Meeting Abstract

77.3  Tuesday, Jan. 6  Do crayfish like spicy foods? and other tests of crustacean nociception PURI, Sakshi*; FAULKES, Zen; The University of Texas-Pan American; The University of Texas-Pan American zfaulkes@utpa.edu

Nociception is the detection of noxious stimuli. Nociception is closely related to, but is not synonymous with, pain. Because of its clear functional significance, nociception should be common to most animals, but it has been little studied in invertebrates. Nociceptors, the sensory neurons specialized for nociception, are triggered by extreme pH and capsaicin (the ingredient that makes chili peppers hot) in many species, including some invertebrates. We tested the hypothesis that decapod crustaceans have nociceptors that are triggered by these two types of stimuli. Three decapod crustacean species were tested: Louisiana red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii), white shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus), and grass shrimp (Palaemonetes sp.). Applying 6M sodium hydroxide to the antennae caused no change in behaviour in P. clarkii and L. setiferus. Applying 6M hydrochloric acid to the antennae of P. clarkii also caused no change in behavior. Applying 1M sodium hydroxide to the antennae significantly reduced the activity of Palaemonetes sp. in the 10 minutes following application of the stimuli, but applying 1M hydrochloric acid caused no significant change in activity. To test for responses to capsaicin, foods containing variable amounts of capsaicin were given to P. clarkii. The crayfish were given Anaheim peppers (low capsaicin content) and habaneros (high capsaicin content) first separately, then together. Crayfish ate both habaneros and Anaheim peppers. When given both types of peppers at the same time, the crayfish preferred habaneros. These results only weakly support the idea that crustaceans have nociception.