saccule

(noun)

A bed of sensory cells situated in the inner ear that translates head movements into neural impulses that the brain can interpret.

Related Terms

Examples of saccule in the following topics:

  • Development of the Respiratory System

    • This surfactant is important in reducing the surface tension at the air-alveolar surface, allowing expansion of the terminal saccules.
    • Lastly, the alveolar period spans from birth to eight years of age and during this stage the terminal saccules, alveolar ducts, and alveoli increase in number.

  • Development of Hearing and Balance

    • They contain the sensory hair cells and otoliths of the macula of utricle and of the saccule, respectively, which respond to linear acceleration and the force of gravity.
    • The utricular division of the auditory vesicle also responds to angular acceleration, as well as the endolymphatic sac and duct that connect the saccule and utricle.

  • Vestibulocochlear (VIII) Nerve

    • The other two sensory organs supplied by the vestibular neurons are the maculae of the saccule and utricle.

  • Anatomy of the Large Intestine

    • The sacculations, called haustra, are characteristic features of the large intestine, and distinguish it from the small intestine.

  • Sensory Modalities

    • The vestibular nerve also conducts information from the utricle and the saccule; these contain hair-like sensory receptors that bend under the weight of otoliths (small crystals of calcium carbonate) that provide the inertia needed to detect head rotation, linear acceleration, and the direction of gravitational force.