Temperature-activated TRP channels and thermosensation

Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla CA

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Abstract

Recent years have seen great advances in the molecular description of sensory neurobiology. Of the five popularly characterized senses - sight, hearing, taste, smeli, and touch - touch is among the most varied and perhaps least understood. Within this modality is the ability to sense mechanical forces, chemical stimuli, and temperature, and the molecules that mediate this ability have been a long-standing mystery. My group and others have recently discovered ion channels that are activated by different thresholds of temperature, and might enable sensory neurons to convey temperature information. Among these ion channels is TRPV3, which senses warm temperatures and is expressed in the skin. Here we use genetic and biochemical tools to test if TRPV3 and its close homologs play an essential role in thermosensation and pain.