Sound reception in vertebrates— auditory mechanisms of fishes and amphibians
- Key People:
- Georg von Békésy
- Related Topics:
- human ear
- inner ear
- bone conduction
- hearing
- air conduction
The ear of vertebrates appears to have followed more than one line of evolutionary development, but always from the same basic type of mechanoreceptor, the labyrinth. All vertebrates have two labyrinths that lie deep in the side of the head, adjacent to the brain. They contain a number of sensory endings the primary functions of which are to regulate muscle tonus (a state of partial muscular contraction) and to determine the position and movements of the head and body.
Generalized sketches of vertebrate labyrinths are shown in the , with the usual locations of the sensory endings indicated for the different vertebrate classes. Two main divisions of these endings are distinguished: a superior division, which includes the three semicircular canals, the organs associated with the sense of balance, and the utricle, a small sac into which the semicircular canals open; and an inferior division, which includes the saccule (also a small sac) and its derivatives. Arising at or near the connection between the utricle and the saccule is the endolymphatic duct, which ends in an endolymphatic sac; this structure probably regulates fluid pressures in the labyrinth and aids in the disposal of waste materials.
The superior division of the labyrinth is remarkably constant in form throughout the vertebrates except in the cyclostomes (e.g., hagfishes and lampreys), in which the canals and endings are reduced in number. The utricle contains a macular ending, the macula utriculi, and each semicircular canal ends in a crista. In all vertebrate classes except the placental mammals and a few other scattered species, a papilla neglecta is present. It is usually located on the floor of the utricle or near the junction of the utricle and the saccule.
The inferior division of the labyrinth always contains a saccule with its macula, the macula sacculi, but the derivatives of the saccule vary greatly in the different vertebrate classes. In teleosts (bony fishes), amphibians, reptiles, and birds there is a lagena (a curved, flask-shaped structure), with its macula, the macula lagenae. Only the amphibians have a papilla amphibiorum, which is located near the junction of the utricle and the saccule. In some amphibians and in all reptiles, birds, and mammals, there is a papilla basilaris, which is usually called a cochlea in the higher forms, in which it is highly detailed. The elaborate sensory structure of higher types of ears, containing hair cells and supporting elements, is called the organ of Corti.
The macular endings consist of plates of ciliated cells (cells with short, hairlike projections) along with accessory cells, all surmounted by an otolith (a calcareous mass containing numerous particles of calcium carbonate embedded in a gelatinous matrix) or, in teleosts, by one large mass of calcium carbonate. The crista endings contain moundlike groups of sensory cells with supporting cells; the sensory cells have elongated cilia that are embedded in a gelatinous body, the cupula, which forms a sort of valve across an expanded portion of each semicircular canal. The papillae contain plates or ribbons of ciliated cells in a structural framework that lies on a movable membrane, except in amphibians, in which the papillae are on a solid base. These ciliated cells are not surmounted by an otolithic mass or a cupula, but some of the cilia are attached either directly or indirectly to a tectorial membrane (a membrane with one edge fixed to a stationary base, thus anchoring the cilia) or to an inertia body (a mass lying over the ciliated cells and restraining the movements of the cilia).
The endings have different functions: the macular organs serve primarily as gravity receptors and detectors of sudden movements; the crista organs serve for the perception of rotational acceleration; and the papillae serve for hearing. As structural relations suggest, the auditory endings are derived either from the other labyrinthine receptors or from the primitive labyrinthine epithelium.
Hearing in fishes
The cyclostomes and the elasmobranchs (e.g., sharks and rays) possess a labyrinth with maculae and cristae but have no auditory papillae. There are, nevertheless, two possible ways by which some of these cartilaginous fishes, especially the sharks, react to sounds in the water: by means of the macular organs and by means of the lateral-line apparatus. It is in the bony fishes (teleosts) that a true ear whose function is hearing first appears among the vertebrates. This ear, which occurs in a number of forms, has varying degrees of effectiveness as a sound receiver; some fishes hear well, others poorly. The differences arise, at least in part, from the accessory mechanisms that aid in the utilization of sound energy.
The basic auditory mechanisms in teleosts
In most fishes, especially in many marine forms, the auditory mechanism is relatively simple, consisting of macular endings that evidently have been diverted from their primitive functions as detectors of gravity and motion. The important change is not in the structure of the end organ but in its innervation—the nerve supply has connections that transmit auditory information. It is thought that in most teleosts the change to an auditory function has occurred in the saccular macula, and probably the lagenar macula as well, and that the utricular macula continues as a receptor for gravity and motion.
The simple macular ending of the teleost ear is stimulated by sound through the operation of an inertia principle. Sound waves pass readily through the water and into the body of the fish, causing most of the tissues to vibrate in a uniform manner. The macular otolith, however, represents a discontinuity; because its density is greater than that of the other tissues, it exhibits an inertia effect (resistance to movement). Its motions not only lag behind those of the surrounding tissues but are probably of lesser amplitude as well. Accordingly, a sound creates a relative motion between the otoliths and the other tissues. More specifically, there is relative motion between the bodies of the hair cells, which rest on a tissue base, and the cilia of these cells, the tips of which are in contact with the otolith. This method of stimulating the auditory hair cells is inefficient, however, because of the relatively small difference in density between the body tissues and the otoliths.