SPECIAL SENSES  Cleanse, protect, moisten, lubricate the eye

Special senses include:  Extrinsic eye muscles

 Smell  Six muscles attach to the outer surface of the eye
 Taste  Produce gross eye movements
 Sight
 Hearing • Internal Structures: The Eyeball
 Equilibrium
Special sense receptors
 Large, complex, sensory organs (eyes, ears)
 Localized clusters of receptors (taste buds,
olfactory epithelium)
Part I: The Eye and Vision
 70 percent of all sensory receptors are in the
eyes
 Each eye has over 1 million nerve fibers
carrying information to the brain
Anatomy of the Eye Three layers, or tunics, form the wall of the eyeball
 Fibrous layer: outside layer
 Vascular layer: middle layer
 Sensoryneural layer: inside layer

 Humors are fluids that fill the interior of the eyeball

 Accessory structures include the:
 Extrinsic eye muscles
 Eyelids o Conjunctiva
 Lacrimal apparatus-lacrimal gland + ducts
 Eyelids -Meet at the medial and lateral commissure
(canthus)
 Eyelashes- Tarsal glands (aka meibomian)
produce an oily secretion that lubricates the eye
 Ciliary glands- are located between the eyelashes
 Conjunctiva- Membrane that lines the eyelids and
eyeball, Connects with the transparent cornea,
Secretes mucus to lubricate the eye and keep it
moist
• External and Accessory Structures
 Tears contain:
 Dilute salt solution
 Mucus o Antibodies
 Lysozyme (enzyme that destroys bacteria)
 Function of tears
 Lens divides the eye into two chambers
 Sclera:White connective tissue layer, Seen
anteriorly as the “white of the eye”
 Cornea; Transparent, central anterior portion,
Allows for light to pass through, Repairs itself
easily, The only human tissue that can be
transplanted without fear of rejection
 Lens-divides the eye into anterior and posterior
 Physiologic conditions
 Emmetropia—eye focuses images correctly on the retina
 Myopia (nearsightedness)
 Distant objects appear blurry
 Light from those objects fails to reach the retina and
are focused in front of it
 Results from an eyeball that is too long
 Hyperopia (farsightedness)
 Near objects are blurry, whereas distant objects are
clear
 Distant objects are focused behind the retina
 Results from an eyeball that is too short or from a
“lazy lens”
 Astigmatism
 Images are blurry
 Results from light focusing as lines, not points, on
the retina because of unequal curvatures of the
cornea or lens
Part II: The Ear: Hearing and Balance  Located in the ampulla of each semicircular canal
 Tuft of hair cells covered with cupula (gelatinous
 Ear houses two senses
cap)
 Hearing  If the head moves, the cupula drags against the
 Equilibrium (balance) endolymph
 Hair cells are stimulated, and the impulse travels
 Receptors are mechanoreceptors the vestibular nerve to the cerebellum
 Different organs house receptors for each sense
Hearing and Equilibrium Deficits
Anatomy of the Ear
 Deafness is any degree of hearing loss
 The ear is divided into three areas
 Conduction deafness results when the transmission
 External (outer) ear of sound vibrations through the external and middle
 Middle ear ears is hindered
 Internal (inner) ear  Sensorineural deafness results from damage to the
nervous system structures involved in hearing
 mechanoreceptor is a sensory receptor that  Ménière’s syndrome affects the inner ear and
responds to mechanical pressure or distortion causes progressive deafness and perhaps vertigo
(sensation of spinning)
Part III: Chemical Senses: Smell and Taste
 Chemoreceptors o Stimulated by chemicals in solution
 Taste has five types of receptors
 Smell can differentiate a wider range of chemicals
 Both senses (smell & taste) complement each other and
respond to many of the same stimuli
 Olfactory receptors are in roof of nasal cavity
• (ORs), also known as odorant receptors, are
expressed in the cell membranes of olfactory
receptor neurons and are responsible for the
detection of odorants (i.e., compounds that have an
odor) which give rise to the sense of smell.
