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Somatosensation

Somatosensation

The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.

Sensory Modalities

Sensory Modalities

Sensation typically is the process by which the sensory receptors and sense organs detect stimuli from the internal and external environment and transmit this information to the central nervous system for processing.
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Thermosensation

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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...

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile senses encompass touch, temperature, and pain, each mediated by specific receptors. Touch receptors detect mechanical energy or pressure against the skin. Sensory fibers from these receptors enter the spinal cord and relay information to the brain stem. Here, most fibers cross over to the opposite side of the brain. The touch information then moves to the thalamus, which projects a map of the body's surface onto the somatosensory areas of the parietal lobes in the cerebral cortex. This...

Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System

Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System

The somatosensory system is the central and peripheral nervous system component that senses and processes touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and body position or proprioception. The process of sensation takes place at three levels:
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Major Somatic Sensory Pathways

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Sensory impulses related to touch, pressure, vibration, and proprioception from various body parts, such as the limbs, trunk, neck, and posterior head, travel to the cerebral cortex through the posterior column-medial lemniscus pathway. The pathway’s name derives from the two white-matter tracts that convey the impulses: the spinal cord's posterior column and the brainstem's medial lemniscus. First-order sensory neurons extend their axons into the spinal cord, forming the posterior columns...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 7, 2026

Using Facial Electromyography to Assess Facial Muscle Reactions to Experienced and Observed Affective Touch in Humans

Using Facial Electromyography to Assess Facial Muscle Reactions to Experienced and Observed Affective Touch in Humans

Published on: March 15, 2019

[Alternative tactile system: C-fibers coding the affective aspect].

Qing-Ping Hua¹, Fei Luo

¹Neuroscience Research Institute, Peking University, Beijing 100083, China.

Sheng Li Ke Xue Jin Zhan [Progress in Physiology]

|February 1, 2008

Summary

Human skin has two types of touch receptors: large myelinated (Abeta) fibers and small unmyelinated (C) afferents. These C-afferents contribute to pleasant touch sensations, activating brain regions linked to emotion and affect.

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Testing Tactile Masking between the Forearms

Testing Tactile Masking between the Forearms

Published on: February 10, 2016

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Last Updated: Jul 7, 2026

Using Facial Electromyography to Assess Facial Muscle Reactions to Experienced and Observed Affective Touch in Humans

Using Facial Electromyography to Assess Facial Muscle Reactions to Experienced and Observed Affective Touch in Humans

Published on: March 15, 2019

Testing Tactile Masking between the Forearms

Testing Tactile Masking between the Forearms

Published on: February 10, 2016

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Somatosensation
Human tactile perception

Context:

Traditionally, large myelinated (Abeta) fibers were believed to solely mediate human tactile sensation.
Recent research reveals a dual mechanoceptive skin innervation in mammals, including small unmyelinated (C) afferents alongside Abeta fibers.

Purpose:

To investigate the role of slow-conducting, low-threshold, small unmyelinated (C) afferents in tactile sensation.
To explore the neural pathways and brain regions activated by innocuous tactile stimuli transmitted via C-afferents.

Summary:

Unmyelinated C-afferents respond strongly to gentle skin deformation, projecting to the insular cortex via the spinothalamic tract.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) shows that slow tactile stimuli on hairy skin activate the insular cortex.
Pleasant touch activates the orbitofrontal cortex, suggesting a link to the limbic system and affective processing rather than discriminative touch.

Impact:

Challenges the exclusive role of Abeta fibers in tactile sensation.
Highlights the contribution of C-afferents to the affective and emotional aspects of touch.
Provides insights into the neural basis of pleasant touch and its connection to emotional brain centers.