Nomographic correspondence between specialist cell responses, electroantennograms and the probability of behavioral response: the importance of comparable stimuli and a benchmark

Responses from single receptor cells, electroantennograms (EAGs) and the pr oportion of upwind flight in a wind tunnel elicited by graded stimulus stre ngths of (Z)-7-dodecenyl acetate (Z7-12:Ac) were measured from male cabbage loopers, Trichoplusia ni (Hubner). The approach that was taken to illustra te the relationship between these three measures on the same scale was to e xpress the airborne stimulus strength for all three measures in molar units . A collateral discovery was finding a linear relationship between spiking activity in the receptor cells and the proportion of the first two stages o f upwind flight behavior. Two validations corroborate the approach. The first of these demonstrates t hat, with only three exceptions, there is agreement between behavioral and electrophysiological measures from several laboratories. At the same time, there is a demonstration highlighting the importance of the use of a stimul us benchmark in establishing the relevancy of an experimental stimulus stre ngth to a natural context. The second validation shows that both electrophy siological and behavioral data can be used to estimate the same emission ra te of Z7-12:Ac at low dosages from filter paper. Published by Elsevier Scie nce Ltd.