Multisensory integration in the context of escape, from cell circuits to behavior.

MEDAN, VIOLETA

Lisboa

Congreso; International Congress of Neuroethology 2020; 2022

International Society for Neuroethology

S3.1Multisensory integration in the context of escape, from cell circuits to behaviorVioleta Medan11University of Buenos Aires, ArgentinaE-mail: violetamedan@fbmc.fcen.uba.arFast and accurate threat detection is critical for animal survival. Reducing perceptual ambiguity through integration of multiple sources of sensory information can enhance perception and reduce response latency. However, studies addressing the link between behavioral correlates of multisensory integration and its underlying neural basis are rare. In fish, the Mauthner cell receives inputs from the visual and auditory systems and commands the C-start escape response. We combined optic tectum and auditory stimulation with in vivo intracellular recordings to study multisensory integration in the Mauthner cell of goldfish. We found that audio-tectal cues produce a sublinear multisensory enhancement of the Mauthner cell response. In addition we found that integration in the Mauthner cells shows inverse effectiveness, i.e. that multisensory enhancement of the response is proportionally stronger for weaker cues. Paralleling electrophysiological results, behavioral experiments provided a functional role for multisensory integration. We found the strongest multisensory enhancement of the C-start when multimodal stimuli have minimum intensity while it disappears as salience increases. Temporal overlap between auditory and visual cues contribute to enhanced multisensory integration effectively decreasing response latency. That multisensory integration in single cells translates to actual behavioral advantage is a presumption that has received little empirical evidence. Here we show that Mauthner cells of goldfish integrate weak multisensory cues to enhance threat detection and reduce escape latency.