CROSS-CORRELATION ANALYSIS OF CEREBROBUCCAL CONNECTIVE ACTIVITY DURING APLYSIA FEEDING-BEHAVIOR

Two ''en passant'' electrodes were implanted around the cerebrobuccal connective (CBC) of Aplysia and used to record the activity, in the un restrained animal, under three behavioural conditions; (a) absence of feeding behaviour, (b) appetitive feeding behaviour and (c) consummato ry feeding behaviour. 2. The two simultaneous recordings were subjecte d to cross-correlation analysis, to subdivide spikes on the basis of t heir direction and speed of propagation. 3. There was virtually no CBC activity in the absence of food and feeding behaviour. 4. During appe titive feeding the metacerebral giant cell (MCC) was active and traffi c was heaviest in the cerebral-to-buccal direction. 5. During consumma tory feeding, traffic was also sustained in the buccal-to-cerebral dir ection; there was a reduction in the activity of the MCC, and a peak i n the activity travelling to the cerebral ganglia, in the region of hi gher conduction velocity, was especially pronounced. 6. Further analys is showed this peak to have its largest amplitude during the actual in gestion of food and to be the result of the firing of several differen t units. 7. CBC traffic in both directions was also activated in one c ase of ''spontaneous'' biting.