What is the tongue made of?

Skeletal Muscles:

- Form the bulk of the tongue.

Mucous Membrane:

- Covers the skeletal muscle.

- Pink and moist, with numerous papillae.

Papillae:

- Small projections containing taste buds.

- The tongue has four types:

-- Filiform papillae

-- Fungiform papillae

-- Circumvallate papillae

-- Foliate papillae

Lingual Frenulum:

- Connects the tongue to the floor of the mouth.

- Its location prevents the tongue from swinging too far forward.

Blood Vessels and Nerves:

- Rich blood supply from the lingual arteries.

- Innervated by the hypoglossal nerve (CN XII) for motor control and taste sensations to the anterior ⅔ of the tongue.

- Taste sensations from the posterior ⅓ are transmitted via the glossopharyngeal nerve (CN IX)

Taste Buds:

- Clusters of taste cells located in the papillae.

- Transduce chemical stimuli into taste perceptions carried to the CNS by cranial nerves.