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TRPV channels as thermosensory receptors in epithelial cells

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Abstract

Temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential vanilloid (TRPV) ion channels are critical contributors to normal pain and temperature sensation and therefore represent attractive targets for pain therapy. When these channels were first discovered, most attention was focused on their potential contributions to direct thermal activation of peripheral sensory neurons. However, recent anatomical, physiological, and behavioral studies have provided evidence that TRPV channels expressed in skin epithelial cells may also contribute to thermosensation in vitro and in vivo. Here, we review these studies and speculate on possible communication mechanisms from cutaneous epithelial cells to sensory neurons.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by research scholar grant RSG 01-063-05-CSM to M.J.C. from the American Cancer Society.

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  1. Departments of Biological Chemistry and Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 725 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Hyosang Lee & Michael J. Caterina

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  1. Hyosang Lee
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Correspondence to Michael J. Caterina.

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Lee, H., Caterina, M.J. TRPV channels as thermosensory receptors in epithelial cells. Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol 451, 160–167 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-005-1438-y

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