Maricich Stephen M, Wellnitz Scott A, Nelson Aislyn M, Lesniak Daine R, Gerling Gregory J, Lumpkin Ellen A, Zoghbi Huda Y
Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Science. 2009 Jun 19;324(5934):1580-2. doi: 10.1126/science.1172890.
The peripheral nervous system detects different somatosensory stimuli, including pain, temperature, and touch. Merkel cell-neurite complexes are touch receptors composed of sensory afferents and Merkel cells. The role that Merkel cells play in light-touch responses has been the center of controversy for over 100 years. We used Cre-loxP technology to conditionally delete the transcription factor Atoh1 from the body skin and foot pads of mice. Merkel cells are absent from these areas in Atoh1(CKO) animals. Ex vivo skin/nerve preparations from Atoh1(CKO) animals demonstrate complete loss of the characteristic neurophysiologic responses normally mediated by Merkel cell-neurite complexes. Merkel cells are, therefore, required for the proper encoding of Merkel receptor responses, suggesting that these cells form an indispensible part of the somatosensory system.
外周神经系统可检测不同的躯体感觉刺激，包括疼痛、温度和触觉。默克尔细胞 - 神经突复合体是由感觉传入神经和默克尔细胞组成的触觉感受器。100多年来，默克尔细胞在轻触觉反应中所起的作用一直是争议的焦点。我们使用Cre-loxP技术有条件地从小鼠的体皮肤和脚垫中删除转录因子Atoh1。在Atoh1（CKO）动物的这些区域中不存在默克尔细胞。来自Atoh1（CKO）动物的离体皮肤/神经制剂显示，通常由默克尔细胞 - 神经突复合体介导的特征性神经生理反应完全丧失。因此，默克尔细胞是正确编码默克尔受体反应所必需的，这表明这些细胞构成了躯体感觉系统不可或缺的一部分。
