Neuropeptides in identified Aplysia neurons.

Extensive electrophysiological experiments on Aplysia neurons have resulted in an understanding of simple behaviors in terms of the activities of a single identified neurons. Beginning with the work of Kupfermann & Kandel, neuropeptides in Aplysia have become increasingly implicated as chemical agents that control or affect behavior. Several neuropeptides have been isolated and characterized; recently, the genes that code for several of these neuropeptides have been isolated. Studies of neuropeptide gene expression and the behaviors affected thereby have been bridged in the egg-laying hormone neuroendocrine system. The role of polyproteins in coordinating complex, fixed-action patterns is beginning to emerge. The continued investigation of this neuroendocrine system, and the other cell-specific polyproteins that have been characterized more recently, promises to yield further insights into the roles of neuropeptides in governing behavior.