Biomedical subjects

M E Frank

Publications and source records attributed to M E Frank.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1999

Fluctuating olfactory sensitivity and distorted odor perception in allergic rhinitis.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the relationship between allergic rhinitis, the severity and duration of nasal disease, olfactory function, and self-reported olfactory symptoms, including fluctuations or distortions in odor perception. DESIGN: Assessment of olfactory function and symptoms of 90 patients with allergic rhinitis. SETTING: A clinic of a university teaching hospital and research facility. PATIENTS: Sixty patients who presented to the Taste and Smell Clinic who had positive allergy test results and 30 patients who presented to the Allergy-Immunology Clinic. The Taste and Smell Clinic patients were grouped by nasal-sinus disease status (30 without chronic rhinosinusitis or nasal polyps, 14 with chronic rhinosinusitis but without polyps, and 16 with nasal polyps). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Subjective olfactory symptom questionnaire and objective olfactory function tests. RESULTS: The Allergy-Immunology Clinic patients were diagnosed as being normosmic and the Taste and Smell Clinic patients as being hyposmic or anosmic with olfactory loss that increased significantly with nasal-sinus disease severity. Comparisons with normative data confirm that olfactory scores observed in all groups were significantly lower than expected because of the aging process alone. The self-reported duration of olfactory loss increased significantly with nasal-sinus disease severity. The Taste and Smell Clinic patients without chronic rhinosinusitis or nasal polyps reported the greatest incidence of olfactory distortions and olfactory loss associated with upper respiratory tract infections. CONCLUSIONS: There appears to be a continuum of duration and severity of olfactory loss in allergic rhinitis that parallels increasing severity of nasal-sinus disease. As a result of the increased frequency of respiratory infection associated with allergic rhinitis, these patients are at risk for damage to the olfactory epithelium.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Chorda tympani responses in two inbred strains of mice with different taste preferences.

Behavioral studies suggest that there are significant differences in the taste systems of the inbred mouse (Mus musculus) strains: C57BL/6J (B6) and DBA/2J (D2). In an attempt to understand the biological basis of the behavioral differences, we recorded whole-nerve chorda tympani responses to taste solutions and compared the results to intake of similar solutions in nondeprived mice. Stimuli included a test series composed of 0.1 M sodium chloride, 0.3 M sucrose, 10 mM sodium saccharin, 3 mM hydrochloric acid, and 3 mM quinine hydrochloride, as well as concentration series for the same substances. Neural activity of the chorda tympani that was evoked by sucrose, saccharin, or NaCl was greater in B6 than D2 mice; and neural threshold for sucrose was lower in B6 mice, but neural thresholds for HCl and quinine were lower in D2 mice. B6 mice drank more sucrose and saccharin but less quinine than D2 mice; thus, sucrose and saccharin preference were positively correlated, but NaCl and quinine aversiveness were negatively correlated with the chorda tympani results. Nonetheless, genes involved in the structuring of taste receptors and/or the chordae tympani, which transduce taste stimuli having diverse perceptual qualities, differ for the two mouse strains.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1999

Gustatory function after third molar extraction.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the severity and time course of taste changes after extraction of all 4 third molars. STUDY DESIGN: Taste function in 17 patients was measured before third molar surgery and at 1 month and 6 months after surgery. Two tests were administered: a whole-mouth, above-threshold test in which subjects sipped, expectorated, and then rated the intensities and identified the taste qualities of various solutions, and a localized test in which subjects rated and identified solutions painted with cotton swabs on different oral sites. RESULTS: Intensity ratings for solutions in the whole-mouth test were reduced by approximately 14% for NaCl, citric acid, and quinine hydrochloride at 1 month after surgery and had not recovered by 6 months after surgery for citric acid (P<.02). The taste quality of NaCl was identified correctly less frequently after third molar extraction. Perceived taste intensity on discrete areas of the tongue was significantly reduced after surgery (P<.05). Patients with the most severely impacted molars gave the lowest taste intensity ratings to whole-mouth test solutions at 6 months after surgery (P<.02). In contrast, taste function in a group of subjects who received only local dental anesthesia was not affected. CONCLUSIONS: Gustatory deficits occur after third molar extraction, persist for as long as 6 months after surgery, and appear to be associated with depth of impaction.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Taste qualities of solutions preferred by hamsters.

