Oscillatory stimuli differentiate adapting circuit topologies.

Abstract

Adapting pathways consist of negative feedback loops (NFLs) or incoherent feedforward loops (IFFLs), which we show can be differentiated using oscillatory stimulation: NFLs but not IFFLs generically show ‘refractory period stabilization’ or ‘period skipping’. Using these signatures and genetic rewiring we identified the circuit dominating cell cycle timing in yeast. In C. elegans AWA neurons we uncovered a Ca2+-NFL, diffcult to find by other means, especially in wild-type, intact animals. (70 words)