Phenomena such as placebo analgesia or pain relief through distraction highlight the
powerful influence cognitive processes and learning mechanisms have on the way we …

The mammalian nervous system encodes many different forms of pain, from those that arise
as a result of short-term low-grade interactions with noxious thermal, chemical, or …

In this review, we discuss the importance of capsaicin to the current understanding of
neuronal modulation of pain and explore the mechanisms of capsaicin-induced pain. We …

The epidermis is a living, multilayered barrier with five functional levels, including a physical,
a chemical, a microbial, a neuronal, and an immune level. Altogether, this complex organ …

Tissue injury and inflammation markedly alter touch perception, making normally innocuous
sensations become intensely painful. Although this sensory distortion, known as tactile …

Capsaicin, the pungent ingredient in chili peppers, produces intense burning pain in
humans. Capsaicin selectively activates the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) …

The sense of touch is fundamental as it provides vital, moment-to-moment information about
the nature of our physical environment. Primary sensory neurons provide the basis for this …

The first point of our body's contact with tactile stimuli (innocuous and noxious) is the
epidermis, the outermost layer of skin that is largely composed of keratinocytes. Here, we …

Nociception, the sensory mechanism that allows animals to sense and avoid potentially
tissue-damaging stimuli, is critical for survival. This process relies on nociceptors, which are …

Objective Pain, temperature, and itch are conventionally thought to be exclusively
transduced by the intraepidermal nerve endings. Although recent studies have shown that …