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Related Concept Videos

What is a Sensory System?01:31

What is a Sensory System?

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Sensory systems detect stimuli—such as light and sound waves—and transduce them into neural signals that can be interpreted by the nervous system. In addition to external stimuli detected by the senses, some sensory systems detect internal stimuli—such as the proprioceptors in muscles and tendons that send feedback about limb position.
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Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System01:11

Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System

8.5K
The somatosensory system is the central and peripheral nervous system component that senses and processes touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and body position or proprioception. The process of sensation takes place at three levels:
The receptor level:
The receptor level is the first stage of sensation. It involves the detection of a stimulus by specialized sensory receptors. The stimulus must arrive within the receptor's receptive field. Next, the receptor converts the energy of the...
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Introduction to Special Senses01:26

Introduction to Special Senses

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Sensory receptors play an integral part in comprehending our external and internal environments. They receive diverse stimuli, converting them into the nervous system's electrochemical signals. This conversion occurs as the stimulus alters the sensory neuron's cell membrane potential, instigating the generation of an action potential. This action potential is subsequently transmitted to the central nervous system (CNS), which integrates with other sensory data or higher cognitive...
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Introduction to Sensory Receptors01:31

Introduction to Sensory Receptors

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Sensory receptors are vital in our ability to perceive and interpret the world. Sensory receptors are specialized cells in the peripheral nervous system that respond to various stimuli and enable one to experience different sensations. Based on specific criteria, sensory receptors are classified into distinct types.
The first classification criterion is based on cell type, position, and function. Some receptor cells are neurons with free nerve endings, where their dendrites are embedded in the...
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Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways01:29

Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways

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Somatic sensory or somatosensory pathways refer to the neural pathways that carry information related to touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and proprioception from the skin, muscles, tendons, and joints to the brain. These pathways involve several stages of processing and integration of sensory information.
The somatosensory system is divided into three main pathways: the dorsal (or posterior) column-medial lemniscus, spinothalamic (or anterolateral), and spinocerebellar pathways.
The dorsal...
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Somatosensation01:33

Somatosensation

40.7K
The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
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A Bioinformatics Pipeline for Investigating Molecular Evolution and Gene Expression using RNA-seq
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Evolution of sensory systems.

Pablo Oteiza1, Maude W Baldwin2

  • 1Flow Sensing Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany.

Current Opinion in Neurobiology
|October 2, 2021
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Organisms perceive their environment through sensory systems, which evolve diverse receptor genes for survival. Comparative studies reveal how these systems change across species and the role of chance in their evolution.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Sensory biology
  • Genomics

Background:

  • Organisms interact with their environment through sensory systems.
  • Sensory systems comprise receptors, cells, organs, and neural circuits.
  • Species exhibit significant variation in sensory system components.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the evolution of sensory systems and their components.
  • To understand the genetic basis of sensory diversity.
  • To investigate the role of evolutionary contingency in sensory system development.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of sensory receptor gene families across lineages.
  • Phylogenetic comparisons of sensory system evolution.
  • Studies on sensory receptor function and molecular properties.

Main Results:

  • Sensory receptor gene families show lineage-specific expansion and contraction.
  • Comparative studies reveal the molecular basis of receptor properties.
  • Novel sensory receptor classes and noncanonical strategies have been identified.

Conclusions:

  • Sensory system evolution is driven by adaptation to specific environmental cues (Umwelt).
  • Gene family dynamics contribute significantly to sensory diversity.
  • Phylogenetic approaches illuminate the timing and contingency of sensory system evolution.