触觉信息处理及其脑机制

 触觉不仅包含对物理特征的感知，还包括对情感性信息的识别，其信息的整合是人类认识环境的基础。本文阐述了编码不同特征触觉信息的皮肤感受器是触觉信息感知的结构基础；讨论了触觉信息在外周和中枢神经系统的加工机制。其中脊髓背角是触觉信息在皮层下水平加工的初级枢纽，躯体感觉皮层是加工触觉信息的主要脑区，且针对不同特征的触觉信息加工，存在相对独立的脑网络连接。本文还探讨了触觉与跨模态感觉的交互作用，揭示了多模态感觉信息整合的神经机制及其广泛的应用价值。

Neural mechanisms of tactile information processing

To perceive external environment more efficiently, the sensory information derived from the modality of touch, or tactile information, is processed in terms of its physical features and affective responses to these features. This review summarizes the current understanding about how haptic information is processed in skin, spinal cord, and cerebral cortex of animals and humans. Typically, different non-noxious somatosensory information is coded by various cutaneous sensory neurons called low-threshold mechanoreceptors (LTMRs). Next, haptic processing starts at the dorsal horn of the spinal cord, and then it partially segregates into different pathways, transmitting information to the somatosensory cortex, the first crucial brain area for haptic information processing. Moreover, several relatively independent brain networks are responsible for the processing of different properties of haptic information. Finally, by discussing the interactions between touch and other sensory modalities, we argue that such interactions are plastic, which is warranted in the future work to generate extensive value in applications.