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Illuminating the mechanics of touch (479.5)
Author(s) -
Goodman Miriam
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.28.1_supplement.479.5
Subject(s) - mechanoreceptor , somatosensory system , transduction (biophysics) , ion channel , sodium channel , transient receptor potential channel , neuroscience , mechanotransduction , biophysics , chemistry , anatomy , nanotechnology , biology , receptor , sensory system , materials science , sodium , organic chemistry , biochemistry
The energy carried by every touch opens mechano‐electrical transduction (MeT) channels expressed in somatosensory neurons. Likewise, every bend of each limb activates MeT channels in proprioceptors embedded in muscles and tendons. The protein partners that form such channels have been identified in several classes of C. elegans mechanoreceptor neurons and key pore‐forming subunits include DEG/ENaC sodium channels and TRP cation channels. Such channels activate in response to both the application and removal of external loads, response dynamics that are also found in some mammalian somatosensory neurons. Exactly how external loads open MeT channels remains unknown. Using genetic dissection, new optical probes of molecular strain (TsMod), and AFM tether pulling, we will present evidence that membrane lipids and the cytoskeleton help to regulate touch receptor neuron mechanics and that both elements are needed for normal touch sensitivity.