Stimulation-induced changes at crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) neuromuscular terminals.

The fine structure of neuromuscular terminals of the single excitor axon was examined in the limb stretcher muscle of the crayfish Procambarus clarkii. A morphometric comparison of the neuromuscular terminals of the left and right limbs of a control crayfish showed them to be similiar in qualitative as well as quantitative features. The excitor axon to the stretcher muscle of the right side was stimulated, by backfiring its branches in the adjacent opener muscle, at 20 Hz for 4-5 h per day over 4-5 days. The stretcher muscle on the left side was not stimulated and served as a control. Morphometric analysis of stimulated terminals revealed an increase in the number of dense bars and synaptic vesicles compared to their non-stimulated, contralateral counterparts. Since dense bars are regarded as active sites of transmitter release, changes in their number provide a morphological basis for synaptic plasticity.