MICROANATOMY

Detailed explanation-1: -Mammalian Merkel cells are descended from the epidermal lineage. Merkel cells are specialized cells in the skin that are important for proper neural encoding of light touch stimuli. Conflicting evidence suggests that these cells are lineally descended from either the skin or the neural crest.

Detailed explanation-2: -Merkel cell–neurite complexes are formed when Merkel cells are innervated by sensory neurons. At the epidermal-dermal junction, Merkel cells physically contact A sensory neurons, specifically the slowly adapting I (SAI) mechanoreceptors, which express neural filament heavy chain (NFH) (Niu et al., 2014).

Detailed explanation-3: -They also occur in epidermal invaginations of the plantar foot surface called rete ridges. Most often, they are associated with sensory nerve endings, when they are known as Merkel nerve endings (also called a Merkel cell-neurite complex).