3. Somatosensory System Flashcards
Subdivisions of somatosensory system
Proprioceptive
Enteroceptive
Exteroceptive
Exteroceptive division
Division is responsible for providing information about contact of the skin with objects in the external world, and a variety of cutaneous mechanoceptive, nociceptive (pain), and thermal receptors
Enteroceptive
Division has receptors for monitoring the internal state of the body and includes mechanoreceptors that detect distention of the gut or fullness of the bladder.
Proprioceptive
Division provides information about body and limb position and movement and relies primarily on receptors found in the joints, muscles, and tendons.
Mechanoreceptors
Touch, pressure, vibration and stretch
Location: skin, muscle, tendons, blood vessels, inner ear
Thermoreceptors
Cold, warm
Skin
Nociceptors
Stimuli causing tissue damage
Skin
Why are sensations of temperature and pain often grouped together
The sensations of pain and temperature are related and often grouped together because they are mediated by overlapping sets of receptors, share some common molecular mechanisms, and are conveyed by the same types of fibers in the PNS and the same pathways in the CNS.
Types of nerve fibers in somatosensory system
Group I/II. A-alpha and A-beta fibers
Group III. A-delta fiber
Group IV. C fiber
Group I/II. A-alpha fibers and A-beta fibres
Myelinated
Large diameter
Proprioception, light touch
Group III. A-delta fibers
Lightly myelinated
Medium diameter
Nociception
(mechanical, thermal, chemical)
Group IV. C fiber
Unmyelinated Small diamater Innocuous temeprature, itch Nociception (mechanical, thermal, chemical)
Types of mechanoreceptors
Pacinian corpuscle Meissner's corpuscle Hair follicles Ruffini's corpuscle Merkel's receptors Tactile discs
Pacinian corpuscle: location, adaptation, sensation encoded
Hairy/nonhairy skin; intramuscular
Very rapidly
Vibration, tapping
Meissner’s corpuscle: location, adaptation, sensation encoded
Nonhairy skin
Rapidly
Point discrimination, tapping, flutter
Hair follicles: location, adaptation, sensation encoded
Hairy skin
Rapidly
Velocity, direction of movement
Ruffini’s corpuscle: location, adaptation, sensation encoded
Hairy/nonhairy skin
Slowly
Strech, joint rotation
Merkel’s receptors
Nonhairy skin
Slowly
Vertical indentation of skin, light touch
Tactile discs
Hairy skin
Slowly
Vertical indentation of skin
Thermoreceptors
Respond slowly to temperature change
Slowly adapting receptors
Two types: warm receptors and cold receptors
What receptors are activated by extreme heat or cold?
Nociceptors not thermoreceptors
What channels are associated with thermosensation
TRP channels, which change to allow ions to flow through. They are associated with thermosensations. Humans have 6.
Why does spicy food make you feel hot? Why does mint make you feel cool?
Capsaicin in spicy food activated TRPV1; methol in mint activates TRPM8.
Do cold and warm receptors overlap
Yes, they have large windows
Describe structure of TRP channels
6 TM domains
A hole channel between 5th and 6th subunit, which triggers AP
6 subfamilies of thermoreceptors
TRPV4 TRPV3 TRPV2 TRPV1 TRPM8 TRP A1 Each activated at different temperatures. React to light and mechanical stimuli, chemicals and natural compounds.
Nociceptors
Respond to noxious stimuli (mechanical, thermal, and chemical) that cause tissue damage.
Two classes of nociceptors
- Thermal or mechanical
2. Polymodal
Thermal or mechanical nociceptors
Fast conducted A-delta nerve fibers; respond to mechanical or thermal stimuli such as sharp, pricking pain
Polymodeal nociceptors
Slow-conducting C fibers; respond to high-intensity mechanical, chemical, and thermal stimuli