Although the sensory systems associated with these senses are very different, all share a common function: to convert a stimulus (light, sound, or the position of the body) into an electrical signal in the nervous system. This process is called
sensory transduction
.
What converts light stimuli into electrical signals?
Photoreceptors
are specialized neurons found in the retina that convert light into electrical signals that stimulate physiological processes. Signals from the photoreceptors are sent through the optic nerve to the brain for processing.
What receptors convert the energy of the stimulus to electrical impulses?
A receptor cell
converts the energy in a stimulus into an electrical signal. Receptors are broadly split into two main categories: exteroceptors, which receive external sensory stimuli, and interoceptors, which receive internal sensory stimuli.
How are chemical stimuli transduced into electrical impulses?
In sensory transduction a chemical or physical stimulus is transduced by
sensory receptors
into an electrical signal. For example, in the visual system, sensory cells called rod and cone cells in the retina change the physical energy of light signals into electrical impulses that travel to the brain.
What is meant by sensory transduction?
Sensory transduction systems
convert signals from the environment — light, taste, sound, touch, smell — into electric signals
. These signals are collected, integrated, and processed by the central nervous system.
How do we convert light into nerve impulses?
The light is mapped as an image along the surface of the retina by activating a series of light-sensitive cells known as rods and cones. These
photoreceptor cells
convert the light into electrical impulses which are transmitted to the brain via nerve fibers.
What type of stimuli do Proprioceptors respond to?
| Sensory receptors with corresponding stimuli to which they respond. | Receptor Stimulus | Photoreceptors Visible light | Proprioceptors Sense of position | Thermoreceptors Temperature |
|---|
How a stimulus becomes a sensation?
Sensory receptors become activated by stimuli in the environment
by receiving signals
. The transmission of any message in the neurons of our body requires it to be in the form of an action potential; the sensation must undergo conversion into electrical signals.
Why is the Pacinian corpuscle a transducer?
The Pacinian corpuscle is a type of biological transducer. As a
pressure stimulus is exerted on the corpuscle
, the lamellae are compressed and exert pressure on the tip of the sensory neurone. … This region of the neurone becomes depolarised, reaching the threshold potential, and an action potential is generated.
What information does the brain use to determine the intensity of a stimulus?
Stimulus intensity is encoded in two ways: 1)
frequency coding
, where the firing rate of sensory neurons increases with increased intensity and 2) population coding, where the number of primary afferents responding increases (also called RECRUITMENT).
What are the 4 components in sensory coding?
The four major components of encoding and transmitting sensory information include:
the type of stimulus, the stimulus location within the receptive field, the duration, and the intensity of the stimulus.
What are the two types of graded potentials?
Graded potentials can be of two sorts, either they are
depolarizing or hyperpolarizing
(Figure 1).
What does Somatosensation mean?
What is Somatosensation? Somatosensation is a mixed sensory category, and is mediated, in part, by the somatosensory and posterior parietal cortices. They
underlie the ability to identify tactile characteristics of our surroundings
, create meaning about sensations, and formulate body actions related to the sensations.
What are the 5 senses and their receptors?
Humans have 5 senses:
touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing
. The senses are based on receptor cells or groups of receptor cells called sense organs. Receptors respond to stimuli and send nerve impulses along sensory neurons.
Where does sensory transduction occur?
Sensory transduction takes place in
the organ of Corti
, a strip of sensory epithelium consisting of a single row of inner hair cells (IHCs) and three rows of outer hair cells (OHCs) sandwiched between two extracellular matrices, the basilar membrane (BM), and tectorial membrane (TM).
What are the two main nervous systems?
- The brain and the spinal cord are the central nervous system.
- The nerves that go through the whole body make up the peripheral nervous system.
