SENSE ORGANS

Sense organs are an organ of the body which responds to external stimuli by conveying impulses to the sensory
nervous system.
CLASSIFICATION OF SENSE ORGANS IN HUMAN
A. CLASSSIFICATION BASED ON THEIR POSITION
Exteroreceptors: found outside the body receiving external stimuli such as heat,light etc.
Interoreceptors: found inside the body.
B. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON THEIR SPECIALIZED FUNCTIONS.
Proprioreceptors: found in muscles, tendons and joints, responsive to movement of muscles.
Nocireceptors: deep pain receptors
Telereceptors: detect the changes in distance and hearing.
C. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON TYPE OF STIMULUS SENSED
Melanoreceptors: responsive to tactile stimuli, to sound and other vibrations.
Thermoreceptors: temperature changes.
Chemoreceptors: concentration of specific chemical substances.
Photoreceptors: intensity or wavelength of light.
Phonoreceptors: responsive to hearing.
Gustatoreceptors: taste.
Olfactoreceptors: smell.

HUMAN EYE
• The eye is the photo-receptor organ.
• Size and shape: Human eye is spherical about 2.5 cm in diameter.
• Location: it is situated on an orbit of skull and is supplied by optic nerve.
• There are 6 sets of muscles attached to outer surface of eye ball which helps to rotate it in different direction.
• Four sets of these muscles are straight muscles; superior, inferior, medial and lateral rectal muscle and two sets are
oblique muscles; superior and inferior oblique muscles.

The glands associated with eye are:

Meiobomian glands: modified form of sebaceous gland, present at the edges of eyelids. It secretes oily secretion
to lubricate eyelids and eyelashes.

Lachrymal gland or tear gland: 1 pair, modified form of sweat gland, present on superior and lateral surface of
eyeball. It secrete watery alkaline lachrymal secretions or tears to keep the eye moist, clean cornea & provide
nutrition to cornea. It also contains lysozyme to kill bacteria entering eye.
• Ducts of lachrymal gland: superior and inferior canaliculi, a lachrymal duct & nasolachrymal duct.

• Canal of Schlemn: small tubular capillaries which drains out excess of aqueous humour which is passed into
blood. It is situated at the junction of sclera and cornea.

• In human nictitating membranes is vestigial and represented by a pink semilunar mass called Plica semilunaris.
INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF HUMAN EYE

Fig: V.S. of human eye

 Eye ball consists of three layers
1.Outer fibrous layer: Sclera, cornea and conjunctiva
2.Middle vascular layer: choroid, ciliary body, and iris
3.Inner layer: retina
I. Outer fibrous layer:
It consists of following parts.
1. Sclera:
•It is outermost supporting layer consists of white thick membrane of tough fibrous connective tissue.
•It is opaque and protective in function.
•It covers 5/6 parts of eye ball.
•It maintains the shape of eye and provide attachment to the extrinsic muscle of eye.
2. Cornea:
•It is a thin transparent front part of sclera.
•It forms a slight bulge at the front and covers an anterior 1/6 part of sclera.
•Cornea is avascular and absorbs oxygen from air.
•It refracts light to focus on retina.
3. Conjunctiva:
•It is a thin transparent layer that covers the cornea.
•It is formed of single layer of stratified squamous epithelium
•It protects the cornea.
II. Middle vascular layer:
It consists of following parts:

1. Choroid:
•It is thick vascular and pigmented layer situated below sclera.
•The pigmented cells absorbs light and prevent it from being reflected.
•It makes the internal eyeball dark.
•The function of choroid is to provide nutrition and to prevent reflection of light.

2. Ciliary body:
•These are attached to choroid and present at the junction of sclera and cornea.
•It consists of two sets of ciliary muscle and suspensory ligament.
•Ciliary body is attached to lens and holds it in position
•Its function is to change the shape of lens by contraction or relaxation of ciliary muscle.