Molecules of diverse chemical structure are sweet to humans and several lines of evidence (genetic, physiological, behavioral) suggest that there may be distinct sweet perceptual qualities. To address how many perceptual categories these molecules elicit in hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus), we studied patterns of generalization of conditioned taste aversions for seven sweeteners: 100 mM sucrose, 320 mM maltose, 32 mM D-phenylalanine, 3.2 mM sodium saccharin, 16 mM calcium cyclamate, 10 mM dulcin and 32 mM sodium m-nitrobenzene sulfonate. Each stimulus was preferred versus water in two-bottle intake tests and stimulated the chorda tympani nerve. For each of seven experimental groups the conditional stimulus (CS) was a sweetener and for the control group the CS was water. Apomorphine.HCl was injected i.p. after a CS was sampled and, after recovery, test stimuli (TS) were presented for 1 h daily. The intake (ml) of each TS consumed by experimental animals was compared with mean TS intake by the control group. Learned aversions for 18/21 stimulus pairs cross-generalized, resulting in a single cluster of generalization patterns for the seven stimuli. Cross-generalization failures (maltose-cyclamate, maltose-sucrose, cyclamate-NaNBS) may be the consequence of particular stimulus features (e.g. salience, cation taste), rather than the absence of a 'sucrose-like' quality. The results are consistent with a single hamster perceptual quality for a diverse set of chemical structures that are sweet to humans.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Quantitative trait loci associated with short-term intake of sucrose, saccharin and quinine solutions in laboratory mice.

The goal of this study was simultaneously to map two genetic loci which, collectively, have a large effect on intake of sucrose, saccharin and quinine solutions in mice. These loci had been previously identified using long-term measurements with the traditional two-bottle test, but the present study used a short-term, one-bottle test. Intake of distilled water, 100 mM sucrose, 10 mM sodium saccharin and 1.1 mM quinine HCl over 6 h was measured on two occasions from a non-deprived group of 61 male and 72 female F2 mice derived from a cross of the C57BL/6J and DBA/2J mouse strains and used to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL). DNA from each animal was typed for polymorphisms in anonymous microsatellite markers on mouse chromosomes 4 and 6. Saccharin and sucrose relevant QTL were detected on distal chromosome 4 and a quinine relevant QTL was detected on medial/distal chromosome 6 in the region of Prp. The location of these QTL and the proportion of phenotypic variance they accounted for were similar to those arrived at following previous determinations using the two-bottle test. Measurement stability for the three gustatory phenotypes was high, product-moment correlation coefficients between first and second determinations varying between approximately 0.80 for sucrose and saccharin and 0.73 for quinine. QTL parameters assessed independently for first and second presentations of sucrose and saccharin were stable, but the location of the quinine QTL differed between presentations. The present experiment illustrates the utility of a 6 h fluid intake test in the mapping of Sac and Qui loci. The short duration of the test provides a simple means of measuring variation in gustatory processes and the discovery that these loci influence short-term as well as long-term fluid intake extends understanding of the mechanism of gene action.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1999

Taste confusions following gymnemic acid rinse.

The effect of a gymnemic acid (GA) rinse, which simulated a sweet-taste deficit, was measured on human taste perception and identification. Taste ratings showed that GA reduced the intensities of sucrose and aspartame to 14% of pre-rinse levels; over the recovery interval of 30 min, these values increased linearly to 63% of the pre-rinse levels. Repeated presentations of a set of 10 stimuli (five primarily or partly sweet--sucrose, aspartame, and NaCl-sucrose, acid-sucrose and quinine-sucrose mixtures; and five nonsweet--NaCl, KCl, Na glutamate (MSG), quinine HCl and citric acid) for identification following water and GA rinses produced 'taste confusion matrices' (TCMs). Correct identification of the sweet-tasting stimuli was reduced by 23% in presentations closely following the GA rinse, an effect that dissipated with time. Most misidentifications involved sucrose and mixtures containing sucrose. In a second TCM experiment, GA was presented frequently within each session to maintain the sweet taste deficit, which revealed itself as specific confusions. Rinsing with GA impaired discriminability of sweet-nonsweet pairs of stimuli but enhanced discriminability of the aspartame-(NaCl-sucrose) pair. GA had no effect on discriminability of nonsweet stimulus pairs. The results suggest that specific error patterns in the TCM could be used to identify quality-specific taste disorders.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

NOS- and non-NOS NADPH diaphorases in the insular cortex of the Syrian golden hamster.

