What are the three section of the ear?
outer middle and inner ear
Where is the organ embedded?
petrous portion of the temporal bone, the hardest bone in the body
What is the function of the outer ear?
What is the main function of the middle ear?
- Tympanic box
How does the middle ear amplify?
What is the inner ear?
cochlea
How does the inner ear function?
What are the 3 parts of the cochlea?
What is the scala vestibuli and scala tympani?
Bone structures, contain perilymph (high in sodium) - joined
What is the scala media?
Membranous structure, contains endolymph (high in potassium)
What is located in scala media?
Organ of Corti (hearing organ)
What is the basillar membrane?
where the organ of Corti lies in
How is the basillar membrane arranged?
tonotopically, base ( narrow and tight and thicker), apex (wide and loose and thinner)
What does tonotopically mean?
same principals as xylophone - sensitive to different frequencies at difference point along its length - high frequency comes vibrations of membrane have higher amplitude on base, lower frequency vibration high amplitude nearer apex
What does the organ of corti contain?
thousands of hair cells: inner hair cells (IHC) and outer hair cells (OHC)
How are IHC organised?
one column
How are OHC organised?
3 columns
What does the tectorial membrane above the hair cells allow?
-Hari defelction which depolairses. the cell
Which hair cells are in constant contact with tectroial membrane?
OHC , and these assist contact with the IHC
What do IHC do?
- Transduce sound into nerve impulses
What do OHC do?
What are the hairs of the hair cells called?
stereocilia
What does the deflection of the sterocilila towards the longest cilium cause?
open K+ channels
What does the ionic interchange do?
Depolarises cell and neurotransmitter is liberated