A new type of somatosensory organ in the nasolabial skin of the dog.

Abstract

A new morphological type of somatosensory organ is described. It is found in the glabrous skin of the dog nose (rhinarium or planum nasale) and situated in dermis papillae. The otherwise thick epidermis forms a thin window above the organ. There are only a few layers of keratinocytes in the window and the corneocytes are much thinner than elsewhere. The organ consists of highly branching cells that wrap naked nerve endings emanating from myelinated nerve fibers originating in the outer dermal nerve plexus. The structure entirely fills the top of the dermal papilla. The intercellular spaces of the organ and its surroundings are occupied by an extended areolar basal lamina.