Courses
Courses for Kids
Free study material
Offline Centres
More
Store Icon
Store

What is a reflex arc draw it for the Tennis player hitting a tennis ball during player play.

seo-qna
Last updated date: 25th Apr 2024
Total views: 264.9k
Views today: 4.64k
Answer
VerifiedVerified
264.9k+ views
Hint: A reflex, also known as a reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence of action and nearly instantaneous movement in response to a stimulus in biology. A reflex is enabled by neural pathways known as reflex arcs, which can act on an impulse before it reaches the brain.

Complete answer:
A reflex arc is a neural pathway that directs the action of a reflex. Most sensory neurons in vertebrates do not travel directly to the brain but instead synapse in the spinal cord. This enables faster reflex actions to occur by activating spinal motor neurons without the delay caused by signal transmission through the brain. The brain will receive sensory input while the reflex is being performed, and the signal will be analyzed after the reflex action is completed.

Nerve signals travel along the following path during a somatic reflex:
- Skin, muscle, and tendon somatic receptors
- Afferent nerve fibers carry signals from somatic receptors to the spinal cord's posterior horn or the brainstem.
- An integrating center is a location where the neurons that make up the grey matter of the spinal cord or brainstem synapse.
- Motor nerve signals are carried by efferent nerve fibers from the anterior horn to the muscles.
- The response is carried out by an effector muscle innervated by an efferent nerve fiber.
- So, for the Tennis player hitting a tennis ball during player play

The tennis ball ( to receive the stimulus)



The stimulus is carried to the spinal cord by sensory neurons in the spinal nerve.



The spinal cord translates the stimulus into the appropriate command for the motor neurons.



Motor neurons in the spinal cord convert motor commands to effectors.



The movement of the muscle is aided by effectors.

Note: When the patellar tendon is tapped just below the knee, an action potential is triggered in a specialized structure called a muscle spindle, which is located within the quadriceps. This action potential travels to the spinal cord's L3 and L4 nerve roots via a sensory axon that chemically communicates by releasing glutamate onto a motor nerve.