L1 Sensory Receptor Types

Specialized cells that encapsulate afferent fibers, helping them detect specific types of physical stimulation.

Nerve fibers that carry sensory information from the body to the central nervous system.

Free nerve endings that lack encapsulation and are primarily responsible for pain sensation.

The process where mechanical stimuli are converted into electrical signals.

Small, localized changes in membrane potential that are proportional to the strength of the stimulus.

A specialized mechanoreceptor that is sensitive to light touch and low-frequency vibrations.

A specialized mechanoreceptor that provides sustained pressure and texture information.

A specialized mechanoreceptor that detects stretch and skin deformation.

Specialized nerve endings in the skin that detect pain caused by intense pressure, heat, or chemicals.

Specialized nerve endings in the skin that detect pain caused by intense mechanical pressure.

Pain experienced within 1 second of a painful stimulus. It is sharp, localized, and conducted through Aδ fibers.

Pain experienced several seconds after a painful stimulus. It is burning, diffuse, and conducted through C fibers.

Aδ fibers are faster-conducting, responsible for sharp, localized pain, and associated with the initial, 'first' pain experience.

C fibers are slower-conducting, responsible for burning, diffuse pain, and associated with the delayed, 'second' pain experience.

A process where repeated or prolonged stimulation makes nociceptors more sensitive to pain.

The area of skin that a specific nociceptor is responsible for detecting pain.

Axons that innervate both intrafusal and extrafusal muscle fibers, allowing for coordinated muscle contraction.

A type of intrafusal muscle fiber that is responsible for dynamic responses, rapidly contracting and relaxing to detect changes in muscle length.

A type of intrafusal muscle fiber that is responsible for static responses, slowly contracting and relaxing to detect changes in muscle length.

Special sensory endings that wrap around intrafusal muscle fibers and respond to changes in their length and velocity of stretching.

Sensory endings that respond to the length changes of static intrafusal muscle fibers.

Motor neurons that innervate intrafusal muscle fibers, helping to adjust the sensitivity of the muscle spindle.

The region of the muscle spindle that lacks striations, containing the cell nuclei.

Intrafusal fibers that have nuclei arranged in a chain along the fiber.

A process where a mechanoreceptor detects changes in pressure, vibration, or stretch and converts those physical stimuli into electrical signals that are then transmitted to the brain via afferent nerve fibers.

The ability of some mechanoreceptors to adjust their response based on the duration of the stimulus. Rapidly adapting receptors are good for detecting sudden changes, while slowly adapting receptors respond continuously to sustained pressure or movement.

Afferent nerve fibers that carry sensory information from mechanoreceptors in the skin to the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). They play a crucial role in transmitting touch, pressure, and vibration sensations.

The combination of Meissner Corpuscles and Ruffini Corpuscles working together to detect and adjust grip force, preventing slippage. This two-stage process allows for fine motor control.

The distribution of mechanoreceptors in the skin, with higher density in areas requiring greater sensitivity (like the fingertips) and lower density in areas with less sensitivity (like the back).

A decrease in the firing rate of a Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO) indicates an increase in muscle tension. This happens because the GTO is activated when the muscle is stretched, causing the rate of its firing to increase, in turn, sending an inhibitory signal to the spinal cord that reduces tension.

An increase in the firing rate of a Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO) signals a decrease in muscle tension. This happens because the GTO is activated when the muscle is stretched, causing the rate of its firing to increase, in turn, sending an inhibitory signal to the spinal cord that reduces tension.

Sensory receptors, such as the Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO), function as transducers, converting mechanical stimuli into electrical signals. This process is crucial for relaying information about muscle tension and preventing muscle damage.

Muscle spindles provide valuable information about muscle length and its rate of change, or velocity. This sensory feedback allows the brain to control muscle movements precisely.

Type Ia and Type Ib sensory fibers originate from muscle spindles and Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO) respectively. These fibers transmit information about muscle length and tension to the spinal cord.

Joint angles are detected by specialized mechanoreceptors called Ruffini endings. These receptors provide essential feedback for maintaining posture and coordinating movements.

Proprioception, the sense of body position and movement, relies heavily on sensory feedback from various receptors, including Muscle spindles, Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO), and Ruffini endings.

The sensory information from muscle spindles and Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO) is crucial for muscle control. This information is used to adjust muscle activity and prevent injury.

Specialized sensory receptors located within skeletal muscles that detect changes in muscle length and rate of change in muscle length. They are crucial for proprioception and regulating muscle contraction.

Sensory neurons that transmit information about muscle length and rate of change in length from muscle spindles to the central nervous system.

Sensory neurons that transmit information about muscle length from muscle spindles to the central nervous system.

These motor neurons innervate the end regions of muscle spindle fibers, possibly contributing to the regulation of muscle spindle sensitivity.

The central region of muscle spindle fibers, responsible for sensing both muscle length and rate of change in length, particularly sensitive to rapid stretch.

The process by which the sensitivity of muscle spindles is adjusted by gamma motor neurons, influencing the overall responsiveness of the muscle to stretch and the subsequent reflex responses.

GSA receptors in skin, muscles, tendons, and joint capsules that detect changes in muscle length and tension; crucial for proprioception.

Nerve fibers that carry sensory information from the body to the CNS.

Sensory receptors that respond to changes in temperature, detecting both warmth and cold.

Sensory receptors that respond to noxious or painful stimuli, such as intense pressure, heat, or chemicals.

A type of pain experienced in a limb that has been amputated, often described as 'brain pain'.

Pain originating from an organ may be felt in a different part of the body.

Pain experienced in a tumor, often described as aching, dull or throbbing.

These sensory nerve fibers are responsible for detecting changes in muscle length and velocity, providing information about muscle stretch.

These sensory nerve fibers provide information about static muscle length, allowing you to know how stretched your muscle is at rest.

These large sensory fibers transmit information about both the rate and extent of muscle stretch.

These small sensory fibers convey information about the static length of muscle.

These sensory endings are responsible for providing positional information about joints.

Type Ia sensory endings wrap around intrafusal muscle fibers, they respond to changes in muscle length and velocity of stretching.

These sensory endings respond to changes in length but not velocity of stretching.

γ-motor neurons innervate the ends of intrafusal muscle fibers, controlling their contraction and helping maintain optimal sensitivity of the muscle spindle.

When a muscle contracts, the intrafusal fiber ends contract due to γ-motor activation, the tension in the central region is maintained, allowing the spindle to remain sensitive to stretch.

During muscle stretch, the intrafusal fiber stretches and its central region becomes more sensitive to change, resulting in increased afferent firing.

The reflex that helps resist stretching of a muscle by activating muscle spindles and causing contraction.

The contraction of intrafusal fibers in the muscle spindle to maintain optimal sensory sensitivity.

Inhibition of antagonistic muscles during a stretch reflex to prevent simultaneous contraction.

The process of activating motor neurons to contract muscle fibers in response to a stretch.

The central region of the muscle spindle that lacks striations and contains nuclei.

The firing of sensory neurons from the spindle stimulates alpha motor neurons causing muscle contraction, while gamma motor neurons (co-activation) keep intrafusal fibres taut.

The more a muscle is stretched, the more the GTO fires, sending an inhibitory signal to the spinal cord to reduce muscle tension preventing muscle damage.