Fig. 6. BNaC1α localization in mechanosensory terminals of the skin. A, E, I, M, Q, Immunoreactivity to neurofilament 200 (NF200) or the neuronal marker PGP 9.5 (green; Thompson et al., 1983). B, F, J, N, R, Immunoreactivity to BNaC1α (red).C, G, K, O, S, Merging of the images to demonstrate colocalization (yellow). D, H, L, P, T, Schematic drawing of the tissues, derived from other images of the same sections. A dotted line represents the basal membrane that separates the epidermis (gray) from the dermis (white). A–D, BNaC1α immunoreactivity of a neurite innervating a Meissner corpuscle situated in a dermal papilla of the glabrous skin of a mouse forepaw.E–H, Penicillate terminals under the basal layer of the epidermis in the glabrous skin of a mouse forepaw. I–L, Merkel cells in the glabrous skin of the rat forepaw. The PGP 9.5 antibody (green) labels the subepidermal nerves, their terminals (the Merkel disks), and the closely apposed Merkel cells at the base of the epidermis. The BNaC1α antibody (red) labels the Merkel disks and, less prominently, the neuronal processes leading to them. Note the two thin intraepidermal fibers, which do not contain BNaC1α. M–P, Intraepidermal fibers of myelinated origin in the glabrous skin of the rat forepaw. Q–T, Thin intraepidermal fibers of C-fiber origin in the glabrous skin of the rat forepaw. These fibers do not label for BNaC1α. The strong fluorescence signal from the stratum corneum is attributable to autofluorescence.