Pain Receptors

• Receptors for pain: Nociceptors

  • Intense pressure, heat/acids, ATP & ischemia

• Pain receptors are found in:

  • Skin
  • Sheath around muscles, internal organs
  • Cornea of the eye
  • Pulp of the teeth
  • NOT in the brain (no brain pain)!

• Pain receptors are activated by mechanical, chemical stimulation

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Nociceptors: detectors of noxious stimuli. There are 3 types of pain receptors:

1. Free nerve endings networks within the skin that respond to intense pressure (strike, stretch, or pinch of the skin)

2. Free nerve endings that respond to heat, acids, and capsaicin (the active ingredient in chili peppers) {burning of skin and inflammation}

3. Receptors that are sensitive to ATP, energy supply (ATP is released when blood supply is disrupted in ischemia, as in angina, migraines, muscle damage or cancer tumors).