Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 27, 2025

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons
Published on: June 30, 2022
Nociceptors: Their Role in Body's Defenses, Tissue Specific Variations and Anatomical Update
Vladimir N Nikolenko1,2, Ekaterina M Shelomentseva2, Maria M Tsvetkova2
1First Moscow State Medical University Named After I.M. Sechenov (Sechenov University), Moscow, 119991, Russia.
Abstract:
The human body is constantly under the influence of numerous pathological factors: both external and internal. These factors can be potentially harmful and are perceived as such with a specialized nervous system subunit: the nociceptive system. The functional unit of the nociceptive system is the nociceptor. Recent studies have shown that nociceptors play a crucial role in maintaining of defensive homeostasis (responsive, immune, behavioral). Nociceptors respond to potentially harmful stimuli within viscera, bones, muscles, skin and specialized sensory organs. They function as complex predictors of harm through formation of pain stimulus. Their function and structures vary within different tissues. This variability reflects the anatomical and pathological peculiarities of varying tissues. Nociceptors play a significant role in adaptive, protective and behavioral reactions. Their functional capabilities and vast spread throughout the body make them the main units of the body's defense system, allowing us to interact with the inner and outer environments.
Related Concept Videos
Nociception
Pain
Sensory Functions of the Skin
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...
Introduction to Special Senses
Analgesia and Pain Management
Local Anesthetics: Differential Sensitivity of Nerve Fibers

