Effects of temperature on identified central neurons that control jumping in the grasshopper

Grasshoppers, like many poikilotherms, are generally more active at warmer body temperatures. In particular, they jump more frequently when warm. To determine the neuronal basis of this increase in jumping activity, we investigated the effects of temperature on the properties of identified central neurons known to be involved in the control of the jump; these included the fast extensor tibiae (FETi) motoneuron and the C, G, and M interneurons. Heating did not result in a reduction in the current or voltage threshold for action potentials; in most cases, there was an increase in the current threshold with heating. At higher temperatures, the frequency-current relations of interneurons and motoneurons had steeper slopes. With strong current pulses, increasing the temperature resulted in an increase in the initial peak firing frequencies of central neurons and usually also in their steady state firing frequencies. A second temperature effect favoring increased CNS activity in warm grasshoppers was increased afferent input from the periphery. In a broad variety of sensory receptors, there was a dramatic increase in their sensitivity to sensory stimuli at both threshold and suprathreshold intensities. Various identified central neurons differed in the way in which some of their properties were influenced by temperature. The C and G interneurons showed a striking similarity in the unusual way in which their repetitive firing properties were influenced by heating. Since these neurons are sibling progeny of a single neuroblast, this shared physiological property is correlated with their developmental history.