On Oscillations in the External Electrical Potential of Sea Urchins

Abstract

Sea urchins display complex bioelectric activity patterns, even with their decentralized nervous system. Electrophysiological recordings showed distinct spiking patterns. The baseline potential was about 8.80 mV. It had transient spikes with amplitudes up to 21.05 mV. We observed many types of depolarization events. They included burst-like activity and prolonged state fluctuations lasting several seconds. Frequency domain analysis showed a power-law behavior. It had a scaling exponent of 6.21 ± 0.06, indicating critical dynamics. The analysis showed potential variations between 3.69 and 21.05 mV. The oscillation periods ranged from 4 to 3102 s. The varied timing of bioelectric signals suggests that these organisms can process information. This challenges traditional views of neural computation in simpler animals. These findings provide quantitative insights into the complex signaling mechanisms of the sea urchin’s distributed nervous system.