The Vestibular System: Function and Morphology pp 374-389 | Cite as
Dynamic Properties from Utricular Afferents
Chapter
Abstract
Otolithic organs have been classically considered as accelerometers with a practically flat gain-frequency curve (26). However, a closer look into the responses recorded from the otolithic afferent nerves reveals a more complex input-output relationship (9,10,22,23). Otolithic organs do not respond to changes in the acceleration vector in a linear way: they are sensitive to high frequency vibrations in a nonlinear fashion (21). Linear accelerations of the same amplitude but opposite sense elicit different responses from otolithic organs (9). Because of adaptation (23), otolithic organs can respond phasically to a sustained mechanical stimulus, and as a result their gain frequency curves have a positive slope. Furthermore, all the afferents innervating a given organ do not respond identically to the same stimulus (23). This complexity makes it difficult to consider the otolithic organs as simple accelerometers, and makes a characterization of the different afferents neeessary.
Keywords
Hair Cell Confidence Region Tuning Curve Acceleration Vector Vestibular Function
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