Question

Describe the sensory receptors present in the skin.

Answer 1

Skin is the sensory organ of touch and is also the largest sense organ. This sensation comes from millions of microscopic sensory receptors located all over the skin and associated with the general sensations of contact, pressure, heat, cold, and pain. Some parts of the body, such as the fingertips have a large number of these receptors, making them more sensitive. Some of the sensory receptors present in the skin are

1. Tactile Merkel disc is a light touch receptor lying in the deeper layer of the epidermis.
2. Hair follicle receptors are light-touch receptors lying around the hair follicles. 
3. Meissner’s corpuscles are small light pressure receptors found just beneath the epidermis in the dermal papillae. They are numerous in hairless skin areas such as fingertips and soles of the feet. 
4. Pacinian corpuscles are the large egg-shaped receptors found scattered deep in the dermis and monitoring vibration due to pressure. It allows detecting of different textures, temperature, hardness, and pain
5. Ruffini endings that lie in the dermis respond to continuous pressure.
6. Krause end bulbs are thermoreceptors that sense temperature.