Publications by authors named "Vincent C Panzano"
Article Synopsis
- Behavioral responses to temperature are essential for survival, with animals showing strong temperature preferences that help them avoid extreme conditions and maintain optimal body heat.
- Recent studies on Drosophila (fruit flies) indicate that thermal preference involves both internal (like TRPA1) and peripheral (like GR28B(D) gustatory receptor) sensory systems, depending on the thermal gradient they are exposed to.
- The discovery of GR28B(D) as a peripheral warmth sensor reveals a new type of thermosensory molecule and suggests a functional division between internal and external temperature detection, which may allow for better adaptability to different temperature environments.
Discriminating among sensory stimuli is critical for animal survival. This discrimination is particularly essential when evaluating whether a stimulus is noxious or innocuous. From insects to humans, transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are key transducers of thermal, chemical and other sensory cues.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe pit organs of pit vipers, pythons, and boas are remarkable sensory devices that allow these snakes to detect infrared radiation emitted by warm-blooded prey. It has been theorized that this capacity reflects the pit organ's exceptional sensitivity to subtle fluctuations in temperature, but the molecules responsible for this extreme thermal resolution have been unknown. New evidence shows that pit organs respond to temperature using the warmth-activated cation channel TRPA1 (transient receptor potential ankyrin 1), a finding that provides a first glimpse of the underlying molecular hardware.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To determine the extent and implications of internal human electroencephalography (EEG) research conducted by the tobacco industry.
Methods: This study analysed internal documents that describe the results of human EEG studies conducted by tobacco manufacturers. Emphasis was placed on documents that pertain to the application of EEG to product evaluation efforts.
Chemical nociception, the detection of tissue-damaging chemicals, is important for animal survival and causes human pain and inflammation, but its evolutionary origins are largely unknown. Reactive electrophiles are a class of noxious compounds humans find pungent and irritating, such as allyl isothiocyanate (in wasabi) and acrolein (in cigarette smoke). Diverse animals, from insects to humans, find reactive electrophiles aversive, but whether this reflects conservation of an ancient sensory modality has been unclear.
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