The Body Senses

Question 1

The system that provides information about the body senses, including touch, movement, pain, and temperature

Answer 1

Somatosensory System

Question 1

The sensory system that provides information about the position and movement of the head

Answer 1

Vestibular System

Question 2

The sensory organs of the vestibular system are found in the

Answer 2

inner ear

Question 3

2 types of the vestibular structures

Answer 3

Otolith Organs and Semicircular canals

Question 4

A structure in the inner ear vestibular system that provides information about the angle of the head relative to the ground and about linear acceleration.

Answer 4

Otolith Organ

Question 5

One of the three looping chambers found in the inner ear that provide information regarding the rotation of the head.

Answer 5

Semicircular Canal

Question 6

The force perceived when our rate of movement changes.

Answer 6

Linear acceleration

Question 7

2 seperate structure of the otolith organs

Answer 7

Saccule and Utricle

Question 8

A stone made of calcium carbonate that is attached to the hair cells in the otolith organs.

Answer 8

Otolith

Question 9

The nucleus of the thalamus that receives information regarding pain, touch, and the position and movement of the head.

Answer 9

Ventral Posterior (VP) Nucleus

Question 10

Cortex located in the postcentral gyrus of the parietal lobe that is responsible for the initial cortical processing of somatosensory input.

Answer 10

Primary Somarosensory Cortex

Question 11

largest and heaviest organ of the human body.

provides a boundary separating what is inside from what is outside.

It prevents dehydration and protects the body from dirt and bacteria.

Answer 11

Skin

Question 12

Hairless skin.

Answer 12

glabrous skin

Question 13

The outermost layer of the skin.

Answer 13

Epidermis

Question 14

The layer of skin lying below the outermost epidermis.

Answer 14

Dermis

Question 15

The layer of tissue lying below the dermis

Answer 15

Subcutaneous Tissue

Question 16

A skin receptor that senses touch, pressure, or vibration.

Answer 16

mechanoreceptor

Question 17

A mechanoreceptor in which the axon fibers are surrounded by a fluid-filled capsule formed of connective tissue.

Answer 17

encapsulated receptor

Question 18

An encapsulated, fast-adapting mechanoreceptor with small receptive field that responds primarily to pressure.

Answer 18

Meissner’s corpuscle

Question 19

An encapsulated, rapidly adapting mechanoreceptor with large receptive field that provides information about pressure and vibration.

Answer 19

Pacinian corpuscle

Question 20

A nonencapsulated, slow-adapting mechanoreceptor with small receptive field that provides information primarily about pressure.

Answer 20

Merkel’s disk

Question 21

A nonencapsulated, slow-adapting mechanoreceptor with large receptive field that provides information regarding stretch.

Answer 21

Ruffini’s ending

Question 22

Two major types of Encapsulated mechanoreceptors

Answer 22

Meissner’s Corpuscles and the Pacinian Corpuscles

Question 23

types of nonencapulated receptors

Answer 23

Merkel’s Disks and Ruffini’s Endings

Question 24

myelinated fiber that carries information about cold and sharp pain to the central nervous system.

Answer 24

Aδ (alpha-delta) fiber

Question 25

A small, unmyelinated fiber that carries information about temperature, itch, and dull, aching pain to the central nervous system.

Answer 25

C fiber

Question 26

The area of the skin surface served by the dorsal roots of one spinal segment.

Answer 26

dermatome

Question 27

The spinal pathway that carries information about touch and position to the medulla.

Answer 27

dorsal column

Question 28

The pathway originating in the dorsal column nuclei and synapsing in the ventral posterior (VP) nucleus of the thalamus that is responsible for carrying information about touch and position.

Answer 28

medial lemniscus

Question 29

A nerve that carries sensation from mechanoreceptors, temperature receptors, and pain receptors in the skin of the face, mouth, tongue, and the dura mater of the brain

Answer 29

trigeminal nerve (cranial nerve V)

Question 30

Areas in the parietal lobe adjacent to primary somatosensory cortex that process a wide variety of complex somatosensory inputs.

Answer 30

secondary somatosensory cortex

Question 31

consist of three looping chambers at approximately right angles to one another.

