Researchers discover a key to touch

University of Iowa researchers have located a protein in mice that’s linked to the sensation of touch. Assistant research scientist Maggie Price says the protein plays a role in the animal’s perception of light touch. She says they believe the protein is part of a larger protein complex.Price says this research could lead to more information about other senses.She says it’s a mechanosensory process, and there are several other of these types of senses such as balance and the coordination of limbs. She says this discovery could lead to some new treatments for inflammatory pain.Price and her colleagues at the U-of-I worked with researchers in Germany to discover the protein. The findings of the research are being published in the latest edition of the scientific journal “Nature.”