Analysis of Activity in A and C Fibres Under Mechanical and Thermal Stimulation of the Skin Receptor Field

An integrative framework of the skin receptors activation: Mechanoreceptors activity patterns versus "labeled lines"

“…The basic parameters of the impulse activity pattern of all myelinated (A, A) and unmyelinated (C) cutaneous nerve¯bers transmitting a sensory signal were detected in the experiments on the cats. The obtained results indicate that any skin stimulation arouse the activity change in a great number of sensory¯bers of di®erent types (Zeveke et al, 1976). The basic results are as follows:…”

“…The extensive studies of population activity of the skin nerve¯bers (contrary to the single¯bers in the dominating approach) were performed in Zeveke's laboratory from 1974 to 2005. The measurements of the impulse°ow in A-, A-and C-nervē bers (Table 1) in°uenced by various mono-modal stimuli such as stretching-constricting, vibration, hairs moving, cooling, heating, damage were carried out (Zeveke, 2004). An electrophysiological method of collision of impulses (Douglas & Ritche, 1957) and a cross-correlation method of impulse°ows (Casby et al, 1963) were used for a quantitative description of the transmission of the impulse activity in di®erent sensory¯bers.…”

“…Relying upon the detailed study of an integrative a®erent°ow responding to mono-modal stimuli, possible peripheral sensory code was proposed (Zeveke et al, 1976). This code includes the following amplitude-temporal impulse activity characteristics in A-, A-and C-nerve¯bers:…”

“…A skin matrix is composed of a¯bril thermo-labile collagen network, which shrinks at cooling and relaxes at heating (Zeveke et al, 1976;Zhou et al, 2010;Zeveke & Shabanov, 2010). It is important that a collagen network is characterized by inhomogeneous distribution in the epidermis, namely, the collagen¯ber bundles in the super¯cial skin layers are thin, closely interlaced, and are arranged in parallel to the skin surface contrary to the deep skin layers where the network is composed of thick collagen¯ber bundles, the loops are considerably wider, with a lot of fat inclusions (Munger & Ide, 1988).…”

“…This results in the alteration of the receptors sensibility. It is experimentally shown that the mechanoreceptors in di®erent skin layers have various ranges of sensitivity to mechanical and temperature exposure (Zeveke et al, 1976;Malysheva & Zeveke, 1977;Zeveke & Polevaya, 2011). We can suppose that the speci¯c deformation patterns in di®erent skin levels are appeared at various stimulus modes.…”