Answer 31

semicircular canals

Question 32

Touch sensations begin when specialized receptors in the skin, known as mechanoreceptors, detect mechanical stimuli such as pressure, temperature, or vibration. These receptors send signals to the brain in response to tactile input.

Answer 32

Receptor Activation

Question 33

- Sensory nerves, including A-beta and C-fiber nerve fibers, transmit touch signals from the mechanoreceptors to the spinal cord. A-beta fibers carry fast, sharp touch and pressure information, while C- fibers convey slower, dull, and temperature-related sensations

Answer 33

Nerve Transmission

Question 34

In the spinal cord, the touch signals synapse with interneurons and then ascend in the spinal pathways to the brain. Information is initially processed at the segmental level, allowing for reflexive responses to touch stimuli.

Answer 34

Spinal Cord Processing

Question 35

Touch signals travel via the spinal cord to the thalamus, specifically the ventral posterolateral nucleus. From the thalamus, the information is relayed to the primary somatosensory cortex in the brain's parietal lobe, where the perception of touch sensations, including their location and quality, is processed and interpreted.

Answer 35

Thalamic Relay and Brain Perception

Question 36

The somatosensory cortex appears to rearrange itself in response to changes in the amount of input it receives. occurs in the human somatosensory cortex as a result of both loss and enhancement of input.

Answer 36

plasticity of touch

Question 37

Damage to secondary somatosensory cortex, particularly on the right side of the brain

Answer 37

Neglect Syndrome

Question 38

free nerve endings in the skin that respond to surface temperature

Answer 38

Thermoreceptors

Question 39

begin to fire at about 30°C and increase their firing rates as temperature increases to about 45°C. A nerve ending in the skin that responds to heat.

Answer 39

Warm Fibers

Question 40

begin to respond at skin temperatures of about 35°C and increase their response rate until the skin temperature decreases to about 10°C. A nerve ending in the skin that responds to cold.

Answer 40

Cold Fibers

Question 41

What is the purpose of pain?

Answer 41

We need pain to remind us to stop when we are injured, to assess a situation before proceeding, and to allow the body time to heal

Question 42

Although some of the individual differences in response to pain are due to culture and experience, a person’s number of ________ receptors also influences pain sensitivity

Answer 42

endogenous opioid

Question 43

Patients who perceive no pain frequently die at young ages, primarily due to ____________________

Answer 43

degeneration of joints and the spine.

Question 44

A nerve ending that responds to painful stimuli. respond to a variety of stimuli associated with tissue damage. respond most vigorously to mechanical injury such as the damage caused by a sharp object.

Answer 44

Nociceptor

Question 45

The pressure of the mechanical stimulus on the nociceptor membrane opens mechanically gated ion channels, leading ton the generation of __________

Answer 45

action potentials.

Question 46

Pain sensations originate from the activation of nociceptors, specialized sensory nerve endings that detect harmful or potentially harmful stimuli like heat, pressure, or chemicals.

Answer 46

Stimulus Detection

Question 47

Nociceptive signals travel through A-delta and C-fiber nerve fibers to the spinal cord, where they synapse and ascend the spinothalamic tract to the brain, conveying the perception of pain.

Answer 47

Nerve Transmission

Question 48

Pain signals are interpreted in various brain regions, including the thalamus, somatosensory cortex, and other regions associated with emotional and cognitive responses, shaping the experience and perception of pain

Answer 48

Brain processing

Question 49

A group of cells in the outer gray matter of the dorsal horn that receive synapses from pain fibers.

Answer 49

substantia gelatinosa

Question 50

A neurotransmitter substance associated with the sense of pain that also serves as a stimulus at some nociceptors.

Answer 50

Substance P

Question 51

Fibers that carry pain and temperature information from the substantia gelatinosa to the thalamus.

Answer 51

spinothalamic pathway

Question 52

A nucleus in the brainstem that receives pain and temperature information from the head and neck.

Answer 52

spinal trigeminal nucleus

Question 53

A pathway carrying pain and temperature information from the spinal trigeminal nucleus to the thalamus

Answer 53

trigeminal lemniscus

Question 54

One of many nuclei in the thalamus that receive some pain and temperature input.

Answer 54

intralaminar nucleus