Teaching schedule

Sensory Organs

Li Lei
 Sensory Organs
Sensory organs include the receptors and accessory
organs. The receptors may be divided into three kinds:

◼ The exteroceptors
❑ receive stimuli such as touch, temperature, pain, light and sound
from the external environment

◼ The interoceptors
❑ pick up information about internal environment

◼ The proprioceptors
❑ receive stimuli from muscles, tendons, joints and ligaments
 Exteroceptors

light waves sound waves

Exteroceptors
Interoceptors
proprioceptors
 Visual Organ

Composition: eyeball and accessory organs of eye

Stuctures of Eyeball
 Shape of Eyeball

◼ Anterior pole
◼ Posterior pole
◼ Equator : an imaginary line
encircling the eyeball,
midway between anterior
and posterior poles
◼ Optic axis : a line joining
the two poles
◼ Visual axis : a line joining
the center of the pupil to the
fovea centralis
 Stuctures of Eyeball
Cornea
Fibrous tunic
Sclera
Iris
Walls Vascular tunic Cilliary body
Choroid
iridial part
Retina ciliary part
choroidal part

Aqueous humor
Contents Lens
Vitreous body
 Fibrous tunic of eyeball (outer)

Cornea
◼ Anterior 1/6
◼ Nonvascular, transparent
portion
◼ Richly supplied by nerves
◼ Because it is curved, the
cornea helps focus light
 Fibrous tunic of eyeball (outer)

Cornea
◼ Anterior 1/6
◼ Nonvascular, transparent
portion
◼ Richly supplied by nerves
◼ Because it is curved, the
cornea helps focus light

refraction
 Fibrous tunic of eyeball (outer)

Sclera
◼ Posterior 5/6, white of eye,
opaque portion
◼ Consisting of fibrous
connective tissue that forms
a tough protective covering
for eyeball
◼ Scleral venous sinus which
lies beneath the junction of
cornea and sclera
 Vascular tunic of eyeball (middle)

Iris
◼ A thin, contractile, pigmented
sheet with a central opening,
the pupil

◼ Sphincter pupillae (circular

fibers)

◼ Dilator pupillae (radial fibers)

Iris means rainbow, contains three kinds of
pigments and gives color to the eye.
Sphincter pupillae Dilator pupillae
 Vascular tunic of eyeball (middle)
Ciliary body
◼ Body a ring-shaped thickening
anterior to equator, containing
smooth muscle fibers called
ciliary muscle

◼ Ciliary processes : are

radially arranged folds that are

connected to the Ciliary

zonule
Ciliary body cilium, cilia
eyelash
 Structures of Ciliary body

Ciliary
Muscle

Lens

Ciliary zonule
Ciliary Processes
Function of Ciliary body
Function of Ciliary body
 Vascular tunic of eyeball (middle)
Choroid
◼ Thin, highly vascular in
posterior 2/3 of eye
◼ Contains brown
pigmented cells and
dense capillary plexus
◼ Form the uvea together
with iris and ciliary body.
uvea

uva, grape

grape skin
 Retina
◼ Derived for Rete, means “net-like”
tunic

◼ nonvisual part

❑ iridial part

❑ ciliary part

◼ visual part

❑ An outer pigmented layer

❑ Inner nervous layer (three layers)

Detached Retina
Retina

Ganglion cells

Bipolar neurons

Rod cells

Cone cells

Pigment cell layer

LAYERS OF THE RETINA

photograph under SEM

scanning electron microscope
 Retina
Optic disc
◼ Located medial to posterior
pole of eye

◼ Consists of optic nerve fibers

and central artery of retina

◼ Blind spot

Ophthalmoscope
 Retina
Macula lutea
◼ Lies lateral about 3.5 mm to
optic disc, a shallow depression,
it is completely free of blood
vessels and is yellowish in color

◼ Fovea centralis

❑ At the center of macula lutea

❑ Area of greatest visual acuity

(concentration of cones)
Summary of the walls
 Contents of eyeball

◼ Aqueous humor

◼ Lens

◼ Vitreous body
 Aqueous humor
Chamber of eye
◼ Lies between cornea and lens

◼ Divided by iris into anterior and

posterior chambers
Aqueous humor
◼ A clear watery fluid that fills
chamber of eye
◼ Secreted by ciliary body

◼ Through pupil into anterior

chamber
◼ Then it filters though space of
iridocorneal angle into scleral
venous sinus.
 Production and circulation of
aqueous humor

Pupil
Ciliary body Posterior chamber Anterior chamber

Space of iridocorneal angle

Sinus venosus sclera

Anterior ciliary vein Ophthalmic vein

 Functions of aqueous humor

◼ Helps focus light

◼ Helps maintain constant pressure in eyeball
◼ Supplies nutrients & oxygen to the cornea, lens and
portions of the retina
◼ Carries away metabolic wastes from the cornea, lens
and portions of the retina
 Glaucoma
Glauco- means blue-green. The pupil of the patient
presents blue-green color.

