• S Toma and Y Nakajima.
• Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Chiba University, Japan.
• Neurosci. Lett. 1995 Jul 28; 195 (1): 61-3.

AbstractWe investigated the responsiveness of mechanoreceptors in the glabrous skin of the hand to triangular vibratory stimuli when the frequency and applied pressure to the skin were varied. Using a microneurographic technique, 13 single afferent activities were recorded from 4 kinds of mechanoreceptors. Both fast-adapting (FA) and slow-adapting (SA) units were sensitive to the vibratory stimuli. The relationship between the most sensitive frequency and applied pressure to the skin were analyzed as a tuning curve. FA-type I (FAI) was sensitive to vibratory stimuli at 30-40 Hz and the frequency which entrained one-to-one discharge at lower pressure was between 10 and 80 Hz. FA-type II (FAII) sensitivity was augmented sharply over 60-100 Hz. SA-type I (SAI) and SA-type II (SAII) responsiveness was almost the same and characteristic sensitivity to the vibratory stimuli was revealed under 15 Hz. Functional roles of these units, especially type I units, are discussed in relation to active touch such as texture discrimination with a finger.

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