special senses Flashcards
(93 cards)
what are the five special senses?
- smell
- taste
- hearing
- vision
- balance
what do mechanoreceptors respond to?
stretch, bend or deformation
what special senses are mechanoreceptors responsible for?
hearing and balance
what special sense are photoreceptors responsible for?
vision
what special senses are chemoreceptors responsible for?
smell and taste
what are the special sensory receptors?
- mechanoreceptors
- photoreceptors
- chemoreceptors
what do special sensory receptors do with a stimulus?
convert into action potentials that travel to the brain for interpretation
what are the three major areas of the ear?
- external ear
- middle ear
- internal ear
what is the external ear responsible for?
hearing only
what is the middle ear responsible for?
hearing only
what is the internal (inner) ear responsible for?
hearing and balance
what are the major structures of the external ear?
- auricle (pinna)
- external acoustic meatus
- tympanic membrane
what are the major structures of the middle ear?
- auditory ossicles
- pharynotympanic tube
what are the auditory ossicles?
- malleus=hammer
- incus=anvil
- stapes=stirrup
what is the role of the auditory ossicles?
to transmit and amplify the vibratory motion of the tympanic membrane to the oval window
what is the role of the pharyngotympanic tube?
equalises air pressure in the middle ear cavity with external air pressure
where is the internal (inner) ear located?
temporal bone
what are the two divisions of the internal ear?
- bony labyrinth
- membranous labyrinth
what is the bony labyrinth of the inner ear subdivided into?
- vestibule
- semicircular canals
- cochlea
what is the bony labyrinth of the inner ear filled with?
perilymph
what is the membranous labyrinth of the inner ear?
series of interconnecting sacs and ducts within the bony labyrinth filled with endolymph
what does the cochlea contain?
cochlear duct that houses spiral organ (of Corti)
what is the spiral organ of corti composed of?
cochlear hair cells
what causes depolarisation in the spiral organ of Corti?
pressure waves create movement on the basilar membrane, causing hair cells to move against tectorial membrane