Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Nociception01:44

Nociception

33.0K
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.
33.0K
Somatosensation01:33

Somatosensation

42.9K
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.
42.9K
Neuroplasticity01:01

Neuroplasticity

1.5K
Neuroplasticity reflects the brain's remarkable capacity to adapt and evolve, responding dynamically to learning, experiences, or injury by reorganizing its neural circuitry. This reorganization involves creating new neural connections and refining old ones through a series of biological processes that contribute to the brain's lifelong development and adaptability.
1.5K
Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways01:29

Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways

8.1K
Somatic sensory or somatosensory pathways refer to the neural pathways that carry information related to touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and proprioception from the skin, muscles, tendons, and joints to the brain. These pathways involve several stages of processing and integration of sensory information.
The somatosensory system is divided into three main pathways: the dorsal (or posterior) column-medial lemniscus, spinothalamic (or anterolateral), and spinocerebellar pathways.
The dorsal...
8.1K

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by
Same author

Exercise-induced hypoalgesia in healthy males is best explained by mechanisms selectively affecting deep-tissue pain sensitivity within exercising body parts.

Neurobiology of pain (Cambridge, Mass.)·2026
Same author

In silico prediction of novel effective combinational treatment of chronic pain in individual patients: A joint white paper of the H2020 QSPainRelief consortium.

British journal of pharmacology·2026
Same author

Aligned representation of visual and tactile motion directions in hMT+/V5 and fronto-parietal regions.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

CRPS evolution is determined by both biological and psychosocial factors - a 1-Year prospective observational study.

Pain·2026
Same author

Directional discrimination in the nociceptive system is enhanced for non-continuous lines.

Scandinavian journal of pain·2026
Same author

Integration of auditory and tactile inputs to localize haptic stimuli during active touch.

Attention, perception & psychophysics·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 9, 2026

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation
10:42

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation

Published on: August 18, 2014

9.3K

Perceptual Learning Can Improve Nociceptive Directional Discrimination.

Ahmad Rujoie1, Ole Kæseler Andersen1, André Mouraux2

  • 1Integrative Neuroscience Group, Center for Neuroplasticity and Pain (CNAP), Department of Health Science & Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark.

The European Journal of Neuroscience
|December 6, 2025
PubMed
Summary

Supervised perceptual learning significantly improved directional discrimination of nociceptive stimuli. This training enhanced accuracy and certainty, unlike unsupervised methods, suggesting feedback is crucial for refining pain perception.

Keywords:
directional discriminationhealthy subjectslaser stimulationnociceptive systemperceptual learningtemperature‐controlled system

More Related Videos

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator TSPAS
04:40

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator TSPAS

Published on: July 30, 2020

3.2K
Psychophysically-anchored, Robust Thresholding in Studying Pain-related Lateralization of Oscillatory Prestimulus Activity
07:28

Psychophysically-anchored, Robust Thresholding in Studying Pain-related Lateralization of Oscillatory Prestimulus Activity

Published on: January 21, 2017

7.3K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 9, 2026

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation
10:42

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation

Published on: August 18, 2014

9.3K
Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator TSPAS
04:40

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator TSPAS

Published on: July 30, 2020

3.2K
Psychophysically-anchored, Robust Thresholding in Studying Pain-related Lateralization of Oscillatory Prestimulus Activity
07:28

Psychophysically-anchored, Robust Thresholding in Studying Pain-related Lateralization of Oscillatory Prestimulus Activity

Published on: January 21, 2017

7.3K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory Perception
  • Pain Mechanisms

Background:

  • The nociceptive system's temporospatial characteristics are key to understanding pain.
  • Directional discrimination assesses sensory integration but is understudied in pain perception.
  • Perceptual learning, enhancing stimulus recognition through practice, has rarely been explored in the nociceptive system.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of perceptual learning on nociceptive directional discrimination.
  • To determine if supervised (with feedback) or unsupervised (without feedback) training enhances performance.
  • To evaluate the effect of training on the directional discrimination threshold (DDT).

Main Methods:

  • A crossover study involving 28 healthy subjects on two separate days.
  • Subjects underwent either supervised or unsupervised training using moving, temperature-controlled laser stimuli on the forearm.
  • Participants discriminated stimulus direction (distal, proximal, lateral, medial) and indicated certainty.

Main Results:

  • Supervised training led to a significant increase in correct direction identification and certainty.
  • Supervised training reduced the directional discrimination threshold (DDT) in the lateral-medial direction.
  • Unsupervised training did not yield significant improvements in accuracy, certainty, or DDT.

Conclusions:

  • Only supervised perceptual learning effectively improves nociceptive directional discrimination performance.
  • Feedback during training is essential for enhancing accuracy and reducing discrimination thresholds.
  • While accuracy improved, the estimated DDT did not decrease across all tested directions.