An integrated neuro-mechanical model of C. elegans forward locomotion

Abstract

One of the most tractable organisms for the study of nervous systems is the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, whose locomotion in particular has been the subject of a number of models. In this paper we present a first integrated neuro-mechanical model of forward locomotion. We find that a previous neural model is robust to the addition of a body with mechanical properties, and that the integrated model produces oscillations with a more realistic frequency and waveform than the neural model alone. We conclude that the body and environment are likely to be important components of the worm's locomotion subsystem. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.