What is the function of the Olivocochlear bundle?
One component of the auditory efferent system, referred to as the olivocochlear bundle, projects from the superior olivary complex right back to the cochlea. The medial part of the olivocochlear bundle innervates the outer hair cells, which drive the active amplification mechanism within the cochlea.
What is the function of outer hair cells?
Outer hair cells (OHCs) play an essential role in hearing by acting as a nonlinear amplifier which helps the cochlea detect sounds with high sensitivity and accuracy.
What stimulates outer hair cells?
Outer Hair Cells Move in Response to Efferent Stimulation and Thereby Tune the Inner Hair Cells. Outer hair cells change their axial dimensions in response to electrical stimulation. Hyperpolarization lengthens the cells, and depolarizations shorten them.
How does cochlea signaling occur?
The cochlea is a whorled structure, like the shell of a snail, and it contains receptors for transduction of the mechanical wave into an electrical signal (as illustrated in Figure 1). A sound wave causes the tympanic membrane to vibrate. This vibration is amplified as it moves across the malleus, incus, and stapes.
What is the Olivocochlear system?
The olivocochlear system is a component of the auditory system involved with the descending control of the cochlea.
What is the function of the olivocochlear bundle the efferent central auditory nervous system pathway?
The most widely studied efferent auditory pathway is the olivocochlear (OC) system, which links the superior olivary complex to the cochlea. These efferent projections constitute a reflex arc that has the capacity to modify the neural representations of sound at the earliest stages of auditory processing (Figure 1A).
What is the function of the outer hair cells in the organ of Corti?
Outer hair cells serve a function as acoustic pre-amplifiers which improve frequency selectivity by allowing the organ of Corti to become attuned to specific frequencies, like those of speech or music.
What is the function of hair cells outer and inner?
structure and function The inner hair cells are sensory, and the nerves extending from them send acoustic information to the brain. In contrast, the outer hair cells are motile and have a role in amplifying and modifying the movement of the basilar membrane.
Can outer hair cells regenerate?
Unlike their counterparts in other mammals and birds, human hair cells cannot regenerate. So, once hair cells are damaged, hearing loss is likely permanent. Scientists have known that the first step in hair cell birth starts at the outermost part of the spiraled cochlea.
What is the function of the Eustachian tube in the ear?
This air-containing space is maintained by the Eustachian tube, which opens intermittently to equalize the intratympanic air pressure with the pressure in the external auditory canal. It also removes secretion and epithelial debris from the middle ear by ciliary motion and gravity.
How does the cochlea accomplish its function?
The cochlea is filled with a fluid that moves in response to the vibrations from the oval window. As the fluid moves, 25,000 nerve endings are set into motion. These nerve endings transform the vibrations into electrical impulses that then travel along the eighth cranial nerve (auditory nerve) to the brain.
What is the olivocochlear reflex?
The olivocochlear (OC) reflex is activated by sounds, and its physiological effect is to suppress auditory nerve and cochlear responses (Buño 1978; Liberman 1989).