3. Iris:
•It is muscular, pigmented and opaque diaphragm which hangs in the eye ball in front of lens.
•It has small circular opening called pupil. It permits the light to enter into eye.
•It has two types of muscles; circular and radial muscle. The movement of these muscles control the size of pupil.
•Pigment in iris gives color to eye.
•Iris control the amount of light entering into eye by controlling the size of pupil.
•In dim light pupil becomes larger & in bright light it becomes smaller.
III. Inner layer:
It consists of photoreceptor cells and photo sensitive elements such as bipolar neurons &ganglionic layers.
1. Retina:
•Retina is innermost layer.
•Neuroretina contains highly specialized photoreceptor nerve cells; rods and cones
•Each eye ball has 10 to 20 millions of rod cells and 7 millions of cone cells.
•Small depression in retinal wall is called Fovea centralis or yellow spot or macula lutea which contains only cone
cells.
•Fovea centralis is highly sensitive to light and forms magnified image and give sharp and acute vision.
•The optic nerve enter retina at a point called blind spot. It does not contains any rods or cone cells. It is least
sensitive to light and forms no image when light falls on blind spot.
Rod cell:
•rods are sensors for perception of black to white shades
•Night vision is almost rod vision.
•It function in dim light
•Contains a photosensitive pigment rhodopsin formed from vitamin A.
Cone cell:
•Cones are sensors for perception of colors.
•It functions in bright light and differentiate colors.
•Contains a photosensitive pigment iodopsin.
Point of difference RODS CONES
More numerous, 10 to 20 millions in
Number Less than rods, 7 millions in each eye
each eye
Photosynthetic pigment . Rhodopsin Iodopsin
Sensitivity Sensitive to light Less sensitive to light
Vision Dim light (Night vision) Bright light
3 visual pigment, to differentiate
Visual pigment Only one, black-white
colors
location periphery of retina center of retina
Speed of response to light Slow response: long integration time Fast response: short integration time
Poor; many rods share common Good; each cone cell has its own
Visual acuity
neuron connection to brain neuron connection to brain
Eye lens and chambers

1. Eye Lens:
•It is a large, flexible, transparent biconvex and fibrous crystalline body situated behind iris.
•Lens is enclosed in a transparent elastic capsule.
•Ciliary muscles control the thickness of lens and its power of accommodation.
•It forms the image of the object on retina.
•Lens separates the eye ball into two chamber
i. Aqueous chamber
ii. Vitreous chamber

Aqueous chamber:
•It is a smaller fluid filled chamber between cornea and lens.
•It is filled with clear watery fluid called aqueous humour containing aminoacids, glucose, ascorbic acid and respiratory
gases.
•The aqueous humour nourishes the lens and cornea and refracts light rays to focus on retina & also support lens.

Vitreous chamber:
•It is a larger fluid filled chamber between lens and retina.
•It is filled with gelatinous vitreous humour containing 99% water, salts and muco proteins. Also called as Whartsons
jelly.
•It supports retina & lens and refracts light to focus on retina & also give shape to eyeball.
 Physiology of vision or working of eye or image formation

