sensillum

[sen-sil-uhm]

noun

plural

sensilla 

1. Zoology.,  a simple sense organ usually consisting of one or a few cells at the peripheral end of a sensory nerve fiber.

sensillum

/ sɛnˈsɪləm /

noun

1. a sense organ in insects, typically consisting of a receptor organ in the integument connected to sensory neurons

Word History and Origins

Origin of sensillum¹

< New Latin (1895), equivalent to Latin sēns-, past participle stem of sentīre to sense + -ilum diminutive suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of sensillum¹

New Latin, diminutive of Latin sensus sense (Middle Latin: sense organ)

Example Sentences

We included a high concentration of Cd in the recording pipette so as to allow Cd to diffuse into the sensillum lymph and block any peripheral dendro-dendritic synapses in sensilla of Orco-GAL4; UAS-TNT flies.

Read more on Nature

Taken together, these results provide evidence that lateral inhibition within a sensillum can modulate behaviour.

Read more on Nature

The sensillum thus acts as a processing unit in olfactory computation.

Read more on Nature

These results further support the conclusion that the lateral inhibition is due to local electrical interactions between neighbouring ORNs within a sensillum.

Read more on Nature

For each sensillum, one trial of each odorant concentration was presented.

Read more on Nature