Sensation & Perception Lecture

3
Mechanical pressure: ear, skin and body

Sensory Transduction
Transforming physical information into neural signals.
Four types of receptors in humans:
1. Photoreceptors sense light
2. Mechanoreceptors sense mechanical pressure
3. Chemoreceptors sense molecules
4. Thermoreceptors sense temperature

Mechanical
pressure

Mechanoreceptors
Physically deforming a mechanoreceptor causes ion
channels to open, which causes the cell to fire.
Mechanical forces can provide a wide range of
information
1. Movement of hair cells in the inner ear

hearing
inertia
gravity

2. Pressure and stretch receptors in the skin, muscles, and organs

Light touch
Texture
Stretch
Pain
Body position
Body movement
Interoception

1. Hair cells in the inner ear

Three functions
- Sound perception
(cochlea)
- Head motion perception
(semicircular canals)
- Gravity perception
(vestibular labyrinth)

Sound is a (sine) wave of moving

air.

PS1009 Perception: Sensory

Transduction

The range of human hearing: variable, but ~12Hz to 20KHz

The function of
the ear is to
channel and
amplify sound
waves.

PS1009 Perception: Sensory

Transduction

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jyxhozq89g

Auditory Hair Cells

Ion channels on adjacent hairs
are connected by a tip link.
Movement of the hair cells pulls
the ion channels open,
depolarizing (activating) the
cell.

PS1009 Perception: Sensory

Transduction

Hearing damage prolonged

exposure to >85dB, or sudden
exposure to 120-145dB

PS1009 Perception: Sensory

Transduction

Mechanoreceptors in the cochlea

provide:
Loudness amplitude of sound wave increases
firing rate
Pitch which part of the cochlea is activated
Timbre composite frequencies simultaneous
activation of multiple locations on the cochlea
NOT Location this comes from time and
volume differences between the two ears (more
on this later!)

Hair cells in the semicircular canals:

head motion

Semicircular canals contain endolymph

Acceleration and deceleration of rotational head movement
endolymph movement lags behind the hair cells, causes them
to bend
Changes in viscosity of endolymph can interfere with

Hair cells in the vestibular

labyrinth:
gravity

Inner ears also contain the otolith organs

Gravity shifts the otoliths (small crystals) against
hair cells
Provides sense of head position relative to
upright, and inertia

2. Mechanoreceptors in the
skin

Multiple systems: light touch, firm pressure, vibration,

pain, and skin stretch
All types respond to physical deformation

Receptors shapes are specialized for different types

of pressure

Skin is also specialized

High sensitivity to light touch

High acuity for texture

Less slippery when wet

Haptic touch: exploring

objects with your
cutaneous
mechanoreceptors
Vibrations = roughness/texture
Pressure = firmness
Position of fingers around object =
shape
Skin stretch = weight

Pain (nociception)
Free nerve endings respond to tissue
damage
But pain experience is not well
correlated with activity in free nerve
endings
Highly influenced by context and
emotion
Pain signals are gated from
entering the brain -- can be blocked
by endorphins

Distribution of touch
receptors

The two-point
discrimination threshold

Touch the skin with one or two

points.
Gradually move the points closer
together. At some point two will
feel like one.
This distance is the two-pointdiscrimination threshold.
If two points stimulate two
different receptors, you will feel
two points. If two points stimulate
only one receptor, you will feel
only one.
Density of receptors in the skin is
highest on the hands and face,
lowest on the upper arm, calf, etc.

Proprioception (body position), kinesthesis

(body movements) and interoception (body
state)
Stretch receptors in
muscles and tendons:
low-level (spinal/brain
stem) control +
perceptual input

Also, stretch receptors

in smooth muscle
(e.g. lungs, bladder,
stomach, bowels): low
level (spinal/brain
stem) control +
perceptual input

Mechanoreceptors summary

Physically deforming mechanoreceptors changes their firing

Mechanical forces provide a wide range of sensory
information: sound, gravity, pressure, texture, and body
state
Hair cells in the cochlea move in response to sound waves
amplified by the ear, the basis for audition
Other hair cells in the ear provide the vestibular sense
Mechanoreceptors in skin and body provide
somatosensation
Different shapes, sizes, depths, and sensitivity of receptors
in the skin provide tactile information, including nociception
Other stretch receptors in the body provide kinesthesis,
proprioception, and interoception
PS1009 Perception: Sensory
Transduction

Sensory Transduction
Transforming physical information into neural signals.
Four types of receptors in humans:
1. Photoreceptors sense light
2. Mechanoreceptors sense mechanical pressure
3. Chemoreceptors sense molecules
4. Thermoreceptors sense temperature

Chemoreceptors
Function like a lock and key: specific
classes of receptors are sensitive to
specific molecule types.
Found in three locations (among
others):
a) tongue (gustation)
b) nasal epithelium (olfaction)
c) the respiratory system (breathing)
PS1009 Perception: Sensory
Transduction

The tongue (gustation)

Each of the papillae on the tongue contains
multiple taste buds
Each taste bud contains multiple chemoreceptors
Five (known) receptor types: salty, sweet, bitter,
sour, and savory (AKA umami).

PS1009 Perception: Sensory

Transduction

Aguesia: inability to taste

Temporary loss of taste

is common.
Permanent aguesia is
rare. Usually caused by
nerve damage or
deformity
PS1009 Perception: The Sensory
Brain