Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Nociception

Nociception

Nociception—the ability to feel pain—is essential for an organism’s survival and overall well-being. Noxious stimuli such as piercing pain from a sharp object, heat from an open flame, or contact with corrosive chemicals are first detected by sensory receptors, called nociceptors, located on nerve endings. Nociceptors express ion channels that convert noxious stimuli into electrical signals. When these signals reach the brain via sensory neurons, they are perceived as pain. Thus, pain helps the...

Sensory Functions of the Skin

Sensory Functions of the Skin

The skin is the largest organ of the human body and plays a crucial role in our sensory perception. It contains a vast network of sensory receptors that contribute to the skin's protective function by perceiving physical, biological, and environmental cues and generating relevant responses.
There are two main categories of receptors on the skin: capsulated and non-capsulated. The non-capsulated ones are mainly the pain receptors. The capsulated ones can be further categorized based on the...

Pain

Pain

Pain serves as a critical warning signal that alerts the body to potential or actual harm. When mechanical pressure on the skin is intense, such as from a sharp pinch, the sensation transitions from touch to pain. Similarly, extreme temperatures, like a hot pot handle, convert the sensation of heat into pain. Pain can also result from overstimulation of other senses, such as blinding light, loud noise, or the intense heat from habañero peppers. This ability to sense pain is essential for...

Introduction to Sensory Receptors

Introduction to Sensory Receptors

Sensory receptors are vital in our ability to perceive and interpret the world. Sensory receptors are specialized cells in the peripheral nervous system that respond to various stimuli and enable one to experience different sensations. Based on specific criteria, sensory receptors are classified into distinct types.
The first classification criterion is based on cell type, position, and function. Some receptor cells are neurons with free nerve endings, where their dendrites are embedded in the...

Thermosensation

Thermosensation

Peripheral thermosensation is the perception of external temperature. A change in temperature (on the surface of the skin and other tissues) is detected by a family of temperature-sensitive ion channels called Transient Receptor Potential, or TRP, receptors. These receptors are located on free nerve endings. Those detecting cold temperatures are closer to the surface of the skin than the nerve endings detecting warmth. These thermoTRP channels, while temperature selective, have relatively...

Introduction to Special Senses

Introduction to Special Senses

Sensory receptors play an integral part in comprehending our external and internal environments. They receive diverse stimuli, converting them into the nervous system's electrochemical signals. This conversion occurs as the stimulus alters the sensory neuron's cell membrane potential, instigating the generation of an action potential. This action potential is subsequently transmitted to the central nervous system (CNS), which integrates with other sensory data or higher cognitive functions.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Stress-induced analgesia via supraspinal gate control.

Neuron·2026

Same author

Central sensitization: when is this the right terminology?

Pain·2026

Same author

Correction: Bortezomib-induced neurotoxicity in human neurons is the consequence of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide depletion.

Disease models & mechanisms·2026

Same author

A human iPSC-derived sensory neuron platform for high-throughput discovery of neuroprotectants against chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy.

Cell reports. Medicine·2026

Same author

Targeting G <sub>i/o</sub> -coupled GPCRs to inhibit nociceptors: insights from the serotonin receptor Htr1b and triptans.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

Postnatal gene restoration in succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency (SSADHD) reveals phenotype reversibility.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons

Published on: June 30, 2022

Nociceptors--noxious stimulus detectors.

Clifford J Woolf¹, Qiufu Ma

¹Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 149 13th Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA. cwoolf@partners.org

|August 7, 2007

Summary

Nociceptors are specialized neurons that detect danger, initiating protective withdrawal and pain sensations. Understanding their development and plasticity is key to addressing chronic pain conditions.

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Physiology

Background:

Nociceptors are primary sensory neurons crucial for detecting noxious stimuli.
They act as the body's first defense against environmental threats, enabling avoidance behaviors and pain perception.
While acute pain is adaptive, persistent pain is maladaptive, signaling ongoing dysfunction.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the developmental origins of nociceptors.
To elucidate the intrinsic properties governing nociceptive information processing.
To examine the role of nociceptor phenotypic plasticity in the development of clinical pain.

Main Methods:

Review of developmental biology literature on sensory neuron formation.
Analysis of cellular and molecular mechanisms of nociception.

More Related Videos

An Improved Assay and Tools for Measuring Mechanical Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

An Improved Assay and Tools for Measuring Mechanical Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

Published on: October 29, 2020

Open-Source Real-Time Closed-Loop Electrical Threshold Tracking for Translational Pain Research

Open-Source Real-Time Closed-Loop Electrical Threshold Tracking for Translational Pain Research

Published on: April 21, 2023

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons

Published on: June 30, 2022

An Improved Assay and Tools for Measuring Mechanical Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

An Improved Assay and Tools for Measuring Mechanical Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

Published on: October 29, 2020

Open-Source Real-Time Closed-Loop Electrical Threshold Tracking for Translational Pain Research

Open-Source Real-Time Closed-Loop Electrical Threshold Tracking for Translational Pain Research

Published on: April 21, 2023

Discussion of clinical evidence linking nociceptor plasticity to chronic pain states.

Main Results:

Nociceptors develop through specific genetic and cellular pathways.
Their intrinsic properties allow for transduction, conduction, and transmission of nociceptive signals.
Phenotypic plasticity in nociceptors contributes significantly to maladaptive pain states.

Conclusions:

Nociceptors are essential for bodily integrity through threat detection and pain signaling.
Understanding nociceptor development and plasticity offers therapeutic targets for chronic pain.