Hearing and Balance

Eye
The eye is composed of three coats, or tunics (figure 15.11). The outer, or fibrous, tunic consists of
the sclera and cornea; the middle, or vascular, tunic consists of the choroid, ciliary body, and iris; and
the inner, or nervous, tunic consists of the retina.

Ear

Hearing and Balance

The organs of hearing and balance are divided into three parts: external, middle, and inner ears (figure
15.22). The external and middle ears are involved in hearing only, whereas the inner ear functions in
both hearing and balance. The external ear includes the auricle (aw_ri-kl; ear) and the external
auditory meatus (me-a_tus; the passageway from the outside to the eardrum). The external ear
terminates medially at the eardrum, or tympanic (tim-pan_ik) membrane. The middle ear is an airfilled space within the petrous portion of the temporal bone, which contains the auditory ossicles.
The inner ear contains the sensory organs for hearing and balance. It consists of interconnecting
fluid-filled tunnels and chambers within the petrous portion of the temporal bone.

Taste bud
Olfactory epithelium

12B: PHYSIOLOGY OF THE SPECIAL SENSES PART 1: SIGHT, HEARING,

EQUILIBRIUM
2. Define the following
a. Myopia
Myopia (m-o_pe -a), or nearsightedness, is the ability to see close objects clearly, but distant objects appear
blurry. Myopia is a defect of the eye in which the focusing system, the cornea and lens, is optically too powerful, or
the eyeball is too long (axial myopia).

b. Hypermetropia
Hyperopia (h-per-o_pe-a), or farsightedness, is the ability to see distant objects clearly, but close objects
appear blurry. Hyperopia is a disorder in which the cornea and lens system is optically too weak or the eyeball is too
short.

c. Presbyopia
Presbyopia (prez-be-o_pe-a) is the normal, presently unavoidable, degeneration of the accommodation power
of the eye that occurs as a consequence of aging. It occurs because the lens becomes sclerotic and less flexible.
The eye is presbyopic when
the near point of vision has increased beyond 9 inches. The average age for onset of presbyopia is the midforties.
Avid readers or people engaged in fine, close work may develop the symptoms earlier.

d. Astigmatism
Astigmatism (a-stig_ma-tizm) is a type of refractive error in which the quality of focus is affected. If the cornea
or lens is not uniformly curved, the light rays dont focus at a single point but fall as a blurred circle. Regular
astigmatism can be corrected by glasses that are formed with the opposite curvature gradation. Irregular
astigmatism is a situation in which the abnormal form of the cornea fits no specific pattern and is very difficult to
correct with glasses.

e. Strabismus
Strabismus (stra-biz_mus) is a lack of parallelism of light paths through the eyes. Strabismus can involve only
one eye or both eyes, and the eyes may turn in (convergent) or out (divergent). In concomitant strabismus, the
most common congenital type, the angle between visual axes remains constant, regardless of the direction of the
gaze. In noncomitant strabismus, the angle varies, depending on the direction of the gaze, and deviates as the
gaze changes.

f. Color blindness
Color blindness results from the dysfunction of one or more of the three photopigments involved in color vision. If
one pigment is dysfunctional and the other two are functional, the condition is called dichromatism.

Seeley, R., et. al. (2004). Essentials of anatomy and physiology. 6th Ed.
New York: The Mc-Graw Hill Companies, Inc.

4. Which of the reflexes are dependent upon:

a. cranial and brain stem functioning
b. spinal nerve and cord functioning
c. autonomic nerves
B___Patellar/Knee Reflex
B__Achilles/Ankle Jerk A positive result would be the jerking of the foot towards its
plantar surface.

B___Biceps Reflex
a___Corneal/Conjunctival Reflex
a___Abdominal Reflex
b___Plantar Reflex
flexion of hallux
a___Pharyngeal Reflex
a___Sneeze/Nasal Reflex
c___Photopupil Reflex
c___Accommodation Reflex
c___Ciliospinal Reflex
c___Convergence Reflex

Seeley, R., et. al. (2004). Essentials of anatomy and physiology. 6th Ed.
New York: The Mc-Graw Hill Companies, Inc.