 External ear is involved only in collecting sound
waves Taste Buds and the Sense of Taste
 Middle ear is Involved only in the sense of hearing
 Taste buds house the receptor organs
 Internal (inner) ear - Includes sense organs for
hearing and balance  Locations of taste buds
 Equilibrium receptors of the inner ear are called the • Most are on the tongue
vestibular apparatus • Soft palate
 It has two functional parts • Superior part of the pharynx
• Cheeks
1. Static equilibrium
 Gustatory cells are the taste receptors
 Maculae—receptors in the vestibule
• Hairs are stimulated by chemicals dissolved in
 Report on the position of the head saliva
 Help us keep our head erect
 Send information via the vestibular nerve to the  Five basic taste sensations
cerebellum of the brain  Sweet receptors respond to sugars, saccharine,
2. Dynamic equilibrium some amino acids
 Sour receptors respond to H+ ions or acids
 Crista ampullaris  Bitter receptors respond to alkaloids
 Salty receptors respond to metal ions
 Responds to angular or rotational movements of the
 Umami receptors respond to the amino acid
head
glutamate or the beefy taste of meat
Part IV: Developmental Aspects of the Special Senses
 Special sense organs are formed early in
embryonic development
 Maternal infections during the first 5 or 6 weeks of
pregnancy may cause visual abnormalities as well
as sensorineural deafness in the developing child
 The infant has poor visual acuity (is farsighted) and
lacks color vision and depth perception at birth
 The eye continues to grow and mature until age 8
or 9
 Age-related eye issues
o Presbyopia—“old vision” results from decreasing lens
elasticity that accompanies aging
 Causes difficulty to focus for close vision
 Lacrimal glands become less active
 Lens becomes discolored
 Dilator muscles of iris become less efficient,
causing pupils to remain constricted
• Taste and smell are most acute at birth and decrease in
sensitivity after age 40 as the number of olfactory and
gustatory receptors decreases
HUMAN REFLEX PHYSIOLOGY
Program action that our body does is called reflexes. They
are rapid, predictable, involuntary, motor responses to
stimuli. Reflexes usually occur in neural pathway called the
reflex arc.
THE REFLEX ARC
REFLEXES
Two types:
 Autonomic – involuntary control without conscious
control. Activate smooth muscle, cardiac muscle,
glands of the body; also help regulate body
functions such as digestion and blood pressure
 Somatic – stimulate the skeletal muscles (withdraw
hand when you touch hot surfaces)
Reflex arc: 5 functional components
 Receptor – site that receives the stimulus
 Sensory neuron – conducts the afferent (neurons
that carry nerve impulses/signals toward the CNS
or brain) impulses to the CNS; once the stimuli
travels to the sensory neuron it will go to integration
center
 Integration center – consists of one or more
synapses; impulses between two neurons; center
between sensory and motor neuron
 Motor neurons – conducts efferent impulses (away
from the CNS)
 Effector – muscle fibers or glands that responds to
the efferent impulses by either making an action for
example contracting, if gland it secretes
Two types reflex arcs
 Monosynaptic – one synapse only ex. Simple
patellar or knee jerk reflex
 Polysynaptic – more complex reflexes which involve
one or more association neurons in the reflex
pathway
Somatic reflexes: important in balance, locomotion
A. Spinal reflexes
 Stretch reflex – by tapping a tendon
Two types:
 Patellar – knee jerk reflex; happens when you tap
patellar ligament which is found just below the
knees with the hammer; assess L2 and L4 of the
spinal cord (provides sensation to the front part of
the thigh and the inner side of lower leg; also
controls movement of hip and knee muscles)
 Calcaneal tendon – ankle jerk reflex; tapped on the
Achilles tendon with a reflex hammer; assess to
sacral (S1 AND S2) s1 usually affects the hip and
grown area; s2 affects the back of your thigh
 Superficial cord reflexes – aka abdominal and
plantar reflexes; usually initiated stimulating
receptors in the skin and in the mucosa; usually
both depend on brain participation and cord level
reflex of the arc