Congenital Glaucoma
 Lens
◼ Transparent biconvex
structure, covered by an
elastic transparent capsule
◼ Located between iris and
vitreous body, and
suspended behind pupil by
ciliary zonule
◼ Refracts (bends) light
◼ Focuses precise image on
the retina (fovea) through
accommodation (changing
thickness)
 Lens
◼ Shape changed by the ciliary muscle
◼ For distant vision the lens flattens out, so that the eye may be
focused on distant objects
◼ For near vision, the ciliary muscle contracts and the lens rounds up
 Myopia (Nearsighted)
◼ Elongation of the eyeball
◼ Distant objects focused in front of retina
◼ Image striking retina is blurred

Correction:
• Concave lens or
• laser surgery to slightly flatten the cornea (LASIK, Laser-
assisted in situ keratomileusis)
 PseudoMyopia
Pseudomyopia is caused by prolonged close work
(reading, computers, smartphones) which causes that
overstrained ciliary muscle get into cramp and the is
not able to relax for looking at far distances.
 Hyperopia (Farsighted)

◼ Eyeball too short, lens too thin or too stiff.

◼ Nearby objects are focused behind retina.
◼ Image striking the fovea is blurred.

Correction:
• Convex lens
 Cataract (waterfall)

◼ Clouding of lens due to

aging, diabetes mellitus,
heavy smoking, frequent
exposure to intense
sunlight or congenital
factors
Lens Implant
 Vitreous body

◼ Consists of colorless,
transparent jelly-like
substance in which
there is a meshwork of
fine fibrils, occupies
the vitreous chamber,
the space between
lens and retina
◼ Helps maintain the
shape of eyeball and
supports the retina
 Refractive media of eye
Bend entering light rays and focus them on the retina
◼ Cornea
◼ Aqueous humor
◼ Lens
◼ Vitreous body
REFRACTION OF LIGHT IN THE EYE

Light ray cornea aqueous humor of anterior chamber

pupil aqueous humor of posterior chamber

lens vitreous body retina

 Accessory organs of eye

Eyelids

Conjunctiva

Lacrimal apparatus

Extraocular muscles

Connective tissue in the orbit

 Eyelids
◼ Layers（from outside inwards ）
❑ Skin, extremely thin
❑ Subcutaneous areola tissue, loose
and delicate
❑ Muscular layer: orbicularis oculi
❑ Tarsus, formed by dense connective
tissue in which the tarsal glands
embedded
❑ Lined by palpebral conjunctiva
◼ Function: to protect, open, and
close eye
◼ Palpebral fissure
Tarsus
 Conjunctiva
◼ Three parts
❑ Palpebral conjunctiva :
lining inner surface of
eyelids
❑ Bulbar conjunctiva lining
anterior part of sclera, up
to corneal margin
❑ Conjunctival fornix
(superior and inferior):
line of reflection of bulbar
and palpebral conjunctiva
◼ Conjunctival sac
 Margin of upper eyelid
cornea

Upper
eyelid

Lower eyelid

Palpebral conjunctiva
Cilium pupil

Lacrimal caruncle
Lateral angle
Medial angle

Bulbar conjunctiva
 Lacrimal apparatus
◼ Lacrimal gland
❑ Oval 2-cm, occupies fossa
for lacrimal gland
❑ Ducts (6~10 in number):
empty into anterior region
of superior fornix of
conjunctiva
❑ Secrets tears, which move
across eyeball to medial
angle, protect and moisten
eye
◼ Lacrimal passages
 Lacrimal apparatus
Lacrimal passages
◼ Lacrimal punctum opening to
lacrimal ductules, one on each
eylid margin near medial angle
◼ Lacrimal ductule one in each
lid, pass medially, join and enter
lacrimal sac
◼ Lacrimal sac within fossa for
lacrimal sac, opening into
nasolacrimal duct
◼ Nasolacrimal duct courses 2
cm inferiorly and opens into
inferior nasal meatus
 Why are you crying?

Watery Eye (epiphora)

Extraocular muscles
Extraocular muscles
 Extraocular muscles
Superior obliquus

levator palpebrae superioris Medial rectus

Superior rectus

Lateral retus
Extraocular muscles
Superior obliquus

Superior rectus
Medial rectus
Lateral retus

Inferior rectus

Inferior obliquus
Extraocular muscles
Extraocular muscles

force magnitude
and direction
 Extraocular muscles

Muscle Action
levator palpebrae superioris Raises upper eyelid
Superior rectus Turns eyeball superomedially
Inferior rectus Turns eyeball inferomedially
Medial rectus Turns eyeball medially
Lateral retus Turns eyeball laterally
Superior obliquus Turns eyeball inferolaterally
Inferior obliquus Turns eyeball superolaterally
Which muscles are in action?
Right lateral rectus and
left medial rectus. Gaze
is conjugate.