Vater-Pacini corpuscles

Vater-Pacini corpuscles /fä″tər päsē″nē/ [Abraham Vater, German anatomist, 1684–1751; Filippo Pacini, Italian anatomist, 1812–1883] , kinesioceptors located in joint capsules and ligaments. They may transmit nerve impulses at an increasing rate as a joint approaches its maximal range of motion and are believed to have a protective function of signaling the cerebral cortex when a joint has reached the end position of its range. They are the most complicated of the nerve endings.