Anatomy & Physiology: The Unity of Form and Function, 7th Edition

Published by McGraw-Hill Education
ISBN 10: 0073403717
ISBN 13: 978-0-07340-371-7

Chapter 16 - Section 16.4 - Figure 16.14 - Apical Surfaces of the Cochlear Hair Cells - Page 597: 1

Answer

These are outer hair cells; they enable the cochlea to differentiate between sounds of different pitches.

Work Step by Step

The inner and outer hair cells exist in the cochlea around the organ of Corti. The inner hair cells are sensory auditory cells, The outer hair cells, however, derive from motor neurons; their function is to increase the sensitivity of the cochlea to soft sounds. In addition, they enable the cochlea to differentiate between the pitches of sounds, based on frequencies of their sound waves,
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