CUTANEOUS SENSORY RECEPTORS

The range of sensations elicitable from the skin is wide. We review the complex and diverse nature of cutaneous sense organs and the way these cutaneous receptors function as transducers of information from the skin. The discussion touches on the afferent properties of various classes of cutaneous receptors, the conduction velocity of their peripheral nerve fibers, the morphology of the receptor terminal, and the mode of sensation evoked. A brief view of associated features of dorsal root ganglion neurons is also provided.