Axonal regeneration is one of the greatest challenges in severe injuries of peripheral nerve. To provide the bridge needed for regeneration, biological or synthetic tubular nerve constructs with aligned architecture have been developed. A key point for improving axonal regeneration is assessing the effects of substrate geometry on neuronal behavior. In the present study, we used an extracellula...

Neurons in early sensory cortex show weak but systematic correlations with perceptual decisions when trained animals perform at psychophysical threshold. These correlations are observed across repeated presentations of identical stimuli and cannot be explained by variation in external factors. The relationship between the activity of individual sensory neurons and the animal's behavioral choice...

Sensory neurons express hyperpolarization-activated currents (I(H)) that differ in magnitude and kinetics within the populations. We investigated the structural basis for these differences and explored the functional role of the I(H) channels in sensory neurons isolated from rat nodose ganglia. Immunohistochemical studies demonstrated a differential distribution of hyperpolarization-activated c...

Airway sensory nerves are known to express several receptors and channels that are activated by exogenous and endogenous mediators that cause coughing. Toll-like receptor (TLR) s are expressed in nociceptive neurons and play an important role in neuroinflammation. However, there have been very few studies of TLR expression in lung-derived sensory neurons or their relevance to respiratory sympto...

The process by which light touch in vertebrates is transformed into an electrical response in cutaneous mechanosensitive neurons is a largely unresolved question. To address this question we undertook a forward genetic screen in zebrafish (Danio rerio) to identify mutants exhibiting abnormal touch-evoked behaviors, despite the presence of sensory neurons and peripheral neurites. One family, sub...

Mechanistic insights into pain pathways are essential for a rational approach to treating this vast and increasing clinical problem. Sensory neurons that respond to tissue damage (nociceptors) may evoke pain sensations and are typically classified on the basis of action potential velocity. Electrophysiological studies have suggested that most of the C-fiber nociceptors are polymodal, responding...

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common genetic disorder characterized by tumor formation. People with NF1 also can experience more intense painful responses to stimuli, such as minor trauma, than normal. NF1 results from a heterozygous mutation of the NF1 gene, leading to decreased levels of neurofibromin, the protein product of the NF1 gene. Neurofibromin is a guanosine triphosphatase acti...

Exogenous recombinant human transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGF-beta1) induced long-term facilitation of Aplysia sensory-motor synapses. In addition, 5-HT-induced facilitation was blocked by application of a soluble fragment of the extracellular portion of the TGF-beta1 type II receptor (TbetaR-II), which presumably acted by scavenging an endogenous TGF-beta1-like molecule. Because TbetaR-II...

Progress in the somatosensory field has been restricted by the limited number of genetic tools available to study gene function in peripheral sensory neurons. Here we generated a Cre-driver mouse line that expresses Cre-recombinase from the locus of the sensory neuron specific gene Advillin. These mice displayed almost exclusive Cre-mediated recombination in all peripheral sensory neurons. As s...

The somatosensory system decodes a wide range of tactile stimuli and thus endows us with a remarkable capacity for object recognition, texture discrimination, sensory-motor feedback and social exchange. The first step leading to perception of innocuous touch is activation of cutaneous sensory neurons called low-threshold mechanoreceptors (LTMRs). Here, we review the properties and functions of ...