Topic: reversals

An important goal of the nervous system is to integrate sensory cues with an animal’s current behavior state to generate a suitable motor response. However, the underlying neuronal mechanism behind how neural circuits integrate sensory and behavior signals remains unknown. To answer this question, we performed a systematic high-throughput optogenetic interrogation of the neural circuits underlying mechanosensorimotor processing in the nematode C. elegans. When C. elegans detects gentle touch from the environment, it usually responds by moving backward, also known as reversals. The likelihood o

Natural behavior requires flexible adjustments, for example when navigating complex environments or escaping predators. Previously, whole-brain recordings in C. elegans uncovered that a large proportion of neuronal activity relates to motor commands. However, the role of these distributed motor commands remains elusive.Here, we investigate changes in a C. elegans motor behavior and the corresponding distributed dynamics upon an environmental change. We find that environments that make movement more difficult provoke longer backwards movement, so-called “reversals”. Importantly, this prolongati