Science
Related: About this forumWhy Petting Feels Good
By Breanna Draxler | January 31, 2013 8:37 am
The research team was able to identify in mice a specific class of skin sensory neurons that responds to massagelike stroking of the skin. Data were obtained by in-vivo imaging of the specific neurons in the spinal cord while the mice were stroked with a paintbrush. Image courtesy of D. Anderson lab, Caltech
Petting feels good. You can see it in a cats slowly closing eyes or the contented panting of a dog getting his belly rubbed. In fact, all mammals enjoy being caressed, including humans. Researchers looked at this phenomenon in lab mice and found that stroking stimulates a very specific set of neurons that have to do with hair.
Some sensory neurons are relatively non-discriminatory. They respond to touch, temperature and pretty much anything that comes into contact with the skin. A few years back, researchers identified a rare type of neuron called MRGPRB4+, which is linked specifically to hair follicles. In lab tests on a patch of mouse skin, these neurons didnt respond to a single stimulus. But with live mice the researchers got much more promising results, published in Nature on Wednesday.
Researchers genetically engineered mice so the MRGPRB4+ neurons would glow when active. Then they inserted a microscope into the mices spinal cords to see what happened as they stroked, poked and pinched the mice. Certain neurons responded to unpleasant stimuli like pokes, but the MRGPRB4+ neurons only responded to stroking.
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http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/?p=42682
sinkingfeeling
(51,474 posts)FirstLight
(13,364 posts)touch is known to be a very important factor for us all...look at the way touch helps preemies, coma patients, elderly etc...
pscot
(21,024 posts)for all the wrong reasons.
intheflow
(28,504 posts)to glow when certain neurons are stimulated? Disturbing.