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Joined 2026-09-21 Message
Dmitry Usoskin 2026-11-05
Dmitry Usoskin led a study using single-cell RNA sequencing to classify mouse sensory neurons. Analysis of 622 individual neurons distinguished eleven principal groups with different molecular and functional properties. Measuring each cell separately preserved differences that a pooled RNA sample would average together.[ref]
Unbiased classification of sensory neuron types by large-scale single-cell RNA sequencing by Dmitry Usoskin and others. Abstract; figures 1–3: transcriptomes, clustering and functional interrogation
The groups included neurons associated with mechanical sensation, body-position information, temperature, itch and damaging stimuli. Molecular clusters provide candidates for distinct cell types; their interpretation becomes stronger when combined with localization and functional experiments. The paper appeared online in 2014 and in the 2015 journal volume.
Dorsal root ganglion 2026-11-05
A dorsal root ganglion is a collection of sensory neuron cell bodies on a dorsal root associated with a spinal nerve. These neurons carry information from peripheral tissues toward the spinal cord, including signals relevant to touch, temperature, pain and proprioception.
The sensory axon typically branches into a peripheral process and a central process; the ganglion is not simply a relay in which every incoming signal must cross a synapse onto another neuron. Its neurons also comprise multiple functional populations. Single-cell RNA sequencing of mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons separated molecularly distinct sensory types without assigning them beforehand solely from a few selected markers.[ref]
Unbiased classification of sensory neuron types by large-scale single-cell RNA sequencing by Dmitry Usoskin and others. Nature Neuroscience 18, pp. 145–153; single-cell classification of mouse primary sensory neurons
Anatomical location, molecular profile and stimulus response provide complementary descriptions of a sensory neuron.