 Plantar – soles of your foot; assess corticospinal
tract (major voluntary tract)
 Babinski sign – toes flare or move upward
 Cranial nerve reflex test
 Corneal test – mediated through trigeminal nerve
specifically cranial nerve V (transmitting sensory
information toeh ksinl sinuses and mucous
membranes in the face; also stimulates movement
in jaw muscles) absence of this reflex often
indicated damage in brain stem
 Muscle spindle
Autonomic reflexes
 Pupillary reflexes – retina of the eye is the receptor
 Optics nerve - contains afferent fibers
 Oculomotor – efferent fibers
 Effector – smooth muscles of the iris
 Stimuli is light (when shone in the eyes it will
constrict)
 Dilate – mydriasis, myosis – magliit
  Consensual reflexes: optic nerve (cranial nerve II)
and oculomotor nerve (cranial nerve III) assigned
for eye movement like constriction
 Contralateral response – reflex occurred on the
other side when the other has been stimulated
Internal eye anatomy – walls of the eye is constructed in
 Ipsilateral – occurred on the same side and other
three layers
eye too
 Special senses are large
 Eyes - eyebrows (prevent sweat from entering the
eyes)
 Eyelids – protects the eye and spread; lacrimal fluid
or tears through blinking
 Tarsal glands – secrets the oily secretion that
lubricates the surface of the eye
 Ciliary gland – secretes oily secretion that lubricates
the surface of the eye; usually found in eyelash
follicle; infection sty
 Conjunctiva – secreting mucous to lubricate the
eye; conjunctivitis or pink eye or sore eyes
(inflammation)
 Medial and lateral commissures – junction where
the eyelids meet
 Lacrimal apparatus - contains lacrimal gland and
lacrimal sac; protects the eye by keeping it moist;
blinking spreads the fluid
 Lacrimal gland – secretes tears or lacrimal fluid
(contains mucous antibodies and lysozymes
 Lacrimal canaliculi – two tiny canals that are located
in the eyelids; allows lacrimal fluid to drain into the
lacrimal sac;
 Lacrimal sac – located in the middle orbital wall
,allows fluid to drain in nasolacrimal duct
 Lacrimal duct – drains to nasal cavity
Extrinsic eye muscles – controls movement of eyeball and
also hold the eyes in the orbit
 6 types divided into two rectus or recti and oblique
 4 recti and 2 oblique
Rectus Muscles
 Lateral rectus muscles – moves the eyeball
laterally; controlled by cranial nerve VI aka
abdocense
 Medial rectus muscle – moves eyes medially or
towards the midline example crossing eyes;
controlled by cranial nerve III aka oculomotor
 Superior rectus muscle – responsible for elevating
eye and turning it medially; controlled by cranial
nerve III
 Inferior rectus – depressed or down and turning it
medially; controlled by cranial nerve III
Oblique Muscles
 Inferior oblique – elevating eye or movement
upward and turning it laterally; cranial nerve III
 Superior oblique – depresses eye or downward and
turning it laterally; cranial nerve IV or trochlear
1. Fibrous layer – contains sclera and cornea
o Sclera - opaque white connective tissue
that forms the white of your eye; help
maintain the shape of eyeballs and help
provide an attachment point for extrinsic
eye muscle
o Cornea – continuous with sclera; bulge
anteriorly; forms a clear window that is the
major light bending or refracting medium of
the eye; where light enters
2. Vascular layer – external layer or middle layer
o Choroid – blood vessel rich layer and dark
membrane that function to nourish outer
layer of the eye; contains melanin that
helps absorb excess light entering the eye
o Ciliary body – encircles the lens which
contains ciliary muscle
o Ciliary muscle – alters the shape of the
lens with contraction and relaxation
o Ciliary zonule – halo fine fibers which
attached the lens to the ciliary body
o Iris – pigmented structure which contains
smooth muscle such as sphincter populae
(constriction of the eyes) and dilated
populae (dilation of the eyes); controls the
amount of light entering the eye by
changing the size of pupil diameter
o Pupil – round central opening of the iris;
allows light ot enter the eye
o Lens – divides the eye into two segments;
anterior segment (contains clear watery
fluid called aqueous humor; continually
