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Vestibulocochlear
The vestibulocochlear nerve or auditory vestibular nerve, also known as the eighth cranial nerve, cranial nerve VIII, or simply CN VIII, is a cranial nerve that transmits sound and equilibrium (balance) information from the inner ear to the brain. Through olivocochlear fibers, it also transmits motor and modulatory information from the superior olivary complex in the brainstem to the cochlea. Structure The vestibulocochlear nerve consists mostly of bipolar neurons and splits into two large divisions: the cochlear nerve and the vestibular nerve. Cranial nerve 8, the vestibulocochlear nerve, goes to the middle portion of the brainstem called the pons (which then is largely composed of fibers going to the cerebellum). The 8th cranial nerve runs between the base of the pons and medulla oblongata (the lower portion of the brainstem). This junction between the pons, medulla, and cerebellum that contains the 8th nerve is called the cerebellopontine angle. The vestibulocochlear ...
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Cranial Nerve
Cranial nerves are the nerves that emerge directly from the brain (including the brainstem), of which there are conventionally considered twelve pairs. Cranial nerves relay information between the brain and parts of the body, primarily to and from regions of the head and neck, including the special senses of vision, taste, smell, and hearing. The cranial nerves emerge from the central nervous system above the level of the first vertebra of the vertebral column. Each cranial nerve is paired and is present on both sides. There are conventionally twelve pairs of cranial nerves, which are described with Roman numerals I–XII. Some considered there to be thirteen pairs of cranial nerves, including cranial nerve zero. The numbering of the cranial nerves is based on the order in which they emerge from the brain and brainstem, from front to back. The terminal nerves (0), olfactory nerves (I) and optic nerves (II) emerge from the cerebrum, and the remaining ten pairs arise from t ...
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Labyrinthine Artery
The labyrinthine artery (auditory artery, internal auditory artery) is a branch of either the anterior inferior cerebellar artery or the basilar artery. It accompanies the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII) through the internal acoustic meatus. It supplies blood to the internal ear. Structure The labyrinthine artery is a branch of either the anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) or the basilar artery. It accompanies the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII) through the internal acoustic meatus. It divides into a cochlear branch and a labyrinthine (or anterior vestibular) branch. Function The labyrinthine artery supplies blood to the inner ear. It also supplies the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII) along its length. Clinical significance The labyrinthine artery may become occluded. This can cause loss of hearing and balance on the affected side. History The labyrinthine artery may also be known as the internal auditory artery or the auditory artery. See also * Intern ...
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Olivocochlear System
The olivocochlear system is a component of the auditory system involved with the descending control of the cochlea. Its nerve fibres, the olivocochlear bundle (OCB), form part of the vestibulocochlear nerve (VIIIth cranial nerve, also known as the auditory-vestibular nerve), and project from the superior olivary complex in the brainstem (pons) to the cochlea. Anatomy of the olivocochlear system Cell bodies of origin The olivocochlear bundle (OCB) originates in the superior olivary complex in the brainstem. The vestibulocochlear anastomosis carries the efferent axons into the cochlea, where they innervate the organ of Corti (OC). The OCB contains fibres projecting to both the ipsilateral and contralateral cochleae, prompting an initial division into crossed (COCB) and uncrossed (UCOCB) systems. More recently, however, the division of the OCB is based on the cell bodies’ site of origin in the brainstem relative to the medial superior olive (MSO). The medioventral periolivary (MVP ...
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Brainstem
The brainstem (or brain stem) is the posterior stalk-like part of the brain that connects the cerebrum with the spinal cord. In the human brain the brainstem is composed of the midbrain, the pons, and the medulla oblongata. The midbrain is continuous with the thalamus of the diencephalon through the tentorial notch, and sometimes the diencephalon is included in the brainstem. The brainstem is very small, making up around only 2.6 percent of the brain's total weight. It has the critical roles of regulating cardiac, and respiratory function, helping to control heart rate and breathing rate. It also provides the main motor and sensory nerve supply to the face and neck via the cranial nerves. Ten pairs of cranial nerves come from the brainstem. Other roles include the regulation of the central nervous system and the body's sleep cycle. It is also of prime importance in the conveyance of motor and sensory pathways from the rest of the brain to the body, and from the body back to t ...
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Bipolar Neuron
A bipolar neuron, or bipolar cell, is a type of neuron that has two extensions (one axon and one dendrite). Many bipolar cells are specialized sensory neurons for the transmission of sense. As such, they are part of the sensory pathways for smell, sight, taste, hearing, touch, balance and proprioception. The other shape classifications of neurons include unipolar, pseudounipolar and multipolar. During embryonic development, pseudounipolar neurons begin as bipolar in shape but become pseudounipolar as they mature. Common examples are the retina bipolar cell, the ganglia of the vestibulocochlear nerve, the extensive use of bipolar cells to transmit efferent (motor) signals to control muscles, olfactory receptor neurons in the olfactory epithelium for smell (axons form the olfactory nerve), and neurons in the spiral ganglion for hearing (CN VIII). In the retina Often found in the retina, bipolar cells are crucial as they serve as both direct and indirect cell pathways. The spec ...
