Respiratory behaviour in Lymnaea stagnalis: pharmacological and cellular analyses.

Using pharmacological and microelectrode approaches, evidence is presented here to suggest that exogenously applied dopamine can coordinate respiratory behavioural patterns and that its effects are reproduced using transmitter precursor such as L-DOPA. It is possible that dopamine reproduces sensory inputs to the respiratory network. Interactions between different transmitter substances underlie modifications of rhythmic discharges and enkephalins are able to modulate the respiratory rhythm.