GABA and Gut Motility

Kerr, Donald; Ong, Jennifer

doi:10.1007/978-3-642-76915-3_3

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Thus, glutamate would be an “excitatory” cue for microbial mat grazers‐seeking bacteria, while GABA would be a signal that bacterial prey have been successfully targeted by acid secretion. GABA is therefore a measure of sunk cost by a bacterial grazer, and a predictor of the expected gain for remaining in place, which could be co‐opted to inhibit active search behavior (Kerr & Ong, 1992). Various other neurotransmitters and neuromodulators that affect the behavior and mood of animals, including humans, are metabolites characteristic of bacterial strains that Ediacaran grazers may have sought, or sought to avoid (Grandy, 2007; Kaelberer & Bohorquez, 2018; Pirri, McPherson, Donnelly, Francis, & Alkema, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Events in Early Nervous System Evolution

Paulin

Cahill-Lane

2019

Topics in Cognitive Science

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We propose that neurons and nervous systems evolved among thin, motile, microbe‐eating animals during the Ediacaran period (635–543 million years ago). Spiking neurons evolved from epithelial cells around the margins of Ediacaran microbial mat grazers that initially specialized to detect weak bioelectric fields of nearby animals and to trigger rapid withdrawal movements. According to this scenario, nervous systems are a consequence of two preceding animal innovations, external digestion and motility, which have co‐evolved in concert with nervous systems ever since. We suggest that fundamental characteristics of modern nervous systems can be explained by studying how nervous systems originated during the Ediacaran period, as natural computers for predictive statistical inference given event‐based sense data.

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