neuro - reception

Receptive fields

Areas where stimulation leads to a response of a specific sensory neuron, varying for each sensory modality.

Foveal Receptive Fields

Receptive fields in the fovea with one receptor only, providing maximum resolution and no lateral inhibition.

Lateral Inhibition

Mechanism where each receptor negatively affects neighboring ganglion cells, enhancing contrast and detail perception.

Stimulus Intensity

Signaled by the frequency of action potentials in sensory nerve fibers, crucial for modality and intensity perception.

Weber's Law

Increased stimulus intensity requires a larger change to detect a noticeable difference, crucial for sensory discrimination.

Taste Buds

Receptor cells in oral cavities detecting primary tastes, with specific receptors and mechanisms for each taste type.

Olfaction

Biological reception of chemical stimuli, mediated by chemoreceptors, crucial for scent perception and communication.

Modality

Labelled line principle in taste perception, where the active fiber indicates the experienced taste.

Odorant Receptor Genes

Large gene superfamily in mammals, responsible for olfaction, with around 900-1000 genes, mostly GPCRs.

Olfactory adaptation

The process where receptors stop responding to an odorant after continuous exposure.

Chemotaxis

Movement in response to a chemical gradient.

Electroreception

The biological ability to perceive natural electrical stimuli.

Electrolocation

Detecting, identifying, and localizing objects using electrical fields.

Passive electroreception

Sensing natural electrical stimuli without generating an electric field.

Active electroreception

Generating a weak electrical signal to detect changes in the electric field.

Mechanoreception

The detection of physical deformation in the body's environment associated with pressure, touch, stretch, motion, or sound.

Depolarisation or Hyperpolarisation

Refers to changes in the electrical potential of a cell membrane, depending on the direction of movement of ions.

Campaniform Sensillum

Sensory structure in insects that detects pressure on the cuticle, leading to depolarisation of dendrites and generation of action potentials.

Trichobothria

Slender hairs found on spiders, especially on their legs, used for detecting air movement close to the limits of detection.

Amblypygi

Whip spiders with antenniform legs used for communication through vibrations that stimulate opponents' trichobothria.

Chordotonal Organs

Stretch receptors in arthropods located within body cavities or joints, composed of scolopidia and sensory cells responding to mechanical forces.

Johnston’s Organ

The largest chordotonal organ in insects, located at the base of antennae, extremely sensitive to mechanical forces, e.g., tuned to females' flight frequency.

Mechanoreceptors

Receptors in vertebrates like Merkel cells, Ruffini endings, hair follicle receptors, Pacinian and Meissner’s corpuscles, responding to skin displacements or movements.

Hair Cells

Receptors for vertebrate hearing, with stereocilia linked by polypeptide threads, responding to movement by opening K+ gated channels.

Otoliths

Crystals of calcium carbonate in fish inner ears that press on hair cells with gravity, providing information on acceleration and position.

Human Ampullae

Structures in the inner ear detecting rotational acceleration, with cupula and hair cells responding to endolymph movement, crucial for balance maintenance.