We had previously shown NADPH diaphorase activity in fixed tissue slices of the insular cortex of the Syrian golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). The objective of this work was to determine the chemical identity of agents responsible for the observed NADPH diaphorase activities. Three different enzymatic NADPH diaphorase activities were distinguished in the insular cortex. (a) The activity seen in endothelial cells was not characterized histochemically, but it co-localized with eNOS-like immunoreactivity. (b) The neuronal Type I activity showed little sensitivity to 10(-5) M dicoumarol, could use either alpha- or beta-NADPH with almost equal facility, and co-localized with nNOS-like immunoreactivity. This activity was primarily attributable to nNOS. (c) The neuronal Type II activity was greatly attenuated by 10(-5) M dicoumarol, had a strong preference for beta-NADPH (rather than alpha-NADPH), and did not co-localize with any NOS-like immunoreactivity. These characteristics also apply to the NADPH diaphorase activity observed in the diffuse blue band in Layers II and III of agranular and dysgranular insular cortex and in the meshwork of cortical fibers. This staining was due primarily to a dicoumarol-sensitive dehydrogenase(s), either an isozyme of DT diaphorase (EC 1.6.99.2), or NADPH dehydrogenase (quinone) (EC 1.6. 99.6), or to a novel dicoumarol-sensitive NADPH dehydrogenase.

2,6-Dichloroindophenol↗

PubMed1999

A confusion matrix for the study of taste perception.

Taste stimulus identification was studied in order to more thoroughly examine human taste perception. Ten replicates of an array of 10 taste stimuli--NaCl, KCl, Na glutamate, quinine. HCl, citric acid, sucrose, aspartame, and NaCl-sucrose, acid-sucrose, and quinine-sucrose mixtures--were presented to normal subjects for identification from a list of corresponding stimulus names. Because perceptually similar substances are confused in identification tasks, the result was a taste confusion matrix. Consistency of identification for the 10 stimuli (T10) and for each stimulus pair (T2) was quantified with measures derived from information theory. Forty-two untrained subjects made an average of 57.4% correct identifications. An average T10 of 2.25 of the maximum 3.32 bits and an average T2 of 0.84 of a maximum 1.0 bit of information were transmitted. In a second experiment, 40 trained subjects performed better than 20 untrained subjects. The results suggested that the identification procedure may best be used to assess taste function following 1-2 training replicates. The patterns of taste confusion indicate that the 10 stimuli resemble one another to varying extents, yet each can be considered perceptually unique.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1998

The effects of topical anesthesia on oral burning in burning mouth syndrome.

Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is an oral pain disorder of uncertain origin. Central or peripheral pain mechanisms may play a role in the oral burning of BMS. We tested the effect of a topical anesthetic (dyclonine HCl) on patients' intensity ratings for oral burning, taste dysgeusia and the taste of two chemical stimuli (1.0 M NaCl and 1.0 M sucrose). A total of 33 patients (9 male and 24 female, average age: 60 yr) are included in this analysis. The anesthetic reduced the perceptual intensity of both chemicals in these patients on four out of five postanesthesia trials (p < 0.01). The BMS cohort included 12 patients whose burning increased (p < 0.001), 14 patients whose burning did not change, and 7 patients whose burning decreased (p < 0.001) after anesthesia. Baseline dysgeusias (n = 13) decreased in intensity (p < 0.001) after anesthesia, suggesting BMS dysgeusia is related to the activation of peripheral taste mechanisms. The results also suggest that BMS oral burning may be a disorder of peripheral pain pathways in some patients.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

The taste of polycose in hamsters.

Hamsters show a preference for Polycose, a mixture of starch-derived glucose polymers, that is as strong as their preference for sucrose. However, in the hamster, taste aversions to Polycose may be less easily acquired than taste aversions to sucrose and the qualitative aspects of Polycose are unknown in this species. In order to examine the taste of Polycose in the hamster, we utilized a taste-aversion protocol with two conditioning trials. Animals were trained to avoid one of three different conditioning stimuli: 50 mM sucrose, 100 mM Polycose and a mixture of 50 mM sucrose with 100 mM Polycose. Control animals were conditioned with deionized water. After the second conditioning trial, generalization testing began for the three conditioning stimuli plus 3 mM citric acid, 300 mM KCI and 30 mM NaCl. The results showed that aversions to Polycose, sucrose or the Polycose/sucrose mixture cross-generalized, demonstrating that Polycose and sucrose share a common taste percept in the hamster. None of the aversions generalized to NaCl, citric acid or KCI. In addition, comparisons among the patterns of taste generalizations indicated that the tastes of Polycose and sucrose also had distinct qualitative components. Finally, although the taste of 100 mM Polycose was more salient than the taste of 50 mM sucrose, the taste of sucrose could still be detected in a mixture with Polycose.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1997

Opponent effects of quinine and sucrose on single fiber taste responses of the chorda tympani nerve.

