Transduction (physiology)

In physiology, transduction is the translation of arriving stimulus into an action potential by a sensory receptor. It begins when stimulus changes the membrane potential of a receptor cell. A receptor cell converts the energy in a stimulus into an electrical signal. Receptors are broadly split into two main categories: exteroceptors, which receive external sensory stimuli, and interoceptors, which receive internal sensory stimuli. Visual phototransduction In the visual system, sensory cells called rod and cone cells in the retina convert the physical energy of light signals into electrical impulses that travel to the brain. The light causes a conformational change in a protein called rhodopsin. This conformational change sets in motion a series of molecular events that result in a reduction of the electrochemical gradient of the photoreceptor. The decrease in the electrochemical gradient causes a reduction in the electrical signals going to the brain. Thus, in this example, more light hitting the photoreceptor results in the transduction of a signal into fewer electrical impulses, effectively communicating that stimulus to the brain. A change in neurotransmitter release is mediated through a second messenger system. The change in neurotransmitter release is by rods. Because of the change, a change in light intensity causes the response of the rods to be much slower than expected (for a process associated with the nervous system). Neuronal encoding of sound In the auditory system, sound vibrations (mechanical energy) are transduced into electrical energy by hair cells in the inner ear. Sound vibrations from an object cause vibrations in air molecules, which in turn, vibrate the ear drum. The movement of the eardrum causes the bones of the middle ear (the ossicles) to vibrate. These vibrations then pass into the cochlea, the organ of hearing. Within the cochlea, the hair cells on the sensory epithelium of the organ of Corti bend and cause movement of the basilar membrane.

Dietary L-Glu sensing by enteroendocrine cells adjusts food intake via modulating gut PYY/NPF secretion

Bruno Lemaitre, Zongzhao Zhai

Amino acid availability is monitored by animals to adapt to their nutritional environment. Beyond gustatory receptors and systemic amino acid sensors, enteroendocrine cells (EECs) are believed to directly percept dietary amino acids and secrete regulatory ...

Nature Portfolio2024

Efficient viral transduction in mouse inner ear hair cells with utricle injection and AAV9-PHP.B

Bernard Schneider, Paola Andrea Solanes Vega

Viral delivery of exogenous coding sequences into the inner ear has the potential for therapeutic benefit for patients suffering genetic or acquired hearing loss. To devise improved strategies for viral delivery, we investigated two injection techniques, r ...

2020

Dietary L-Glu sensing by enteroendocrine cells adjusts food intake via modulating gut PYY/NPF secretion

Wearable Haptics for Somatosensory Perception and Self-consciousness

Efficient viral transduction in mouse inner ear hair cells with utricle injection and AAV9-PHP.B

Dietary L-Glu sensing by enteroendocrine cells adjusts food intake via modulating gut PYY/NPF secretion

Efficient viral transduction in mouse inner ear hair cells with utricle injection and AAV9-PHP.B

Wearable Haptics for Somatosensory Perception and Self-consciousness