formed by; maintain intraocular pressure);
posterior segment (vitreous humor which is
gel like in consistency; reinforces posterior
part of eyeball and helps to keep the retina
pressed firmly against the wall of eyeball
3. Sensory layer – retina
o Retina – divided into two
o Pigmented layer – outer layer of retina that
composed of pigment cells that acts as
phagocytes by cleaning up cell debris;
absorbing light and prevent it from
scattering in the eye; focus
o Neural layer - thicker inner layer which is
composed of three main types of neurons;
 photoreceptors, bipolar cells, ganglion
cells
o Photoreceptors – outer layer contains rods
and cones; distributed over the entire
retina except when the optic nerve leaves
the eyeball (optic disc or blind spot)
o Fovea centralis – minute pit with 0.4 mm in
diameter; portion of retina which only
contains the cones; lateral to the blind
spot; area of the greatest quality (image)
o Rods – specializes for dimming of light
o Cones – color photoreceptors that permit
sharp vision in good light
o Rods and cones begin electrical event
which pass photoreceptor (contains rods
and cones) to bipolar cells and ganglion
cells (when stimulated it will generate
nerve impulses which ultimately transmit to
brain and results to the vision)
Intrinsic muscles – responsible for eye movement
 around the eyes are adipose tissues which serves
to protect the eyes and as a cushion also
 refraction, visual acuity, and astigmatism
 light rays are usually refracted or bent as they
ecnounte4r the cornea the lens and the vitreous
humor of the eyes which causes the refraction
 the image forms in the retina
Accommodation – the ability to focus specifically for close
objects e.g. less than 20 ft
Emetropic eye – 20/20 vision; or normal eye; can
accommodate properly; light is properly converged (light is
properly meet at the retina) and focused on the retina
 Visual problems occur either because the lenses
are too strong or too lazy or structural problems
(eyeball may be too long or too short; cornea may
have improper curvatures)
Overconverging – lagpas sa retina; farsightedness
Underconverging – light do not meet/will not pass the retina;
nearsightedness
Myopia – nearsightedness; only see close objects; image
focuses infront of the retina only; need concave lens to
cause the llight reaching the eye to diverge or separate
Hyperopia – farsightedness; image is focused behind the
retina; convex lenses to boost the converging power of the
lens for close vision
Astigmatism – irregularities in the curvatures of your lens
and cornea; cylindrically round lenses to compensate in
inequalities of the curvatures of refracting surfaces
Presbyopia – old vision; older age; decrease in the elasticity
of natural lens, which make it difficult to focus on close vision
and lead to blurred vision problem
Visual acuity – sharpness of vision; measured by Snellen
eye chart(consists of letters)
Colorblindness – caused by the deficiency in your cones or
color of photoreceptors cells
 one cone – responsible for absorbing red
wavelength of visible light
 another – blue
 another one – green
 Ishihara color plate – test color plate
EYE REFLEX
Intrinsic muscle – internal muscles controlled by autonomic
nervous system; cillary body which alters the lens curvature;
and the radial and circular muscles of your iris which controls
the pupil size and regulate the amount of light entering the
eye
Accommodation reflex – near response; three part reflex that
brings near objects into focus through lens thickening and
papillary constriction and inward rotation of the eye or eye
convergence; movement of eyes either constrict or dilate
Extrinsic Muscle – oblique and recti; control eyeball
movement
 ex. Convergence reflex – responsible for medial
eye movement for near vision
EARS: two functions for hearing and equilibrium
Divided into three major areas
 External and middle ear – responsible for sense of
hearing; separated by eardrum
 Internal ear– for hearing and equilibrium
 External ear – auricle or pinna;
1. External acoustic meatus or auditory canal –
contains ceruminous glands (wax secreting gland)
 When you hear, it will enter auditory canal
and hit the eardrum producing vibration.