References:
SOMATIC REFLEXES
A. abdominal reflex
B. achilles jerk
D. corneal reflex
E. crossed extensor reflex
F. gag reflex
G. patellar reflex
H. plantar reflex
SIMPLE STRETCH REFLEXES
B. achilles jerk
G. patellar reflex
SUPERFICIAL CORD REFLEXES
A. abdominal reflex
H. plantar reflex
AUTONOMIC REFLEXES

I. pupillary light reflex

C. ciliospinal reflex

Exercise 22: Human Reflex Physiology

1. DEFINE REFLEX
REFLEXES ARE RAPID, PREDICTABLE, INVOLUNTARY MOTOR RESPONSES
TO STIMULI; THEY ARE MEDIATED OVER NEURAL PATHWAYS CALLED
REFLEX ARCS.
2. NAME FIVE ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS OF A REFLEX
RECEPTOR, SENSORY NEURON, INTERGRATION CENTER, MOTOR NEURON,
AND EFFECTOR
3. IN GENERAL, WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF REFLEX TESTING IN A
ROUTINE PHYSICAL EXAMINATION?
IT IS AN IMPORTANT DIAGNOSTIC TOOK FOR ASSESSING THE CONDITION
OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM. IT HELPS TO INDICATE DEGENERATION OR
PATHOLOGY OF PORTIONS OF THE NERVES, OR CAN HELP PIN POINT AN
AREA OF A SPINAL CORD INJURY.
4. REFLEXES CLASSIFIED AS SOMATIC REFLEXES INCLUDE A __1__, __2__,
__3__, __4__, __5__, __6__, AND __7__.
1. CROSS-EXTENSOR REFLEX
2. CORNEAL REFLEX
3. GAG REFLEX
4. PLANTAR REFLEX
5. ABDOMINAL REFLEX
6. ACHILLES REFLEX
7. PATELLAR REFLEX
5. THE SIMPLE STRETCH REFLEXES ARE __1__ AND __2__
1. PATELLAR REFLEX
2. ACHILLES REFLEX
6. THE SUPERFICIAL CORD REFLEXES ARE __1__ AND __2__
1. ABDOMINAL REFLEX
2. PLANTAR REFLEX

7. REFLEXES CLASSIFIED AS AUTONOMIC REFLEXES INCLUDE __1__ AND

__2__.
1. PUPILLARY LIGHT REFLEX
2. CILIOSPINAL REFLEX
8. NAME TWO CORD-MEDIATED REFLEXES
PATELLAR REFLEX AND CROSS-EXTENSOR REFLEX
9. NAME TWO SOMATIC REFLEXES IN WHICH THE HIGHER BRAIN CENTERS
PARTICIPATE
PUPILLARY LIGHT REFLEXES AND SUPERFICIAL CORD REFLEXES
10. CAN THE STRETCH REFLEX BE ELICITED IN A PITHED ANIMAL (THAT IS, AN
ANIMAL IN WHICH THE BRAIN HAS BEEN DESTROYED)?
YES, EVEN WITHOUT THE BRAIN A STRETCH REFLEX ONLY NEEDS A
AFFERENT, CONTROL CENTER, AND MOTOR FIBERS TO BE ELICITED. THESE
COMPONENTS STILL STAY INTACT IF THE BRAIN HAS BEEN DESTROYED.
11. TRACE THE REFLEX ARC, NAMING EFFERENT AND AFFERENT NERVES,
RECEPTORS, EFFECTORS, AND INTEGRATION CENTERS.
PATELLAR REFLEX
HIT PATELLAR TENDON TO EXCITE MUSCLE SPINDLES OF QUADRICEPS.
(AFFERENT NERVE) FEMORAL NERVE TO (INTEGRATION CENTERS) L2 - L4
FROM THERE IT GOES TO (EFFERENT NERVE) FEMORAL BACK TO
QUADRICEPS (EFFECTOR) TO MAKE CONTRACTION. ALSO SENDS TO
HAMSTING (EFFECTOR) TO GIVE IT RESISTANCE.
12. TRACE THE REFLEX ARC, NAMING EFFERENT AND AFFERENT NERVES,
RECEPTORS, EFFECTORS, AND INTEGRATION CENTERS.
ACHILLES REFLEX
HIT TENDON NOCICEPTORS IN TENDO-ACHILLES. GOES TO CNS BY SCIATIC
NERVE (AFFERENT) THEN GOES TO INTERNEURONS IN SPINAL CORD
(INTEGRATION CENTER) S1 - S2. THEN TO ALFA MOTOR N (EFFERENT N)
TIBIAL NERVE FROM SCIATIC NERVE TO LEAD TO THE )EFFECTOR)
GASTROCNEMIUS MUSCLE.
13. WHAT FACTOR INCREASES THE EXCITATORY LEVEL OF THE SPINAL CORD?

