PIEZO2 and perineal mechanosensation are essential for sexual function

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Lam, Ruby M.; von Buchholtz, Lars J.; Falgairolle, Melanie; Osborne, Jennifer; Frangos, Eleni; Servin-Vences, M. Rocio; Nagel, Maximilian; Nguyen, Minh Q.; Jayabalan, Monessha; Saade, Dimah; Patapoutian, Ardem; Bonnemann, Carsten G.; Ryba, Nicholas J. P.; Chesler, Alexander T.
• 署名单位: Brown University; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA; NIH National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR); Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Scripps Research Institute; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA; NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders & Stroke (NINDS)
• 刊物名称: SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0036-8600
• DOI: 10.1126/science.adg0144
• 发表日期: 2023-08-25
• 页码: 906-910
• 关键词: penis; touch; neurons; mice

摘要

Despite the potential importance of genital mechanosensation for sexual reproduction, little is known about how perineal touch influences mating. We explored how mechanosensation affords exquisite awareness of the genitals and controls reproduction in mice and humans. Using genetic strategies and in vivo functional imaging, we demonstrated that the mechanosensitive ion channel PIEZO2 (piezo-type mechanosensitive ion channel component 2) is necessary for behavioral sensitivity to perineal touch. PIEZO2 function is needed for triggering a touch-evoked erection reflex and successful mating in both male and female mice. Humans with complete loss of PIEZO2 function have genital hyposensitivity and experience no direct pleasure from gentle touch or vibration. Together, our results help explain how perineal mechanoreceptors detect the gentlest of stimuli and trigger physiologically important sexual responses, thus providing a platform for exploring the sensory basis of sexual pleasure and its relationship to affective touch.