vTN COMMAND-LIKE NEURON

vTN is a neuron located on the ventral surface of the buccal ganglia. It has projections down the post buccal nerve and across the buccal commissure to the contralateral buccal ganglion. vTN is strongly activated by radula mechanosensory neurons located in the buccal ganglia and conveys information about the presence of solid objects encountered during food searching behaviour to the rest of the feeding circuit. Short duration stimulation of a single vTN is sufficient to trigger fictive feeding cycles which outlast the duration of the vTN activity. vTN strongly excites the buccal command-like interneuron DINE.

References

Crossley, M., Staras, K., Kemenes, G., 2018. A central control circuit for encoding perceived food value. Sci Adv 4, eaau9180. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aau9180

Crossley, M., Simon, A., Marathe, S., Rau, C., Roth, A., Marra, V., Staras, K., 2025. Functional mapping of the molluscan brain guided by synchrotron X-ray tomography. PNAS.

Crossley, M., Staras, K., Kemenes, G., 2016. A two-neuron system for adaptive goal-directed decision-making in Lymnaea. Nat Commun 7, 11793. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms11793