Download Slide ()

Anatomy of the cochlea. A low magnification light micrograph of a near midmodiolar cross-section illustrates the tissues and fluid-filled spaces of the 2½
turns of the mouse cochlea. As indicated in the upper turn, the fluid spaces are the scala tympani and scala vestibuli filled with perilymph, and scala media
filled with endolymph. They are separated by the thin Reissner membrane and by the basilar membrane on which the organ of Corti is located. When
sound reaches the ear, the vibrations of the tympanic membrane (ear drum) are passed along the middle ear ossicles to the cochlea where they initiate a
traveling wave in the fluids, which, in turn, moves the basilar membrane. The tectorial membrane, an acellular structure, rests on the stereocilia of the hair
cells. Spiral ganglion neurons run from the organ of Corti where they contact the hair cells through the modiolus to the central auditory system. The stria
Source: Sensory Function, Hazzard's Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, 7e
vascularis and spiral ligament, tissues involved in setting up the ionic composition and high (+70 to +100 mV) potential of the endolymph, lie along the
Halter JB, Ouslander JG, Studenski S, High KP, Asthana S, Supiano MA, Ritchie C. Hazzard's Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, 7e;
lateral wall ofCitation:
the cochlea.
2017 Available at: http://mhmedical.com/ Accessed: May 11, 2017
Copyright © 2017 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved