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    Nat Neurosci. 2007 Aug;10(8):946-8. Epub 2007 Jul 8.

    Molecular genetic visualization of a rare subset of unmyelinated sensory neurons that may detect gentle touch.

    Liu Q, Vrontou S, Rice FL, Zylka MJ, Dong X, Anderson DJ.

    The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, 725 N. Wolfe St., Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.

    C-fiber tactile afferents are a subpopulation of unmyelinated cutaneous sensory neurons activated by gentle stroking. Using a genetically encoded tracer, we found that Mas-related G protein-coupled receptor B4 marks a rare subpopulation of unmyelinated, nonpeptidergic sensory fibers that exclusively innervate hairy skin. These fibers terminate in large arborizations similar in size and distribution to C-fiber tactile afferent receptive fields, suggesting that MrgprB4 may provide genetic access to these elusive neurons in mice.

    PMID: 17618277 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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