Final answer:
Thermoreceptors sense changes in temperature and are located in the dermis, among other tissues. They convey warmth and cold sensations to the somatosensory cortex of the brain. Intense temperature changes may also be perceived as pain due to shared neural pathways.
Step-by-step explanation:
Thermoreceptors are a type of sensory receptor that sense changes in temperature. These receptors are distributed throughout the dermis layer of the skin, as well as in skeletal muscles, the liver, and the hypothalamus. Thermoreception is key to the body's ability to respond to the external environment, allowing an organism to detect warmth and cold.
There are specialized cold receptors like Krause end bulbs and warmth receptors such as Ruffini endings. Their sensory pathways transmit information from the peripheral nervous system to the brain, moving through the spinal cord, the thalamus, and finally the primary somatosensory cortex. When a stimulus is too intense, thermoreceptive sensations can merge with pain sensations, which are conveyed via similar neural pathways.