1. February 25, 2013 Farzana 1
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Farzana Z Ali
HBY 554 TA
LECTURE OUTLINE FOR MARCH 14, 2013
Part I: Touch (1st
subsystem) and Proprioception (2nd
subsystem)
1. Peripheral receptors: Somatic Sensory Afferents
a. Mechanism of sensory transduction
b. Dermatomes
c. Functional properties:
axon diameter, receptive field (size, density), temporal dynamics, channels
expressed/filter properties
d. Mechanoreceptors
i. Cutaneous mechanoreception- body surface
 fine touch, vibration and pressure
ii. Proprioception- within body
muscles, tendons and joints
2. Central pathways
a. Tactile information from the body: Dorsal Column-Medial Lemniscal System
b. Tactile information from the face: Trigeminothalamic System
c. Proprioceptive information from the body: collateral branches, cerebellar function
d. Proprioceptive information from the face: mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus
e. Somatosensory components of the thalamus
3. Cortical maps
4. Cortical circuit plasticity in adults
Part II: Pain: 3rd
subsystem (painful stimuli, changes in temperature, coarse touch)
1. Nociceptors: Aδ mechanosensitive, Aδ mechanothermal, and polymodal C fibers
2. Nociceptive signal transduction
3. Central pathways:
a. Anterolateral system
b. Parallel pain pathways: Body and Face
VPL/ VPM: sensory discriminative
location, intensity and quality
Midline thalamic nuclei: affective-motivational
unpleasant feeling, fear and anxiety, autonomic activation
c. Descending pathways
4. Visceral pain
a. Referred pain
b. Dorsal Column pathway
5. Sensitization:
a. Peripheral
b. Central
6. Phantom pain
7. Placebo effect
8. Pain modulation