MUSCLE ACTIVITY IN ANOTHER BODY AREA

14. WHAT FACTOR DECRESES THE EXCITATORY LEVEL OF THE MUSCLES?
FATIGUE
15. WHAT A SUBJECT IS CONCENTRATING ON AN ARITHMETIC PROBLEM, DID
THE CHANGE NOTED IN THE PATELLAR REFLEX INDICATE THAT BRAIN
ACTIVITY IS NECESSARY FOR THE PATELLAR REFLEX OR ONLT THAT IT
MAY MODIFY IT?
THERE WAS NO EFFECT AT ALL, IT DOES NOT INVOLVE THE BRAIN AT ALL.
16. CILIOSPINAL REFLEX
SYMPATHETIC
17. PUPILLARY LIGHT REFLEX
PARASYMPATHETIC
18. SALIVARY REFLEX
SYMPATHETIC
19. DECRIBE THE PROTECTIVE ASPECT OF:
PUPILLARY LIGHT REFLEX
TO PROTECT AND HELP CONTROL THE EYES FROM DAMAGE FROM
DIFFERENT LIGHT SETTINGS
20. DECRIBE THE PROTECTIVE ASPECT OF:
CORNEAL REFLEX
TO PROTECT THE EYES FROM FOREIGN BODIES AND LIGHTS
21. DECRIBE THE PROTECTIVE ASPECT OF:
CROSSED-EXTENSOR REFLEX
TO HELP PROTECT AND MAINTAIN BALANCE WHEN A WITHDRAW REFLEX
OCCURS AT ANOTHER PART OF THE BODY. HELPS SO YOU WONT HURT
YOURSELF WHEN A REFLEX OCCURS, SUCH AS FALLING.

22. WAS THE PUPILLARY CONSENSUAL RESPONSE CONTRALATERAL OR

IPSILATERAL?
CONTRALATERAL
23. WHY WOULD SUCH A RESPONSE BE OF SIGNIFICANT VALUE IN THIS
PARTICULAR REFLEX? (CONTRALATERAL)
HELP EVEN OUT LIGHT RAYS MAKING IT LESS STRESSFUL FOR THE
AFFECTED EYE.
24. DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN THE TYPES OF ACTIVITIES ACCOMPLISHED BY
SOMATIC AND AUTONOMIC REFLEXES.
SOMATIC REFLEXES INCLUDE ALL PATHWAYS THAT ARE VOLUNTARY
ACTIONS OF THE BODY. AND AUTONOMIC REFLEXES INCLUDE ALL
PATHWAYS THAT RESULT IN INVOLUNTARY ACTIONS.
25. Ok, so youre using my notecards which is great. I am glad I could help you out cause I
wish I had someone to help me out when I took this course. I know Anatomy is super
hard.
I only ask that if you find these notecards helpful, you join Easy Notecards and create at
least one notecard set to help others out. It can be for any subject or class. Thanks and
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26. REFLEX: MICTURITION (URINATION)
GIVE ORGAN INVOLVED, RECEPTORS STIMULATED AND ACTION.
ORGAN: BLADDER, URETHA, URETERS
RECEPTORS STIMULATED: STRETCH RECEPTORS
ACTION: THE SENSATION TO URINATE (URINATION)
27. REFLEX: HERING-BREUER
GIVE ORGAN INVOLVED, RECEPTORS STIMULATED AND ACTION.
ORGAN: LUNG(S)
RECEPTORS STIMULATED: STRETCH RECEPTORS (PULMONARY)
ACTION: INSPIRATIONS, INHALATION WITHOUT OVER STRETCHING THE
LUNGS
28. REFLEX: DEFECATION
GIVE ORGAN INVOLVED, RECEPTORS STIMULATED AND ACTION.

