mechanoreceptor

Examples of mechanoreceptor in the following topics:

• Integration of Signals from Mechanoreceptors

  • Small, finely-calibrated mechanoreceptors (Merkel's disks and Meissner's corpuscles) are located in the upper layers and can precisely localize even gentle touch.
  • The large mechanoreceptors (Pacinian corpuscles and Ruffini endings) are located in the lower layers and respond to deeper touch.
  • Both primary somatosensory cortex and secondary cortical areas are responsible for processing the complex picture of stimuli transmitted from the interplay of mechanoreceptors.
  • The mechanoreceptors are activated, the signal is conveyed, and then processed.
  • Some types of mechanoreceptors have large receptive fields, while others have smaller ones.

• Tactile Sensation

  • A mechanoreceptor is a sensory receptor that responds to mechanical pressure or distortion.
  • There are also mechanoreceptors in hairy skin.
  • Cutaneous mechanoreceptors are located in the skin, like other cutaneous receptors.
  • Merkel nerve endings are mechanoreceptors found in the skin and mucosa of vertebrates that provide touch information to the brain.
  • They are classified as slowly adapting type I mechanoreceptors.

• Somatosensory Receptors

  • There are various types of tactile mechanoreceptors that work together to signal and process "touch."
  • Mechanoreceptors in the skin are described as encapsulated or unencapsulated.
  • There are three classes of mechanoreceptors: tactile, proprioceptors, and baroreceptors.
  • Mechanoreceptors sense stimuli due to physical deformation of their plasma membranes.
  • Four of the primary mechanoreceptors in human skin are shown.

• Classification of Receptors by Stimulus

  • Sensory receptors are primarily classified as chemoreceptors, thermoreceptors, mechanoreceptors, or photoreceptors.
  • During hearing, mechanoreceptors in hair cells of the inner ear detect vibrations conducted from the eardrum.
  • During touch, mechanoreceptors in the skin and other tissues respond to variations in pressure.

• Classification of Receptors by Location

  • Our skin includes touch and temperature receptors, and our inner ears contain sensory mechanoreceptors designed for detecting vibrations caused by sound or used to maintain balance.
  • Force-sensitive mechanoreceptors provide an example of how the placement of a sensory receptor plays a role in how our brains process sensory inputs.
  • While the cutaneous touch receptors found in the dermis and epidermis of our skin and the muscle spindles that detect stretch in skeletal muscle are both mechanoreceptors, they serve discrete functions.
  • In both cases, the mechanoreceptors detect physical forces that result from the movement of the local tissue, cutaneous touch receptors provide information to our brain about the external environment, while muscle spindle receptors provide information about our internal environment.

• Cutaneous Sensation

  • Mechanoreceptors are sensory receptors that respond to pressure and vibration.
  • Four key types of mechanoreceptor have been described based on their response to stimulation and receptive field.

• Classification of Nerves

  • Afferent nerves conduct signals from sensory neurons to the central nervous system, for example from mechanoreceptors in skin.
  • A-beta fibers act as secondary receptors of the muscle spindle and contribute to cutaneous mechanoreceptors.

• Somatosensation: Pressure, Temperature, and Pain

  • The receptors in the skin, also called cutaneous receptors, tell the body about the three main subdivisions mentioned above: pressure and surface texture (mechanoreceptors), temperature (thermoreceptors), and pain (nociceptors).
  • Mechanoreceptors in the skin give us a sense of pressure and texture.
  • Thus, there are four types of mechanoreceptors based on the four possible combinations of fast vs. slow speed and large vs. small receptive fields.
  • Mechanoreceptors can be free receptors or encapsulated.

• Transduction and Perception

  • As an example, a type of receptor called a mechanoreceptor possesses specialized membranes that respond to pressure.

• Overview of Sensation

  • Mechanoreceptors in the inner ear turn vibration motion into electrical nerve pulses.
  • Our nervous system has sensory systems and organs that mediate each sense and these systems rely on chemoreceptors, photoreceptors, mechanoreceptors, or thermoreceptors to detect the state of the internal or external environment.