Miriam Goodman, Stanford University, Deciphering the physics and physiology of animal touch sensation

Our sense of touch is the earliest to develop, last to fade, and least understood of the five basic senses. The gentlest breeze and the roughest sandpaper are detected by mechanoreceptor neurons embedded in the skin and analogous neurons embedded in other tissues provide continuous reports of body position and the function of internal organs. Regardless of their position within the body, these ‘body sensing’ or somatosensory neurons are thought to depend on mechano-electrical transduction (MeT) channels to detect mechanical loads. Exactly how external loads open MeT channels in somatosensory neurons remains unknown. Using genetic dissection and new optical probes of molecular strain, and other complimentary techniques, I will present evidence gathered by my research group showing that membrane lipids (Vásquez et al, Cell Reports, 2014) and the cytoskeleton (Krieg et al, Nat Cell Biol, 2014) regulate touch receptor neuron mechanics and that both elements are needed for normal touch sensitivity. Our work has implications for understanding how all cells detect mechanical cues and for improving our grip on answers to the fundamental question of how we feel.