ORGAN: MOUTH, PHARYNX, ESOPHAGUS, STOMACH, SMALL INTESTINE,

LARGE INTESTINE, AND ACCESSORY DIGESTIVE ORGANS
RECEPTORS STIMULATED: STRETCH RECEPTORS
ACTION: STOOL PASSAGE AND BEING REGULARITY
29. REFLEX: CAROTID SINUS
GIVE ORGAN INVOLVED, RECEPTORS STIMULATED AND ACTION.
ORGAN: INTERAL CAROTID ARTERY, COMMON CAROTID ARTERY, HEART
AND BLOOD VESSELS
RECEPTORS STIMULATED: BERORECEPTORS
ACTION: CONTROL OF BLOOD PRESSURE BY MEDIATING CHANGES IN THE
HEART RATE
30. HOW DO BASIC AND LEARNED OR ACQUIRED REFLEX DIFFER?
BASIC REFLEXES INHERITED YOUR BORN WITH; LEARNED AND AQUIRED
REFLEXES ARE LEARNED BY REPETITION YOUR NOT BORN WITH THESE.
31. NAME AT LEAST THREE FACTORS THAT MAY MODIFY REACTION TIME TO A
STIMULUS.
AGE, FATIGUE, AND ILLNESS.
32. IN GENERAL, HOW DID THE RESPONSE TIME FOR THE LEARNED ACTIVITY
PERFORMED IN THE LABORATORY COMPARE TO THAT FOR THE SIMPLE
PATELAR REFLEX?
A LEARNED REFLEX IS NOT AS QUICK AS A BASIC REFLEX.
33. DID THE RESPONSE TIME WITHOUT VERBAL STIMULI DECREASE WITH
PRACTICE?
YES
34. EXPLAIN, IN DETAIL, WHY RESPONSE TINE INCREASED WHEN THE SUBJECT
HAD TO REACT TO A WORD STIMULUS.
BECAUSE IT DISTRACTS YOU, IT MAKES YOUR REFLEX SLOW DOWN, YOUR
BODY CAN NOT GO AS FAST WITH TWO REFLEXES AS WITH ONE.

Exam 4 Review: Chapter 13: Basic Reflex Terminology

reflex - (1) general - A relatively rapid and predictable motor response to a stimulus which will
be repeated in a similar fashion each time the stimulus is presented; it consists of five general
components: the receptor(s) for the stimulus, the sensory neuron(s) transmitting afferent
impulses to the CNS, the control/integration center(s) within the CNS, the motor neuron(s)
transmitting efferent impulses away from the CNS, and the effector(s) which respond to the
stimulus with the dependable control center response which command the specific motor
response(s); (2) inborn or intrinsic reflex - a reflex which is unlearned, unpremeditated,
involuntary and in which the pathways are built into the neural anatomy of each individual
during development; depending on the effectors involved, such reflexes may be termed somatic

or autonomic; although unlearned in their original form, they are sometimes subject to
modification by learning from experience; (3) learned or acquired reflex - a reflex which is
learned through practice or repetition and may involve both a far more complicated set of
triggering stimuli and a far more complicated pattern of motor response, e.g., the reflexive motor
actions produced after one has learned to ride a bicycle or drive a car; most such reflexes are
somatic because they involve complex response patterns from skeletal muscles.

