Final answer:
During transduction, pain signals move from the site of origin to the spinal cord, then the pain impulse moves from the spinal cord to the brain, where the brain interprets the pain signal.
Step-by-step explanation:
Nociceptive Pain and Transduction
Nociceptive pain is the perception of potential tissue damage caused by mechanical, chemical, or thermal stimuli beyond a certain threshold. The first phase of nociceptive pain is transduction, which involves the conversion of these stimuli into neural signals.
Pain signals move from the site of origin to the spinal cord: Nociceptors, which are specialized nerve endings, detect the painful stimuli and send signals to the spinal cord.
The pain impulse moves from the spinal cord to the brain: Axons carrying nociceptive information project to the thalamus in the brain, which is responsible for relaying sensory information.
The brain interprets the pain signal: The neural signal undergoes final processing in the primary somatosensory cortex of the brain, where the pain perception occurs.
The question also asked about the neutralization of chemical mediators, but this occurs later in the pain pathway, known as modulation.