Somatic Nervous System & Touch

Vocabulary flashcards relevant to the Somatic Nervous System and Touch lecture.

Somatic Nervous System

A division of the peripheral nervous system that controls voluntary movement, involuntary movement through reflex arcs, and conscious sensations.

Afferent

Nerve fibers that transmit sensory information from the periphery to the central nervous system.

Efferent

Nerve fibers that convey information from the central nervous system to the periphery, involved in motor control.

Proprioception

The sense that provides information about body position and movement, involving receptors such as muscle spindles and joint receptors.

Mechanoreceptors

Sensory receptors that respond to mechanical pressure or distortion.

Nociceptors

Sensory receptors that respond to potentially damaging stimuli by sending signals that may be perceived as pain.

Thermoreceptors

Sensory receptors that detect changes in temperature.

Receptive Field

The area of the skin surface over which stimulation results in a significant change in the rate of action potentials.

Adaptation Type

The response characteristics of receptors to sustained stimulation, which can be slowly adapting or rapidly adapting.

Microneurography

A technique used to record the electrical activity of peripheral nerve fibers in awake humans.

Tactile Receptors

Sensory structures that detect touch, classified by their receptive fields and adaptation types.

FA1 Mechanoreceptors

Also known as Meissner corpuscles, these are rapidly adapting sensory receptors that respond to light touch.

FA2 Mechanoreceptors

Also known as Pacinian corpuscles, these are rapidly adapting receptors that respond to pressure and vibration.

SA1 Mechanoreceptors

Also known as Merkel cells, these are slowly adapting receptors important for sensing fine details.

SA2 Mechanoreceptors

Also known as Ruffini endings, these are slowly adapting receptors sensitive to skin stretch.