1.Refraction of light entering the eye

2.Focusing of image on the retina by accommodation of lens
3.Convergence of image
4.Photo-chemical activity in retina and conversion into neural impulse
5.Processing in brain and perception
Refraction of light entering the eye:
•Light wave travels parallel to each other but they bend when passes from one medium to another. This phenomenon
is called refraction.
•Before light reach retina it passes through cornea, aqueous humor, lens viterous humor, so refraction takes place in
every medium before it falls on retina. So the cornea, aqueous humor, lens and vitreous humour together form a
dioptric apparatus to focus the image of an object on the retina.
•The cornea places the image on the retina and lens adjusts for sharp focusing.
•The image formed on the retina is inverted which is picked up by optic nerve as impulses and finally reached to the
brain where it is interpreted and the real sensation of sight arises.
•Finally person perceives the object as upright way.
 Accommodation of lens to focus image:
• Accommodation is a reflex process to bring light rays from object into focus on retina by adjusting the lens.
• The adjustment made by the lens for focusing the objects situated at various distance is called accommodation.
• When an object lying less than 6 meter away is viewed, image formed behind retina. But due to accommodation of
lens image formed in retina and we can see the object.
• For accommodation to view closer object, ciliary muscle contract and ligaments relax making the lens more convex
which causes focus on closer object.
• Similarly, when distant object is viewed, ciliary muscles relaxes, so the tension of ligament become greater which
pull lens and lens become thinner, due to which image forms on retina.
• The normal eye is able to accommodate light from object about 25 cm to infinity.
• Focus on nearer object:
Ciliary muscle contract——-ciliary body pull forward and inward ———tension on suspensory ligament of lens
reduced ——lens become thicker and round due to its elasticity ——possible to focus near object
• Focus on distant object:
Ciliary muscles relaxes——ciliary body return to its normal resting state—–tension on suspensory ligament of lens
increases——-lens become thinner and flat———possible to focus distant object
 Processing of image in brain and perception:
• All visual information originates in retina due to stimulation of rods and cones are conveyed to brain.
• Retina contains 5 types of cells and they are interconnected by synapse. These cells are photoreceptor cells
(rod and cone), bipolar cell, ganglion cell, horizontal cell and amacrine cell.
• Photoreceptor cells, bipolar cells and ganglion cells transmit impulse directly from retina to brain.
• The nerve fiber of ganglion cells from both eyes carries impulse along two optic nerve.
• The optic nerves meets at optic chiasma where fibers from nasal half of each retina cross-over but fibers
from temporal half of each retina do not cross-over.
• The optic nerve after crossing the chiasma is called as optic tract.
• Each optic tract continues posteriorly until it synapse with neuron in thalamus called lateral geniculate
body which project to primary visual cortex in occipital lobe of cerebrum and image is perceived.
 DEFECTS OF EYES
1)HYPERMETROPIA(FAR SIGHTNESS): This is a defect of vision in which there is difficulty with near
vision but far objects can be seen easily. The image is focused behind the retina rather than upon it. This occurs
when the eyeball is too short or the refractive power of the lens is too weak. It can be corrected by using convex
lens.
2)MYOPIA(SHORT SIGHTNESS):This is a defect of vision in which far objects appear blurred but near objects
are seen clearly. The image is focused in front of the retina rather than on it usually because the eyeball is too long
or the refractive power of the eye’s lens too strong. It can be corrected by using concave lens.
3)ASTIGMATISM: This defect is when the light rays do not all come to a single focal point on the retina, instead
some focus on the retina and some focus in front of or behind it. This is usually caused by a non-uniform curvature
of the cornea. A typical symptom of astigmatism is if you are looking at a pattern of lines placed at various angles
and the lines running in one direction appear sharp whilst those in other directions appear blurred. Astigmatism can
usually be corrected by using a special spherical cylindrical lens; this is placed in the out-of-focus axis.
4) Cataract (Motibindu): It is due to the lens becoming opaque as proteins in it coagulate interfering with the
passage of light & hence vision. It is corrected by surgical removal of opaque lens.
5) Glaucoma (Jalbindu): The closure of Canal of Schlemn may increase intraocular pressure in aqueous chamber
which may lead to glaucoma. Increased IOP can cause irreversible damage to the optic nerve and retinal fibers and
if left untreated can result in a permanent loss of vision. It can be treated by operation at early stage.
6)Presbyopia: It is defect in accommodation occurring in old age.
7) Conjuctivitis: It is an inflammation of conjunctiva.
8) Trachoma: It is the redness of eye and more secretion of watery fluid. It is chronic contagious
conjunctivitis caused due to infection of a bacterium Chlamydia trachometis.
HUMAN EAR
 Structure of Ear
The human ear consists of three parts:
• External ear
• Middle ear
• Internal ear