The vibration will be transmitted to the
auditory ossicles via the oval window
2. Middle ear – tympanic cavity; include:
 Auditory ossicles (contains the hammer,
anvil and stirrup; responsible for
transmission of vibratory motion to the
fluids of inner ear via oval window
 Auditory tube – pharyngotympanic tube;
connects middle ear chamber to
nasopharynx; it can be opened temporarily
to equalize the pressure of middle ear
cavity with external air pressure; important
 because the eardrum does not vibrate
properly unless the pressure on both
surfaces Is the same; in order to release
external pressure it opens
3. Internal Ear – composed of osseus or bony
labyrinth which is usually filled with watery fluid
called perilymph
 Membranous labyrinth – floating in the
perilymph; system filled with a more
viscous fluid called endolymph
 Bony Labyrinth – composed of cochlea,
vestibule, semicircular canals
 Cochlea – snail-like structure; spiral organ
of; contains receptors for hearing
 Cochlear duct – cochlear membranous
labyrinth with a soft warm like tube that
winds through the turns of the cochlea;
separate upper (perilymph called the
scalafistibula) and lower (scalatymphany
which contains perilymph) chambers of the
perilymph containing the cochlear cavity;
filled with endolymph
 Endolymph – supports the spinal organ of
corti and contains receptors for hearing
and nerve endings of the cochlear division
of vestibulocochlear nerve VIII or cranial
nerve VIII
 You can see hair and pectoral mebrane in
SENSE OF SMELL AND TASTE
the spinal corti
 Hair part – receptors that receive sound
Mechanism of hearing begins as the sound waves
pas through external acoustic meatus or auditory canal
(vibration to the eardrum then to the middle ear (anvil,
hammer and stirrup) and into the inner ear where the
vibration eventually reaches the spinal organ of corti, which
contains the receptors for hearing. The travelling sound
waves will stimulate the hair cells in the spinal organ corti
where they peak. Once stimulated, it will depolarize and
begin the chain of nervous impulses to the auditory center of
the temporal lobe cortex. Thus, series of events will result to
hearing.
 High frequency (high pitch)– close to the oval
windows or scalafistubula or upper chamber
 Lower frequency (low pitch) – farther up to the
basilar membrane near the apex of cochlea
 Deaf person – damaged or undeveloped cochlea or
spiral corti
 Semicircular canal – dynamic equilibrium
(dizziness)
 Semicircular ducts are suspended in perilymph
within bony chambers; contains endolymph and
receptors that are activated by the disturbance of
the cilia like cochlear duct
 Cilia – receptor cells that causes dynamic
equilibrium
 At the base you can see the ampulla – contains the
receptor region called the crista ampullaris which
reacts to angular motion
 Crista ampullaris – contains copula (hair cells with
gelatinous cap)
 Festibule – macullae (contains the receptor for
static equilibrium)
 Static – responds to gravitational pull, upward and
downward movement and linear or straightforward
changes in your speed
 Within the macule you can find autolithic membrane
(gelatinous material that contains autolith)
 Autolith – calcium carbonate located above the hair
cells
 Movement of head, autolith will also move to the
direction of the movement; respond to gravitational
pull
 SMELL – olfactory epithelium (occupies the roof of
each nasal cavity) – composed of olfactory receptor
cells
 Olfactory receptors cells – bipolar neurons that
have cilia or olfactory hair that protrude from the
epithelium
 Olfactory filaments – where the axons from the
basal ends gather; penetrates cribriform plate of
ethmoid bone and proceed as olfactory nerves
(cranial nerve I) to synapse in your olfactory bulb
that is located on either side of
 Taste buds – sense of taste; mostly tongue, soft
palate, pharynx and inner surface of cheeks

ANATOMY OF EQUILIBRIUM

 HEARING – spiral corti

 Equilibrium – vestibular contains sac like utricle and
saccule vestibule – responsible for static
equilibrium)