XB-ART-30593
J Exp Biol
1982 Aug 01;99:175-84.
Show Gene links
Show Anatomy links
The neuromuscular basis of swimming movements in embryos of the amphibian Xenopus laevis.
Abstract
When removed from their egg membranes, Xenopus embryos can swim. High-speed cinematography shows that, in swimming, lateral undulations pass rostro-caudally down the body. The swimming rhythm period is 40-100 ms. In swimming, electrical activity in myotomal muscles alternates on opposite sides of a segment and sweeps rostro-caudally in ipsilateral myotomes. Myotome muscle physiology was examined. Muscle fibres are electrically coupled to each other, and the fibres are able to spike. The possible role of a myotomal conduction pathway in swimming is discussed.
PubMed ID: 7130896
Article link: J Exp Biol