telencephalon

PLL:

Posterior lateral line nerve

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Claudia Spadavecchia, Andreas Haga, Kristine Walhovd and Trond Svendsen for advice and discussions concerning the experimental set-up and analysis of data. We would also like to thank three anonymous referees for helpful comments. Thanks to the staff at ANT-ASA for good support concerning the use of their equipment on a new species in an aquatic environment. This work was funded by the Norwegian Research Council, grant no. 159667/S40, and the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep, 0033, Oslo, Norway

    Janicke Nordgreen, Tor Einar Horsberg & Birgit Ranheim

  2. Center for Higher Brain Functions, Capital Medical University, No.10 Xitoutiao, You An Men, Beijing, 100054, People’s Republic of China

    Andrew C. N. Chen

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  1. Janicke Nordgreen
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  2. Tor Einar Horsberg
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  4. Andrew C. N. Chen
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Correspondence to Janicke Nordgreen.

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Nordgreen, J., Horsberg, T.E., Ranheim, B. et al. Somatosensory evoked potentials in the telencephalon of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) following galvanic stimulation of the tail. J Comp Physiol A 193, 1235–1242 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-007-0283-1

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