Sensory Function Flashcards
5 types of somatosensory receptors
- mechanoreceptors
- thermoreceptors
- nocireceptors
- proprioceptors
- vestibular receptors
mechanoreceptors
local tissue deformation in skin and viscera
thermoreceptors
temperature in skin and brain
nocireceptors
pain in skin, viscera, and muscle
proprioceptors
movement and force in muscles and joints
vestibular receptors
head acceleration and tilt
types of sensory receptors
- specialized endings of afferent axons
2. separate cells that respond to stimuli and synapse to afferent neurons
how is stimulus intensity related to receptor potential
positively correlated
how is receptor potential related to action potential
all or none response at a threshold
how is stimulus intensity related to rate of action potentials
positively correlated
3 examples of different types of mechanoreceptors
- Ruffini corpuscles = warmth
- Mekle’s corpuscles = touch
- free nerve endings = pain
frequency code
bigger stimulus = more membrane channels in sensory endings that are distorted
population code
big stimulus = more sensory neurons recruited into activity
temporal pattern code
variability of firing rate may mediate certain types of sensation
2 main sensory axon types
- Ia sensory
2. IV sensory