- Kinocilium
Infobox Anatomy
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A kinocilium is a special structure on the apex ofhair cell s located in the sensory epithelium of the vertebrateinner ear .Anatomy in humans
In the human ear, each hair cell has a single non-motile cilium known as the kinocilium. Cochlear hair cells have kinocilia that degenerate following maturation of the stereociliary bundle. It is believed that the kinocilium is important in delineating the anatomical asymmetry of stereocilia or in making some mechanical connections with the hair cells in which they persist. [cite book |author=Nolte, John |title=The human brain: an introduction to its functional anatomy |publisher=Mosby |location=St. Louis |year=2002 |pages340-41= |isbn=0-323-01320-1 |oclc= |doi=]
Anatomy in fish and frogs
The apical
surface of a sensoryfish hair cell usually has numerousstereocilia and a single, much longerkinocilium .Deflection of the stereocilia toward or away from the kinocilium causes an increase or decrease in the firing rate of the sensoryneuron innervating thehair cell at its basal surface.Hair cells in fish and some frogs are used to detect water movements around their bodies. These hair cells are embedded in a jelly-like protrusion called
cupula . The hair cells therefore can not be seen and do not appear on the surface of skin of fish and frogs.References
External links
* http://www.unmc.edu/Physiology/Mann/pix_4b/hair_cell.gif
ee also
*
Fish anatomy
*Utricle
*Otolith
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