CT afferents are receptors in mammalian hairy skin that fire action potentials when the skin is touched lightly which makes them particularly important in affective touch. Traditionally neuroscientific research has focused on more discriminative and haptic properties of touch that are mediated by large myelinated afferents and the coding properties and functional organization of unmyelinated CT afferents have been studied much less. The proposed volume will draw together existing knowledge in this nascent field. Separate sections will address (1) how we can measure affective touch, (2) CT structure and physiology, (3) CT processing, (4) the contribution of CTs to sexual behavior, (5) clinical relevance, (6) commercial relevance, and (7) future research considerations.
CT afferents are receptors in mammalian hairy skin that fire action potentials when the skin is touched lightly which makes them particularly important in affective touch. Traditionally neuroscientific research has focused on more discriminative and haptic properties of touch that are mediated by large myelinated afferents and the coding properties and functional organization of unmyelinated CT afferents have been studied much less. The proposed volume will draw together existing knowledge in this nascent field. Separate sections will address (1) how we can measure affective touch, (2) CT structure and physiology, (3) CT processing, (4) the contribution of CTs to sexual behavior, (5) clinical relevance, (6) commercial relevance, and (7) future research considerations.
Summarizes the nascent field of research in CT afferents, a nontraditional field of study in contrast to the widely focused research on touch's more tractable discriminative and haptic properties Focuses on the role of CT afferents in relation to coding tactile sensation and affective neuroscience One-of-a-kind multidisciplinary overview on the current research of CT afferents, spanning from the micro level (genes) to the macro level (social interactions) Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras
Håkan Olausson
CT afferents neuronal coding sensory processing tactile stimulation emotions communication pain pleasure
“This is a good book concerning the neurophysiology and psychophysics of somatosensation in animal models and humans. … The role of sensory processing in neuropsychiatric conditions such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorders, and schizophrenia is complete. The cortical mapping using EEG, population recordings with fMRI, and grids is detailed. I recommend this book to neurophysiologists, psychiatrists, and psychophysicists especially. Students and sensory researchers will use this book in their work including human/animal experimentation.” (Joseph J. Grenier, Amazon.com, February, 2017)