Muscle(s) supplied by Facial nerve is/are:
**Core Concept**
The facial nerve (cranial nerve VII) is responsible for controlling the muscles of facial expression. These muscles are involved in voluntary movements, such as smiling and frowning, and involuntary movements, such as blinking.
**Why the Correct Answer is Right**
The facial nerve supplies the muscles of facial expression, which include the frontalis, orbicularis oculi, orbicularis oris, buccinator, zygomaticus major and minor, and platysma. These muscles are innervated by the buccal, marginal mandibular, and temporal branches of the facial nerve. The facial nerve also provides motor innervation to the stapedius and stylohyoid muscles, which are involved in hearing and swallowing.
**Why Each Wrong Option is Incorrect**
* **Option A:** The trigeminal nerve (cranial nerve V) is responsible for controlling the muscles of mastication (chewing), not the muscles of facial expression.
* **Option B:** The glossopharyngeal nerve (cranial nerve IX) is primarily involved in swallowing and taste, not facial expression.
* **Option C:** The hypoglossal nerve (cranial nerve XII) controls the muscles of the tongue, not the muscles of facial expression.
**Clinical Pearl / High-Yield Fact**
The facial nerve is also responsible for transmitting taste from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue and providing parasympathetic innervation to the submandibular and sublingual glands.
**Correct Answer:** C.