The neuronal circuits and cellular encoding of thermosensation

1. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2025 Dec 5. doi: 10.1038/s41583-025-01001-5. Online ahead of
print.

The neuronal circuits and cellular encoding of thermosensation.

Carta M(#)(1), Vestergaard M(#)(2), Poulet JFA(3)(4).

Author information:
(1)Institut Interdisciplinaire de Neurosciences, CNRS UMR 5297, Université de
Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France. .
(2)Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences,
University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. .
(3)Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association
(MDC), Berlin, Germany. .
(4)Neuroscience Research Center, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin,
Germany. .
(#)Contributed equally

The neural circuits processing thermal information play a key role in shaping
somatosensory perception, regulating core body temperature and avoiding harm.
The circuits underlying thermal perception are less understood than for other
sensory systems, but recent research has shed light on the wiring, cellular
encoding principles and their link to perception. While thermosensation was
traditionally viewed as a slower, modulatory sense, it is now recognized as a
fast and sensitive sensory system that exhibits complex features such as
multisensory integration and sensory illusions. Here, we highlight recent
progress in the understanding of innocuous thermal processing and perception and
attempt to identify the principles of wiring of the thermal system and cellular
encoding of temperature across mammals and insects. Intriguingly, while warm and
cool reflect the same physical property, there are notable differences in their
perception and encoding in the nervous system. We argue that the thermal system
is an ideal model to advance our understanding of the neural mechanisms of
sensory perception and sensory-guided behaviours.

© 2025. Springer Nature Limited.

DOI: 10.1038/s41583-025-01001-5
PMID: 41350443

Conflict of interest statement: Competing interests: The authors declare no
competing interests.

Auteurs Bordeaux Neurocampus