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Hair Cell
Hair cells are the sensory receptors of both the auditory system and the vestibular system in the ears of all vertebrates, and in the lateral line organ of fishes. Through mechanotransduction, hair cells detect movement in their environment. In mammals, the auditory hair cells are located within the spiral organ of Corti on the thin basilar membrane in the cochlea of the inner ear. They derive their name from the tufts of stereocilia called ''hair bundles'' that protrude from the apical surface of the cell into the fluid-filled cochlear duct. The stereocilia number from 50-100 in each cell while being tightly packed together and decrease in size the further away they are located from the kinocilium. The hair bundles are arranged as stiff columns that move at their base in response to stimuli applied to the tips. Mammalian cochlear hair cells are of two anatomically and functionally distinct types, known as outer, and inner hair cells. Damage to these hair cells results in ...
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Cochlear Nerve
The cochlear nerve (also auditory nerve or acoustic nerve) is one of two parts of the vestibulocochlear nerve, a cranial nerve present in amniotes, the other part being the vestibular nerve. The cochlear nerve carries auditory sensory information from the cochlea of the inner ear directly to the brain. The other portion of the vestibulocochlear nerve is the vestibular nerve, which carries spatial orientation information to the brain from the semicircular canals, also known as semicircular ducts. Anatomy and connections In terms of anatomy, an auditory nerve fiber is either bipolar or unipolar, with its distal projection being called the peripheral process, and its proximal projection being called the axon; these two projections are also known as the "peripheral axon" and the "central axon", respectively. The peripheral process is sometimes referred to as a dendrite, although that term is somewhat inaccurate. Unlike the typical dendrite, the peripheral process generates and cond ...
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Vestibular Nerve
The vestibular nerve is one of the two branches of the vestibulocochlear nerve (the cochlear nerve being the other). In humans the vestibular nerve transmits sensory information transmitted by vestibular hair cells located in the two otolith organs (the utricle and the saccule) and the three semicircular canals via the vestibular ganglion of Scarpa. Information from the otolith organs reflects gravity and linear accelerations of the head. Information from the semicircular canals reflects rotational movement of the head. Both are necessary for the sensation of body position and gaze stability in relation to a moving environment. Axons of the vestibular nerve synapse in the vestibular nucleus are found on the lateral floor and wall of the fourth ventricle in the pons and medulla. It arises from bipolar cells in the vestibular ganglion which is situated in the upper part of the outer end of the internal auditory meatus. Structure The peripheral fibers divide into three branches ( ...
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Internal Acoustic Meatus
The internal auditory meatus (also meatus acusticus internus, internal acoustic meatus, internal auditory canal, or internal acoustic canal) is a canal within the petrous part of the temporal bone of the skull between the posterior cranial fossa and the inner ear. Structure The opening to the meatus is called the porus acusticus internus or internal acoustic opening. It is located inside the posterior cranial fossa of the skull, near the center of the posterior surface of the petrous part of the temporal bone. The size varies considerably. Its outer margins are smooth and rounded. The canal which comprises the internal auditory meatus is short (about 1 cm) and runs laterally into the bone. The lateral (outer) aspect of the canal is known as the fundus. The fundus is subdivided by two thin crests of bone to form three separate canals, through which course the facial and vestibulocochlear nerve branches. The falciform crest first divides the meatus into superior and inferior ...
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Pons
The pons (from Latin , "bridge") is part of the brainstem that in humans and other bipeds lies inferior to the midbrain, superior to the medulla oblongata and anterior to the cerebellum. The pons is also called the pons Varolii ("bridge of Varolius"), after the Italian anatomist and surgeon Costanzo Varolio (1543–75). This region of the brainstem includes neural pathways and tracts that conduct signals from the brain down to the cerebellum and medulla, and tracts that carry the sensory signals up into the thalamus.Saladin Kenneth S.(2007) Anatomy & physiology the unity of form and function. Dubuque, IA: McGraw-Hill Structure The pons is in the brainstem situated between the midbrain and the medulla oblongata, and in front of the cerebellum. A separating groove between the pons and the medulla is the inferior pontine sulcus. The superior pontine sulcus separates the pons from the midbrain. The pons can be broadly divided into two parts: the basilar part of the pons (ventral ...
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Cochlear Nerve
The cochlear nerve (also auditory nerve or acoustic nerve) is one of two parts of the vestibulocochlear nerve, a cranial nerve present in amniotes, the other part being the vestibular nerve. The cochlear nerve carries auditory sensory information from the cochlea of the inner ear directly to the brain. The other portion of the vestibulocochlear nerve is the vestibular nerve, which carries spatial orientation information to the brain from the semicircular canals, also known as semicircular ducts. Anatomy and connections In terms of anatomy, an auditory nerve fiber is either bipolar or unipolar, with its distal projection being called the peripheral process, and its proximal projection being called the axon; these two projections are also known as the "peripheral axon" and the "central axon", respectively. The peripheral process is sometimes referred to as a dendrite, although that term is somewhat inaccurate. Unlike the typical dendrite, the peripheral process generates and cond ...
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Spiral Ganglion
The spiral (cochlear) ganglion is a group of neuron cell bodies in the modiolus, the conical central axis of the cochlea. These bipolar neurons innervate the hair cells of the organ of Corti. They project their axons to the ventral and dorsal cochlear nuclei as the cochlear nerve, a branch of the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII). Structure Neurons whose cell bodies lie in the spiral ganglion are strung along the bony core of the cochlea, and send fibers (axons) into the central nervous system (CNS). These bipolar neurons are the first neurons in the auditory system to fire an action potential, and supply all of the brain's auditory input. Their dendrites make synaptic contact with the base of hair cells, and their axons are bundled together to form the auditory portion of eighth cranial nerve. The number of neurons in the spiral ganglion is estimated to be about 35,000–50,000. Two apparent subtypes of spiral ganglion cells exist. Type I spiral ganglion cells comprise the ...
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