ArticleNeuron2018
Merkel Cells Activate Sensory Neural Pathways through Adrenergic Synapses.
Article in Neuron, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 72 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
72 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 142 citations in OpenAlex.
- The interplay between epidermal cells and the cutaneous sensory nervous: a systematic review.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Pooled it
- Peripheral mechanisms of tactile sensation in fish.Current opinion in neurobiology · 2026Review
- Massively parallel in-sensor skinomorphic computing.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Viruses and the host replisome: discovering oncogenic mechanisms of small DNA tumor viruses.Journal of virology · 2026Review
- Choline acetyltransferase as a marker for Merkel cells in mucosal and skin tissues.Journal of oral biosciences · 2026Article
- Placental and fetal consequences of maternal selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor use: current evidence and unresolved questions.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Article
- Cellular and molecular changes in the skin driving increased nociception and pain during burn injury and repair.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Contribution of Sympathetic Sensory Coupling to Craniofacial Nociception.Orthodontics & craniofacial research · 2025Review
- Role of BK channels and Kv4.2 channels in the electrophysiological properties of Merkel cells in rat whisker hair follicles.Journal of neurophysiology · 2025Article
- Functional evidence for early origin of tactile acuity in the vertebrate somatosensory system.Current biology : CB · 2025Article
- Merkel cell stimulation in fear and sensory signaling.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025Article
- Bio-inspired artificial mechanoreceptors with built-in synaptic functions for intelligent tactile skin.Nature materials · 2025Article
- Article
- The inner core enables transient touch detection in the Pacinian corpuscle.Science advances · 2025Article
- POU4F3 Is Necessary for Normal Merkel Cell Formation, whereas POU4F1 Is Dispensable.The Journal of investigative dermatology · 2025Article
- A NaFrontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2025Article
- Acid-Sensing Ion Channels Drive the Generation of Tactile Impulses in Merkel Cell-Neurite Complexes of the Glabrous Skin of Rodent Hindpaws.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2024Article
- Article
- Dendrite intercalation between epidermal cells tunes nociceptor sensitivity to mechanical stimuli in Drosophila larvae.PLoS genetics · 2024Article
12 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Epithelial-neuronal signaling is essential for sensory encoding in touch, itch, and nociception; however, little is known about the release mechanisms and neurotransmitter receptors through which skin cells govern neuronal excitability. Merkel cells are mechanosensory epidermal cells that have long been proposed to activate neuronal afferents through chemical synaptic transmission. We employed a set of classical criteria for chemical neurotransmission as a framework to test this hypothesis. RNA sequencing of adult mouse Merkel cells demonstrated that they express presynaptic molecules and biosynthetic machinery for adrenergic transmission. Moreover, live-cell imaging directly demonstrated that Merkel cells mediate activity- and VMAT-dependent release of fluorescent catecholamine neurotransmitter analogs. Touch-evoked firing in Merkel-cell afferents was inhibited either by pre-synaptic silencing of SNARE-mediated vesicle release from Merkel cells or by neuronal deletion of β
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.