Responses of single chorda tympani fibers to mixtures of taste stimuli were studied in the golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). Sucrose-best neurons showed significant suppression to quinine-sucrose mixtures compared to sucrose alone. Quinine may exert its effect as an opponent stimulus in the receptor cells at the second messenger level. This suppression may make bitter quinine more readily detected when embedded in mixtures with sweeteners.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Topical corticosteroid treatment of anosmia associated with nasal and sinus disease.

OBJECTIVE: To establish the efficacy of topical corticosteroid nasal spray treatment of severe olfactory loss associated with severe nasal and sinus disease. DESIGN: Efficacy before and after open-label trial of topical corticosteroid nasal spray used exclusively in the head-down-forward position. SETTING: Taste and smell clinic of a university teaching hospital and research facility. PATIENTS: Taste and smell clinic patients with anosmia or severe hyposmia associated with paranasal sinus disease and nasal polyposis including 39 of 45 patients recruited from 1988 to 1994 who completed the topical corticosteroid treatment course and returned for subsequent testing. INTERVENTION: At least 8 weeks of treatment with flunisolide (Nasalide), 2 sprays in each nostril twice a day, with concurrent antibiotic treatment of any bacterial infection. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Subjective olfactory symptoms, objective olfactory function tests, and otolaryngological evaluation (including endoscopic examination). RESULTS: Olfactory scores significantly improved following treatment (P < .001); signs of nasal and sinus disease significantly decreased (P < .001); and 26 (66%) of the patients reported a subjective improvement in their sense of smell. CONCLUSION: Topical corticosteroid nasal spray administered in a head-down-forward position is an effective treatment of severe olfactory loss associated with severe nasal and sinus disease.

Administration, Topical↗

PubMed1996

Responses of the hamster chorda tympani nerve to binary component taste stimuli: evidence for peripheral gustatory mixture interactions.

Studies of taste mixtures suggest that stimuli which elicit different perceptual taste qualities physiologically interact in the gustatory system and thus, are not independently processed. The present study addressed the role of the peripheral gustatory system in these physiological interactions by measuring the effects of three heterogeneous taste mixtures on responses of the chorda tympani (CT) nerve in the hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). Binary taste stimuli were presented to the anterior tongue and multi-fiber neural responses were recorded from the whole CT. Stimuli consisted of a concentration series of quinine.HCl (QHCl: 1-30 mM), sodium chloride (NaCl: 10-250 mM), sucrose (50-500 mM) and binary combinations of the three different chemicals. Each mixture produced a unique pattern of results on CT response magnitudes measured 10 s into the response. Sucrose responses were inhibited by quinine in QHCl-sucrose mixtures. Neural activity did not increase when quinine was added to 50-250 mM NaCl in QHCl-NaCl mixtures. However, the neural activity elicited by sucrose-NaCl mixtures was greater than the activity elicited by either component stimulus presented alone. The results demonstrate that gustatory mixture interactions are initiated at the level of the taste bud or peripheral nerve. Mechanisms for these interactions are unknown. The results are consistent with one component stimulus modifying the interaction of the other component stimulus with its respective transduction mechanism. Alternatively, peripheral inhibitory mechanisms may come into play when appetitive and aversive stimuli are simultaneously presented to the taste receptors.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1996

Recovery of chorda tympani nerve function following injury.

The chorda tympani (CT) nerve carries taste information from the anterior tongue to the brain stem. Injury to the chorda tympani may result in loss or distortion of taste information. This study examined changes occurring in the hamster peripheral taste system during recovery from injury. The hamster chorda tympani nerve was crushed in the middle ear and the animals were allowed to survive from 2 to 16 weeks. At 2 weeks, CT fibers had degenerated distal to the crush site. Up to 16 weeks after crush, there were 67% fewer myelinated fibers in regenerated nerves than in controls. The mean area of the Ca(2+)-ATPase-stained core of the fungiform taste buds was significantly smaller than in controls 2 weeks after injury, but recovered to control values by 4 weeks. Electrophysiological responses to taste stimuli were recorded from the chorda tympani distal to the injury. No responses were seen after 2 weeks; weak and unstable responses were seen after 3 weeks. By 4-8 weeks, relative responses to taste stimuli were similar to control responses, but the variability of the responses to sucrose was significantly greater than that in controls. The frequency of responses to the water rinse following taste stimuli, particularly sucrose, was also greater in the regenerated nerves. The abnormal electrophysiological responses to sucrose may be the result of the differential rate of return of fiber types and/or the transduction mechanisms. In some ways, recovery of the peripheral gustatory system after damage to the chorda tympani nerve recapitulates the later stages of taste bud development.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Analysis of polysaccharide taste in hamsters: behavioral and neural studies.