1.EXTERNAL EAR:
Pinna: The outer ear is called pinna and comprises a thin plate of elastic cartilage covered by a layer
of skin. It consists of funnel-like curves that collect sound waves and transmits them to the middle ear. The
lobule consists of adipose and fibrous tissues supplied with blood capillaries. It is moved by auricular
muscles which are well developed and movable in animals but in human it is immovable.
External auditory meatus: It is a tube running from outer to the middle ear and is about 2.5cm in length.
It is supported by bone in its interior part and cartilage in the exterior part. The meatus or the canal is lined
with stratified epithelium and wax glands. The outer hairy part of this tube prevents entry of dust particles.
Its inner part contains ear wax or ceruminous glands which secretes waxy secretion to lubricates the
eardrum and prevent the foreign bodies entering into internal ear.
2.Middle Ear
The middle ear comprises the following parts:
• Tympanic Cavity
It is a narrow air-filled cavity separated from the external ear by tympanic membrane and from inner ear
by the bony wall. The tympanic cavity has an auditory tube known as the eustachian tube in its anterior
wall. Tympanic membrane or ear drum is thin, oval, membranous, bluish grey & stretchable membrane
capable of vibrating .
• Eustachian Tube
The Eustachian tube is a 4cm long tube that equalizes air pressure on either side of the tympanic
membrane. It connects the tympanic cavity with the nasopharynx. These tubes are closed when not in use.
Each time a person swallows the Eustachian tubes open and allow fresh air to enter into the tympanic
cavity which maintains a constant pressure gradient.
• Ear ossicles:
Tympanic cavity consists of three small bony ossicles which communicates the eardrum with internal ear
through fenestra ovalis. These transmit sound waves from external to internal ear. The ear ossicles are
Malleus: A hammer-shaped part that is attached to the tympanic membrane through the handle and incus
through the head. It is the largest ear ossicle.
• Incus: An anvil-shaped ear ossicle connected with the stapes. It lies between malleus and stapes.
• Stapes: It is the smallest ossicle and also the smallest bone in the human body. It is stirrup shaped
attached to the fenestra ovalis.
The middle ear is connected with internal ear by two small openings i.e.
Fenestra ovalis (oval window)
Fenestra rotunda (round window)
3.Inner Ear:
• The inner ear contains a complex, delicate membranous part called the membranous labyrinth, which
is surrounded by the bony labyrinth.
• The membranous labyrinth is an interconnected group of fluid-filled membranous sacs. The fluid is
endolymph.
• It is the movement of the endolymph that stimulates the sensory cells within the membranous wall.

The membranous labyrinth consists of:

Vestibule:
A chamber in the centre of the bony labyrinth, which communicates with both the cochlea and the
semicircular canals. The oval and the round windows are both located in the lateral wall of the vestibule.
It is an organ of equilibrium which has two sacs i.e. larger upper utriculus and smaller lower sacculus
and with narrow interconnective utriculosaccular duct. A sensory spot or macula is present in both
utriculus and sacculus.
Membranous labyrinth
Semicircular canals:
There are three semicircular canals situated over the utriculus i.e. anterior, posterior and the lateral. They
are almost at right angles with each other. The anterior and posterior canals open at one end to form
common duct called crus commune. The end of each semicircular canal is swollen to form ampulla. It
consists of a sensory spot known as crista.

Cochlea:
It is the main hearing organ which is spirally coiled tube, about 20-30mm long, arising from saculus. It is
connected with sacculus by a small duct called Ductus reunies. Internally it consists of three fluid filled
chamber i.e upper scala vestibule connected with tympanic cavity through fenestra ovalis. The lower
scala tympani connected with tympanic cavity through fenestra rotunda. Both upper and lower chamber
is filled with perilymph. The middle scala media is the most important canal which is filled with
endolymph. It communicates at the tip of cochlea through a tiny hole called the helicotrema. Its upper
membrane is called reissners membrane and lower membrane basilar membrane. The basilar membrane
has Organ of corti formed of about about 54,000 sensory cells. The organ of corti is suspended on a
tectorial membrane. The organ of corti present within scala media of cochlea receives and conducts
sound stimulus. Stimuli for the maintainence of equilibrium and sound waves are respectively transmitted
to the brain by auditory nerves.
Fig: T.S. of cochlea
Functions of ear:
Hearing:
Sound waves external auditory meatus tympanic membrane(vibration starts)
ear ossicles fenestra ovalis scala vestibule reissners membrane basilar
membrane organ of corti(impulse starts) brain hearing
Equilibrium:
• Dynamic equilibrium: It is concerned with the balance of body during locomotion and movement
(rotational movement) which are detected by cristae found in semicircular canals. Three cristae detect
the differences in positions and directions. The endolymph of semicircular canals moves with the
movements of the body and stimulates the sensory hair cells of the cristae to produce nerve impulses
which are sent to the brain through auditory nerve.
• Static equilibrium: It is concerned with the movement of body in one plane(linear acceleration). It is
detected by the maculae found in vestibules of utriculus and sacculus. Maculae contain receptor cells
which have hair like processes embedded in the gelatinous mass that contains granules of CaCo3. This
mass is called as otoconium. It is mainly responsible for detecting the direction of movement of head
with respect to gravity.

Perilymph: The concentration of sodium ions in the perilymph is high and that of potassium ions is low.
It is apparently formed locally from the blood plasma
Endolymph: its potassium ion concentration is higher than its sodium ion concentration. Evidence
indicates that the endolymph is produced from perilymph as a result of selective ion transport through the
epithelial cells of the Reissner membrane and not directly from the blood.