Special visceral afferent fibers (SVA) are
afferent fibers that develop in association with the
gastrointestinal tract
The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the Digestion, digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The tract is the largest of the body's systems, after the cardiovascula ...
. They carry the
special sense
In medicine and anatomy, the special senses are the senses that have specialized organs devoted to them:
* vision (the eye)
* hearing and balance (the ear, which includes the auditory system and vestibular system)
* smell (the nose)
* taste ...
of
taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth biochemistry, reacts chemically with taste receptor cells l ...
(gustation). The
cranial nerve
Cranial nerves are the nerves that emerge directly from the brain (including the brainstem), of which there are conventionally considered twelve pairs. Cranial nerves relay information between the brain and parts of the body, primarily to and f ...
s containing SVA fibers are the
facial nerve
The facial nerve, also known as the seventh cranial nerve, cranial nerve VII, or simply CN VII, is a cranial nerve that emerges from the pons of the brainstem, controls the muscles of facial expression, and functions in the conveyance of ta ...
(VII), the
glossopharyngeal nerve
The glossopharyngeal nerve (), also known as the ninth cranial nerve, cranial nerve IX, or simply CN IX, is a cranial nerve that exits the brainstem from the sides of the upper Medulla oblongata, medulla, just anterior (closer to the nose) to t ...
(IX), and the
vagus nerve
The vagus nerve, also known as the tenth cranial nerve (CN X), plays a crucial role in the autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for regulating involuntary functions within the human body. This nerve carries both sensory and motor fibe ...
(X). The facial nerve receives taste from the anterior 2/3 of the
tongue
The tongue is a Muscle, muscular organ (anatomy), organ in the mouth of a typical tetrapod. It manipulates food for chewing and swallowing as part of the digestive system, digestive process, and is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper s ...
; the glossopharyngeal from the posterior 1/3, and the vagus nerve from the epiglottis. The sensory processes, using their primary cell bodies from the inferior ganglion, send projections to the medulla, from which they travel in the tractus solitarius, later terminating at the rostral nucleus solitarius.
[Bhatnagar C. Subhash. ''Neuroscience for the study of communicative disorders''. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2002]
See also
*
General somatic afferent fiber
The general somatic afferent fibers (GSA or somatic sensory fibers) are afferent fibers that arise from neurons in sensory ganglia and are found in all the spinal nerves, except occasionally the first cervical. General somatic afferents conduct i ...
(GSA)
*
General visceral afferent fiber
The general visceral afferent (GVA) fibers conduct sensory impulses (usually pain or reflex sensations) from the internal organs, glands, and blood vessels to the central nervous system. They are considered to be part of the visceral nervous sys ...
(GVA)
*
Special somatic afferent fiber (SSA)
References
External links
Overview at mmi.mcgill.ca
Neuroanatomy
{{Neuroanatomy-stub