Kinesthesis, our sixth sense, has been unveiled by scientists

According to a new study published in Nature CommunicationsThe sixth sense is present. This is kinesthesia, also called proprioception. Basically, it is the perception that you have of yourself in relation to what is around you, ie: the ability to unconsciously recognize your location and body parts in space, without opening your eyes or touching anything, for example.

But unlike the senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, kinesthetics are a completely unconscious sense. This means that the person may not be aware that they are practicing kinesthetics. But this does not mean that this meaning is not important. Indeed, without it, it is impossible to make coordinated movements.

The researchers suggest that kinesthesia involves a complex communication system involving neurons in muscles and joints, which relays information about muscle stretching and tension to sensory sensory neurons (pSN) located in the dorsal root ganglia of the spinal cord.

What is the kinematic used for?

But what exactly is this sixth sense? The function of the kinesthetic is to collect information from the muscles and joints about our movements, posture and position in space and then transmit it to our central nervous system.

According to the study authors, it is this sense that allows the central nervous system to send the correct signals through motor neurons to the muscles so that a specific movement can be performed. To get an idea, it is proprioception that allows you to bring a glass of water to your mouth with your eyes closed, for example.

And all this is possible due to the functioning of special sensory neurons called proprioceptive neurons (pSN). In the new study, the team identified genes involved in the function of these neurons, revealing the neural connections that make sense of movement possible.

source: Nature Communications Across IFL Science