Transduction Mechanisms in Pacinian Corpuscles

Abstract

Since their detection by Lehman in 1741 (cited by Pallie, et al., 1970), a wealth of information has been obtained on the Pacinian corpuscle, its morphology, chemistry, physiology and the role that it plays in tactile perception. While ostensibly acting as the substrate for the P channel of the somatosensory system (Verrillo, 1966, and Bolanowski and Verrillo, 1982), the corpuscle is also found in the mesentery of cat where it is possible to manipulate them directly. This accessibility has made the corpuscle prototypical for the understanding of mechanotransduction, especially in reference to non-ciliated mechanoreceptors. The relationship among the stimulus, receptor potential and the neural impulse that it generates has been defined, but the actual mechanism underlying transduction and its neural locus are still unknown. The present report focuses on the form of the receptor-potential’s intensity characteristic and the possible neural structures producing it.