Afferente

Afferente is a term used in anatomy to denote structures or pathways that carry toward a particular organ or processing center. In English, afferent corresponds to afferente in several languages and shares the sense of bringing signals toward a central processing region. The word derives from Latin ad ferre, meaning to bring to.

In neuroanatomy, afferent nerves convey sensory information from receptors in skin, muscles, and internal organs toward the central nervous system. These pathways typically begin with sensory neurons in peripheral ganglia and project to the CNS, where the information is interpreted. Afferent pathways are contrasted with efferent pathways, which carry motor commands from the CNS to muscles and glands. Clinically, an afferent pupillary defect reflects dysfunction of the afferent limb of the pupillary reflex, illustrating how afferent signaling can impact perception and response.

In other organ systems, the term also appears. In the kidney, the afferent arteriole brings blood to the glomerulus and helps regulate filtration rate. In the lymphatic system, afferent lymphatic vessels transport lymph toward lymph nodes for filtration, while efferent lymphatics carry lymph away from the nodes. More broadly, afferent describes inputs or inflows toward a processing center, whereas efferent describes outputs or outflows away from it.