HomeDate: 2025-06-23
Touch is a fundamental sensory function through which humans interact with the external world. Located deep within the skin, the Pacinian corpuscle is a specialized mechanoreceptor responsible for detecting high-frequency vibrations. With its onion-like multilayered structure, this organ has long been thought to rely primarily on sensory nerve endings for signal processing. However, a collaborative study by Kuo-Sheng Lee of Academia Sinica and Daniel Huber of the University of Geneva reveals that Schwann cells within the Pacinian corpuscle can actively sense mechanical stimuli and modulate neuronal firing, reshaping current models of tactile processing.
By integrating high-resolution three-dimensional electron microscopy (3D-EM), optogenetics, and in vivo electrophysiology, the team reconstructed the architecture of individual lamellar Schwann cells and examined their direct structural and functional interactions with sensory neurons. The findings demonstrate that glial cells can also directly participate in mechanical sensing and play an active role in regulating neuronal activity, offering a new cellular framework for understanding touch.
This discovery has implications for the development of bio-inspired tactile sensors and provides insights into the mechanisms underlying neuropathic pain and tactile hypersensitivity. The study was published on June 11, 2025, in Science Advances and was featured as the cover article.
The study's lead authors include Kuo-Sheng Lee and Yuh-Tarng Chen from Academia Sinica, as well as Dominica de Thomas Wagner and Alastair J. Loutit from Daniel Huber’s lab at the University of Geneva. The research was supported by scientific funding agencies in both Taiwan and Switzerland, highlighting the strength of international collaboration in advancing neuroscience.