A series of studies was carried out in hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) to determine whether polysaccharides have behavioral and neurophysiological characteristics that distinguish them from simple sugars. Behavioral studies utilized solutions of glucose, maltose, sucrose, Polycose, and glycogen in two-bottle preference tests and in tests of generalization of conditioned taste aversions. Multiunit and single-unit responses of the chorda tympani nerve were studied with the same stimuli. Neural responses to Polycose and glycogen were found to be generated primarily by ionic contaminants. Dialysis or deionization dramatically reduced electrophysiological responses, a result consistent with occurrence of Polycose and glycogen sensitivity in electrolyte-sensitive nerve fibers. Effects of treatment with the Na + -channel blocker amiloride and cross-adaptation were also consistent with neural responses generated by ionic contaminants. Hamsters showed strong preferences for the sugars and Polycose, a mixture of glucose polymers with alpha-1,4 linkages, and even stronger preferences for a glycogen preparation. Conditioned flavor aversions were established to glycogen, sucrose, and maltose, but no aversion was learned to 3.2% Polycose. The learned aversion to maltose partly generalized to glycogen and sucrose, but sucrose and glycogen did not cross-generalize. Deionization did not affect the preferences for Polycose and glycogen but removal of contaminants of mol.wt. < or = 7000 Da greatly reduced preference for glycogen. In conclusion, glycogen itself, after removal of low molecular weight contaminants, is a poor taste stimulus in hamsters, both behaviorally and neurophysiologically. However, Polycose is highly preferred by hamsters but gives little chorda tympani response after removal of ionic contaminants. In alert animals, the action of salivary amylase on polysaccharides may produce simpler, detectable taste stimuli.

Amiloride↗

PubMed1996

Are the tastes of polycose and monosodium glutamate unique?

To study whether Polycose and monosodium L-glutamate (L-MSG) have unique tastes differing from the traditional four basic tastes, chemosensory profiles were established for Polycose, L-MSG and a group of related compounds (sucrose, maltose, monosodium D-glutamate (D-MSG), sodium chloride, calcium chloride). Flavors were assessed using whole-mouth tests in human subjects with nose open or clamped to reduce olfactory input. Polycose (a mixture of glucose-based oligosaccharides) had a flavor consisting of an olfactory component and a maltose-like taste. L-MSG and D-MSG profiles differed from each other, and from NaCl and CaCl2. L-MSG had a lower threshold and a higher frequency of 'other' tastes than the D form. The data do not support a 'polysaccharide' taste, but suggest a chiral receptor site for 'umami' taste.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Effects of chorda tympani transection on long-term salt preference in hamsters.

The effects of denervation of fungiform taste buds on preference behavior were studied. Presurgery, 0.01, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 M NaCl, and 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 M KCl were strongly avoided relative to water as measured with 48-h intakes. Bilateral cuts of the chorda tympani nerve (CT) resulted in a decrease in the strength of aversions to all concentrations of NaCl and to 0.2 and 0.4 M KCl. Only 0.4 M NaCl and KCl were strongly avoided after CT section. After CT section, when the animals were allowed to choose between equimolar (0.1 or 0.2 M) KCl and NaCl, they drank equal amounts, whereas intact hamsters preferred KCl to NaCl. In golden hamsters, unlike most laboratory rat strains, intake-based long-term preference behavior for salts is significantly affected by selective gustatory deafferentation.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Effects of chlorhexidine on human taste perception.

Chlorhexidine gluconate at a dose used to control bacteria in the mouth has a reversible effect on taste perception. Taste-intensity ratings and taste-quality identification for concentration series of sucrose, sodium chloride, citric acid and quinine hydrochloride were obtained from 15 healthy humans. The participants rinsed with 0.12% chlorhexidine for 3 min twice a day. Each individual was tested 3 times: before the 4-day rinse period, 30 min after the final rinse, and 4 days after the rinse period. Chlorhexidine rinses reduced the perceptual intensity of sodium chloride and quinine hydrochloride, not sucrose or citric acid. No effects on taste perception were detected 4 days after the rinse period. The identification of sodium chloride as salty was seriously impaired by chlorhexidine but the identification of quinine hydrochloride as bitter was not affected. Specific sites of action of chlorhexidine on the taste epithelium are not known but its effects on salty taste may be related to its strong positive charge and its effect on bitter taste may be related to its amphiphilicity. Chlorhexidine has promise as a probe of taste transduction, as well as for the management of salty/bitter dysgeusias in humans.

Adult↗