Jackson P C, Diamond J
Science. 1981 Nov 20;214(4523):926-8. doi: 10.1126/science.7302568.
There is a critical period for the sprouting of intact low-threshold mechanosensory cutaneous nerves in rats; functional invasion of adjacent denervated skin does not occur in animals older than about 20 days of age, and it is largely confined to denervated skin within the "domain" of the parent dermatome. These nerves can regenerate readily in the adult, however, and such regenerating nerves do not respect domain borders; moreover, they functionally displace endings of intact nerves that earlier had sprouted into denervated skin.
大鼠完整的低阈值机械感觉性皮肤神经萌发存在关键期；在年龄大于约20日龄的动物中，相邻失神经皮肤不会发生功能性侵入，且主要局限于母皮节“区域”内的失神经皮肤。然而，这些神经在成年动物中可轻易再生，而且这种再生神经不受区域边界限制；此外，它们在功能上取代了早期已长入失神经皮肤的完整神经的终末。
