Physiology Midterm Flashcards
What Nervous system are sensory receptors in? What do they respond to? What do they produce? Where does this product go?
PNS
Respons to stimuli
they produce graded potential that trigger AP along afferent nerve fibres.
Eventually the signal goes to the cortex
How are sensory receptors classified?
Type of stimulus
location within body
complexity of the structure
What are 5 types of stimulus?
Mechanoreceptors thermoreceptors photoreceptors chemoreceptors nociceptors
What are the classifications of sensory recetora based on location?
exteroceptors
interoceptors
proprioceptors
What are the classification based on complexity
simple and complex
What are simple receptors involved in?
How can simple receptors be divided?
touch, pressure, vibration, temperature, pain, proprioception
Free (unencapsulated dendritic endings) & encapsulated dendritic endings
What are examples of free dendritic endings?
Tactile (Merkel cells)
Hair follicle receptors
What are 6 encapsulated dendritic endings?
Tactile (Meissner's corpuscle) lamellar (pacinian) corpuscle Bulbous (ruffini's endings) corpuscle Muscle spindles Golgi tendon organs joint receptors
What are complex one?
sense organs for special senses (vision, smell, etc)
What is the somatosensory system?
Part of the sensory system serving body walls and limbs. receives input from exteroceptors, interoceptors and proprioceptors.
What are the 3 levels of organization within the sensory system?
Receptor level
Circuit Level
Perceptual Level
What happens at the receptor level?
sensory receptors are specialized to respond to specific stimuli when in the receptive field. In response to stimuli a receptor potential is generated and then an AP.
Transduction, occurs which transforms a stimulus into an electrical response. The graded potential spreads to nodes of renvier (voltage gated channels) and AP is produced
What is transduction?
Transduction is when a stimulus is transformed into an electrical response
Which receptors adapt rapidly?
Slowly?
continuous?
Meissners/ Pacinicans
Merkel dics/ Ruffini’s endings
pain receptors and proprioceptors (non adapting)
What do 1st, 2nd and 3rd oder neurons do?
1st: cell bodies=located in ganglia (dorsal or cranial) conduct impulses from sensory receptors to spinal cord/brain stem with 2nd order.
2nd: cell bodies reside in dorsal horn of s.c or medullar nuclei. Transmit to thalamus/cerebellum
3rd: located in thalamus conduct impusles to somatosensory cortex in cerebrum. No 3rd neurons in cerebellum
What are the 3 ascending pathways? where found, termination and 1st synapse?
Spinothalamic: lateral and anterior spinothalamic tracts. Crosses over at the level of the spinal cord. Transmits pain, temperature, corse touch.
Dorsal Column Medial Lemniscal: formed by fasiculus cunatus and gracilis (dorsal white column) and medial lemniscal tracts. Synapses in medulla. Fine touch and conscious proprioception
Spinocerebellar tracts: anterior and posterior spinocerebllar tracts. Subconcious information to cerebellum. coordinates muscle activity
What is the pons?
the bridge between cortex and cerebellum. Inferior to midbrain, and forms anterior wall of 4th ventricle. Axons carry info to and from cerebellum
Where is the medulla ablongata?
What is it responsible for?
from pons to spinal cord. Has a role in the autonomic reflex centre for homeostasis. This includes the cardiovascular system, which controls cardiac and vasomotor centres It also includes the respiratory centre which controls the rate and depth of breathing. Some functions overlap with the hypothalamus which exerts control over most visceral functions by relaying instructions through medulla to effectors.
What is the decussation of pyramids? Where is it located?
The medulla, and it is where the motor neurons cross over
Where is the inferior olivary? what does it do?
It is located in the medulla and it relays proprioceptive information to the cerebellum
Where is the cerebellum? what is it involved with?
located dorsal to the pons and medulla. It protrudes under the occipital lobes of the cerebral hemispheres.
It processes inputs from cerebral cortex, brain stem nuclei and sensory receptors. It is involved with timing and patterns of skeletal muscle contraction
What are cerebellae peduncles?
3 paired fibre tracts that connect the cerebellum to the brain stem
What are the 3 peduncles?
Superior: connects the cerebellum and midbrain. The fibers start in the deep cerebellar nuclei and project to the cerebral motor cortex through the thalamus
Middle: connects pons and cerebellum. It is a one way communication fromn the pons to cerebellar neurons. It informs the cerebellum of voluntary motor activities initiated by the motor cortex
Inferior: connects cerbellum and medulla. It contains afferent tracts. Carries sensory information to cerebellum from muscle proprioceptos and vestibular nuclei of the brain. It is involved in equilibrium and balance
What happens in cerebral processing?
the cortex frontal motor association area indicates intent to initiate action and sends collateral to cerebellum to notify of intention.
-receives proprioceptive information and visual information and equilibrium pathways about body positioning. The cortex then receives information and determines the best way to coordinate force, direction and extent of muscle contraction. Through superior peduncles the cerebellum dispatches blueprints for coordination to the cortex. The output goes to brain stem nuclei which send to the motor neurons of the spinal cord.