spinal reflex - The inborn or intrinsic somatic (skeletal muscle response) reflexes (relatively
rapid and predictable motor responses to stimuli) mediated by control centers in the spinal cord;
although the central pathway(s) involve only spinal cord segment control, some spinal reflexes
require the participation of higher brain centers for completion and most spinal reflexes also
report information about the reflex having occurred to higher centers in the brain; in many of
these reflexes, somatic motor neurons, whose cell bodies (somas) reside in the ventral (anterior)
horn of the spinal cord, connect or synapse directly with skeletal muscle cells forming motor
units.
cranial reflexes - The inborn or intrinsic somatic (skeletal muscle response) and visceral
(Autonomic) reflexes (relatively rapid and predictable motor responses to stimuli) mediated by
control centers in the brain; the pathway(s) usually involve cranial and, perhaps, cervical spinal
nerves; in many of these reflexes, somatic motor neurons, whose cell bodies (somas) reside in
gray matter nuclei within the diencephalon or brain stem, connect or synapse directly with
skeletal muscle cells forming motor units.
autonomic reflex - The inborn or intrinsic visceral (cardiac or smooth muscle or glandular
response) reflexes (relatively rapid and predictable motor responses to stimuli) mediated by
control centers in the brain, particularly in the hypothalamus and brain stem, and in the spinal
cord, particularly in the lateral horns of thoracic and lumbar spinal cord segments; these reflexes
are involved in the automatic adjustment or negative feedback control of internal environment =
internal homeostasis; in many of these reflexes, visceral motor neurons, whose cell bodies
(somas) reside in the lateral horn of the spinal cord, connect to their effectors (smooth or cardiac
muscle cells or endocrine or exocrine glands, in two cell efferent pathways; the first cell in the
pathway, the preganglionic neuron, synapses with the second cell in the pathway, the
postganglionic neuron, within an autonomic ganglion somewhere along the Peripheral Nervous
System (PNS); these reflexes control internal environment and homeostasis. [For example: The
initial responses to cold-water immersion, evoked by stimulation of peripheral cold receptors,
include tachycardia, a reflex inspiratory gasp and uncontrollable hyperventilation. When

immersed naked, the maximum responses are initiated in water at 10 degrees C, with smaller
responses being observed following immersion in water at 15 degrees C. Habituation of the
initial responses can be achieved following repeated immersions, but the specificity of this
response with regard to water temperature is not known. This gasp reflex seems to be a
significant cause of death in kayakers.]

pupillary reflexes - The variety of autonomic reflexes (relatively rapid and predictable motor
responses to stimuli) in which the effectors are the radial and circular muscles of the iris of the
eye and the responses are constriction or dilation of the pupil; stimuli are quite variable;
responses include components of the light adaptation and dark adaptation processes.

somatic reflex - Any reflex (relatively rapid and predictable motor response to a stimulus) in
which the effectors are skeletal muscles, e.g., the patellar reflex, the flexor or withdrawal reflex,
the crossed extensor reflex, the plantar reflex, the abdominal reflexes, etc.; most named somatic
reflexes are inborn/intrinsic, but a variety of more complex learned/acquired reflexes may be
included as somatic reflexes.
reflex neural pathway = reflex arc - The anatomical route(s) which connect the components:
the receptor(s) for the stimulus, the sensory neuron(s) transmitting afferent impulses to the CNS,
the control/integration center(s) within the CNS, the motor neuron(s) transmitting efferent
impulses away from the CNS, and the effector(s) which respond to the afferent impulses with the
specific motor response(s)) of a particular reflex; these pathways control automatic unconscious
programmed (hard-wired) responses to particular sensory stimuli.
receptor 1. Physiology. A specialized cell or group of nerve endings or a specialized organ which
responds to sensory stimuli of some modality.

