Vertebrates 18 - Receptors Flashcards
Merkel disks
Skin surface, slow adapting ie they stay active as long as stimulus is there (light touch, grip). Found in bottom of feet and hands, lips of fish (for pressure)
Meissner’s corpuscles
Skin surface, rapid adapting ie shut off when stimulus isn’t changing (texture). Found in bottom of feet and hands, lips of fish (for pressure)
Free nerve endings
Pain, touch, itching; they can wrap around vibrissae (sensitive!)
Pacinian corpuscles
Deep in skin for pressure (harder touch), vibrations. Rapid adapting. Layers of membrane around them. Elephants have lots in the trunk and toes.
Elephants
Elephants have lots of Pacinian corpuscles in the trunk and toes, so very sensitive to vibrations; Possible use in communicating/knowing of presence of other elephants in area (far away)
Lateral line receptors
In fish, larval amphibians, not amniotes. Used in schooling, navigation. Have neuromast cells along the body, support cells.
Neuromast organ
Have sensory hair cells which respond to pressure (water pressure). Covered in cupula (gelatin bulb) which contains the kinocilia (tall) and sterocilia (short) “hairs”.
Hair cells
Tonic receptors (always sending signal). Output by cilia movement (stretch ion channels). More/less NT released so more/less depolarizations depending on direction of bending.
Schooling behaviour
Hangout close together. Protection from predation: look huge, hard to see individual fish. Hard to swim close together and bumping together would remove mucous layer (bad). Facilitated by lateral line
Vertebrate outer ear
Pinna (outside shape), auditory canal, tympanum. Pinna funnels in sound, in some animals can be moved (directionality).
Vertebrate middle ear
Air-filled cavity (eustachian tube). Malleus, incus and stapes. Stapes causes oval window to vibrate
Role of eustachian tube
Connects to the pharynx, used to balance pressure which helps tympanum vibrating. Can get blocked by mucous or infection which prevents tympanum from vibrating, can even rupture.
Where did the middle ear bones come from?
Malleus was articular bone, incus was quadrate, and stapes came from a bone in skull.
Vertebrate inner ear
Semicircular canals, and cochlea (in mammals), to auditory nerve
Lizard, amphibians, bird ear
No real outer ear, the disk is the tympanum (birds have very shallow canal). No pinna
Columella
Connects from tympanum to the inner ear in lizards, amphibians, birds. Analogous to the stapes in mammals
Sound in water
Travels faster and with more power. Fish are about same density as water so sound travels to swim bladder easily.
Fish hearing
Inner ear receives the sound “directly”. Osteichthyes have weberian apparatus and have better hearing.
Weberian apparatus
Amplifies sound. Air in swim bladder vibrates in response to sound, causes bones to vibrate and connect to inner ear. Hearing is better
Cochlea
Has the organ of corti. Made of several cells and tissues. Basilar membrane and tectorial membrane with receptors between. Filled with endolymphatic fluid.
Basilar membrane and Range of frequency
Thinner and stiffer at proximal end, so highest frequency (16kHz) at the proximal end. More loose so lowest frequency (500Hz) vibrates at distal end
Different ranges across vertebrates
Mammals have larger range (cochlea is long). Bats and porpoises are very high for echolocation. Blue whale can hear 10Hz, long distance communication.
Utriculus and sacculus
For equilibrium. Part of inner ear. Filled with endolymphatic fluid
Sacculus
For static equilibrium, for orientation to reference to gravity. Contain otoliths (CaCO3) which are on gelatinous material above hair cells. Get stimulated based on movement.
