© Universität Bielefeld
Load-Dependent Control of Locomotion
During walking, legs undergo cyclic changes in load - step after step. In a parallel research effort we study how stick insects integrate feedback from load sensors on their legs (campaniform sensilla) to control locomotion. In collaboration with the Zill Lab in Huntington/WV and the Büschges Lab in Cologne, we use extracellular recording methods to study how different groups of campaniform sensilla encode the loading and unloading of leg segments. In a complementary approach, we study how individual leg segments are loaded and unloaded in freely walking animals. Here we take advantage of the relatively long legs of stick insects to simultaneously record 3D joint kinematics, single leg ground reaction forces and multi-channel electromyograms. Picture: Campaniform sensilla on the tibia of a stick insect.