2. Biochemistry. A molecular structure or site on the surface or interior of a cell that binds
with substances such as hormones, antigens, drugs, or neurotransmitters.
sensory neuron = afferent neuron - A neuron, whose cell body generally is found in a
peripheral ganglion such as a dorsal root ganglion, which conducts impulses representing

information about an (external or internal) environmental change inwards to the brain or spinal
cord.
integrating center = control center - Those cells, generally interneurons on the central nervous
system, which receive sensory information from the (external or internal) environment, process
that information, and, if appropriate, generate motor commands to effector organs in response to
the stimulus from the (external or internal) environment.
association neuron = interneuron = internuncial - A nerve cell found entirely within the
central nervous system, often participating in a complex multicellular pathway, that acts as a link
between sensory neurons and motor neurons or between other internal linking neurons and
integrating or communicating or transmitting information between different parts of the CNS.
monosynaptic - Having one neural synapse and referring to direct neural connections between
just two neurons, commonly between a primary sensory neuron and a motor neuron in a simple
reflex arc where no interneurons are involved.
polysynaptic - Of or involving two or more synapses in the central nervous system and referring
to direct neural connections between three or more neurons in any neural pathway, often used to
describe reflex arcs in which one or more interneurons are involved.
motor neuron = efferent neuron - A neuron that conveys impulses outward from the central
nervous system to a muscle, gland, or other effector tissue that regulates the activity of the
effector.
effector - A muscle, gland, or other organ capable of responding to a stimulus which has been
evaluated by a control center, mediated by a nerve impulse or a hormonal signal.
Sketch and Label:
1. An illustration of a simple reflex arc. What terminology would be used to describe the
structure of the simplest possible reflex arc?
The simplest reflex arc would contain only four of the parts below,
omitting the (3) interneuron functioning as the integration center.
Such a simplest reflex arc would be termed monosynaptic.

2. A homeostatic negative feedback pathway diagram of a reflex arc.

Using feedback control terminology, the sensor is the combination of
the sensory receptor and the sensory neuron, the control center is the
action of the CNS, either the cooperation of the sensory and motor
neurons in a monosynaptic reflex or the action of the association
neuron in a polysynaptic reflex, and the effector is the combination of
the motor neuron and the skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, smooth
muscle, or endocrine or exocrine gland which responds to the nervous
system command. The feedback control is negative because the
environmental change moves the body part or system in one direction
while the response brings it back in the opposite direction; e.g., a
somatic stimulus can be a stretching of the sensor and the response is
the reverse, a muscle contraction which reduces the tension in the
muscle and receptor. [Note: a similar diagram, with minor details,
could be drawn of any somatic or autonomic reflex.]

Explain
3. the difference(s) between a somatic versus an autonomic reflex.
Somatic Reflexes

Autonomic Reflexes

Sensory receptor Sensory receptor responds to stimuli at an enteroreceptor or proprioceptor.

responds to
stimuli at an
Motor neuron communicates in a two cell path with effector; pre- and postexteroreceptor or ganglionic autonomic neurons.
proprioceptor.

Motor neuron
communicates
directly (one cell
path) with its
effector.

Pre-ganglionic motor neuron cell body resides in brain stem or lateral horn of
spinal cord; post-ganglionic motor neuron cell body resides in autonomic
ganglion.

Motor neuron
cell body resides
in brain stem or
ventral = anterior
horn of spinal
cord.

Acetyl choline or norepinephrine are the transmitters at the visceral effectors

and their effects may be excitatory or inhibitory, depending on the receptor
type at the target tissue.

Somatic effector
is skeletal muscle
(motor units).
Acetyl choline is
the excitatory
transmitter at the
neuro-muscular
junction.
Sometimes, they
are perceived
consciously, after
the reflex has
been initiated,
especially if the
reflex causes a
dramatic
movement of a
body part, such
as when the hand
draws back
reflexively after
experiencing a
painful stimulus,
or when the
reflex is checked
by a test, such as
a tap on the
patellar tendon.
Many somatic
reflexes are

Visceral effector is smooth muscle or gland cells.

Generally, they are not perceived consciously.

involved in minor
postural
adjustments and
those would not
generally be
perceived
consciously.