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Stimulus modality
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===Somatosensory information=== Touch messages, in comparison to other sensory stimuli, have a large distance to travel to get to the brain. Tactile perception is achieved through the response of [[mechanoreceptor]]s ([[cutaneous receptor]]s) in the skin that detect physical stimuli. The response from a mechanoreceptor detecting pressure can be experienced as a touch, discomfort, or pain.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Xiong |first1=Shuping |last2=Goonetilleke |first2=Ravindra S. |last3=Jiang |first3=Zuhua |title=Pressure thresholds of the human foot: measurement reliability and effects of stimulus characteristics |journal=Ergonomics |date=March 2011 |volume=54 |issue=3 |pages=282β293 |doi=10.1080/00140139.2011.552736 |pmid=21390958 |s2cid=22152573 }}</ref> Mechanoreceptors are situated in highly vascularized skin, and appear in both glabrous and hairy skin. Each mechanoreceptor is tuned to a different sensitivity, and will fire its action potential only when there is enough energy.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pawson |first1=Lorraine |last2=Checkosky |first2=Christine M. |last3=Pack |first3=Adam K. |last4=Bolanowski |first4=Stanley J. |title=Mesenteric and tactile Pacinian corpuscles are anatomically and physiologically comparable |journal=Somatosensory & Motor Research |date=January 2008 |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=194β206 |doi=10.1080/08990220802377571 |pmid=18821284 |s2cid=33152961 }}</ref> The axons of these single tactile receptors will converge into a single nerve trunk, and the signal is then sent to the spinal cord where the message makes its way to the [[somatosensory system]] in the brain. ====Mechanoreceptors==== There are four types of mechanoreceptors: Meissner corpuscles and merkel cell neurite complexes, located between the epidermis and dermis, and [[Pacinian]] corpuscles and [[Ruffini ending]]s, located deep within the dermis and subcutaneous tissue. Mechanoreceptors are classified in terms of their adaptation rate and the size of their receptive field. Specific mechanoreceptors and their functions include:<ref name=Wolfe>Wolfe, J., Kluender, K., & Levi, D. (2009). Sensation and perception. (2 ed.). Sunderland: Sinauer Associates.{{pn|date=August 2020}}</ref> * Thermoreceptors that detect changes in skin temperature. * Kinesthetic receptors detect movements of the body, and the position of the limbs. * Nociceptors that have bare nerve endings that detect tissue damage and give the sensation of pain.
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