Alteration of bursting properties in interneurons during locust flight

1. The contribution of bursting properties to the generation of the flight motor pattern was examined for two identified interneurons (interneurons 566 and 567) in the flight system of the locust Locusta migratoria by means of intracellular recording and stimulation techniques. These interneurons are important elements in transmitting proprioceptive information from the hindwing tegula to wing elevator motoneurons. 2. Offset currents injected into these neurons revealed that bursts are triggered in the intact flying animal by synaptic input from tegula afferents (n = 10). These bursts lead to an amplification of proprioceptive input that is crucial for the generation of the intact flight motor pattern. In the absence of afferent input the activity of these neurons remained subthreshold for triggering a burst. This explains why these neurons exhibit only weak rhythmic oscillations in deafferented animals. 3. The property of interneuron 566 to burst was conditional, always being expressed during flight (n = 14) and occurring only occasionally in the quiescent animal. In the absence of flight, stimulation of tegula afferents never evoked bursts in interneuron 566 (n = 7) and depolarizing current pulses evoked weak bursts in only three of nine preparations. In 2 of 14 animals, bursting property of interneuron 566 was enhanced just after the termination of flight. 4. Variability in the bursting property was also found for interneuron 567. In the quiescent animal, tegula-evoked compound excitatory postsynaptic potentials were not sufficient to trigger bursts (n = 3) but depolarizing current pulses evoked always weak rhythmic bursting activity (n = 4). This bursting property was also variable and in one animal we found long-lasting plateau potentials that could be evoked by current injection after flight was elicited several times. 5. The data presented demonstrate that the capacity to burst is conditional in the interneurons 566 and 567. Bursting properties are always induced during flight and function to amplify proprioceptive pathways that are important for the generation of the intact flight motor pattern.