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PubMed1995

Taste quality profiles for fifteen organic and inorganic salts.

Biophysical studies of isolated taste receptor cells show that one transduction mechanism for Na+ salts involves the inward movement of Na+ through an apical ion channel, which is sensitive to the diuretic amiloride. An additional paracellular pathway also appears to be involved in NaCl transduction, but not in the transduction of organic Na+ salts. Little is known, however, about how these receptor mechanisms relate to taste perception. Recent human psychophysical studies suggest that the amiloride-sensitive transduction pathway is coupled to the sour side taste of these salts rather than to their saltiness. In the present study, we employed direct magnitude estimation of taste intensity and quality of fifteen organic and inorganic Na+, Li-, K+, and Ca+2 salts. Many salts had multiple taste qualities, such as the salty and bitter tastes of NH4Cl and KCl; the Ca+2 salts were predominantly bitter. Taste quality often changed with stimulus concentration. Multivariate analyses of their taste profiles resulted in a grouping of these 18 stimuli within a taste space bounded by NaCl, sucrose, citric acid, and QHCl, with the organic salts positioned between NaCl and citric acid. The organic Na+ salts and the Li+ salts were considerably less salty and proportionately more sour than NaCl. These results, combined with previous work showing that amiloride suppresses the sourness of NaCl and Na-gluconate, predict that the organic Na+ salts and the Li+ salts would be more greatly suppressed by amiloride treatment than would NaCl.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Do chemosensory changes influence food intake in the elderly?

Food intake declines with age, and elderly individuals frequently report a decrease in appetite. Changes in chemosensory systems may partially explain this low intake. However, few data have directly linked changes in gustatory or olfactory function to food choice or intake. In two studies, taste perception and preference were unrelated to sodium chloride or sugar intakes. Olfaction may be more affected by age than taste. Olfactory dysfunction is associated with decreased enjoyment of food, and adding odors to foods can increase intake in some elderly individuals. The consumption of a varied diet depends in part on sensory-specific satiety (a decrease in the pleasantness of a food as it is consumed). Sensory-specific satiety diminishes with age, and this could be part of the explanation of why some elderly individuals have little variety in their diets. However, the impact of chemosensory deficits on nutritional status depends on a number of social and environmental factors. For example, despite their age, financially secure, free-living healthy older men and women consumed more varied diets than young adults. Changes in mechanisms regulating food intake can make it difficult for some elderly individuals to maintain energy balance. When chemosensory impairments are combined with changes in food intake regulatory mechanisms, the risk for nutritional deficiencies may be high. If we are to optimize food intake and nutritional status in the elderly, additional basic studies on how changes in chemosensory systems associated with aging affect food selection and intake are required.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Intraoperative identification of regenerated chorda tympani nerve and its relationship to recovered taste function.

This study demonstrated a simple method of repairing the severed chorda tympani nerve and a method of intraoperative identification of regenerated nerves, and evaluated taste function of regenerated nerves. Seven patients who underwent staged tympanoplasty and whose chorda tympani nerve was severed during primary surgery were evaluated. When the chorda tympani nerve was severed during primary surgery, proximal and distal stumps were anastomosed or approximated almost in the original position and fixed with fibrin glue on the temporal muscle fascia used to reconstruct the eardrum by the underlay method. During primary surgery, end-to-end anastomosis was possible in 3 patients but nerve gap defects remained in the other 4 patients. In all 7 patients, regenerated nerves were identified during secondary surgery not in the tympanic cavity but in the submucosal layer of the previously reconstructed eardrum. In all patients, complete or incomplete recovery of taste perception was observed by both the filter paper disk method and electrogustometry, suggesting that the regenerated nerves had actual taste function. From these results, it was concluded that the severed chorda tympani nerve could regenerate in the reconstructed eardrum even if nerve gap defects remained between the proximal and distal cut ends, when repair or approximation of the nerve was properly completed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Hyperresponsiveness to palatable and aversive taste stimuli in genetically obese (bombesin receptor subtype-3-deficient) mice.

Taste preference in obese mice was examined using genetically obese (bombesin receptor subtype-3: BRS-3 deficient) animals. Preference for either sodium saccharin (0.2%). sodium chloride (0.9%), citric acid (0.1%), or quinine sulfate (0.002%) solution was examined using a two-bottle test situation, and BRS-3 deficient mice not only showed a stronger preference for saccharin solution, but also a stronger aversive response to quinine solution, relative to wild-type littermates. Furthermore, a conditioned taste-aversion test measured the consumption of sodium saccharin (0.2%) and sodium chloride (0.9%) solutions after intraperitoneal injection of LiCl (0.3 M, 1 mg/kg), and BRS-3-deficient mice exhibited stronger aversion to both solutions than did control animals. In situ hybridization demonstrated that the BRS-3 gene is expressed in the parabrachial nucleus, the medial and central nuclei of the amygdala, and the hypothalamic nuclei such as paraventricular nucleus, all of which are known to be involved in taste perception. These results suggest that expression of the BRS-3 gene in these nuclei is important for the modulation of taste preference, as well as the development of obesity.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1989

Taste evaluation and compliance of two paediatric formulations of phenoxymethylpenicillin in children.

The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the taste of two formulations of phenoxymethylpenicillin suspension in children. The two suspensions, designated Test and Standard, differed only in their flavouring and sweetening agents. The secondary objectives were to study age-related differences in taste perception, to evaluate the acceptability of the suspensions, and to determine patient compliance. In 319 children with acute otitis media a taste description was recorded after a single therapeutic dose. The patient's own spontaneous verbal judgements, directly after the dose intake and also 3-4 minutes later, were recorded. The parents were asked about the child's acceptance of the suspension after finalized treatment. For 214 patients compliance was calculated from the remaining amount of suspension in the returned medication bottles. The study indicated that children aged 6 years or older considered the test formulation to be better-tasting than the standard formulation. The judgements by the parents also indicated that the test suspension was more acceptable. In children below 6 years there was no significant difference between the two suspensions with regard to taste or acceptance. A high patient compliance (greater than or equal to 90%) was obtained in 88% of the patients.

Child↗

PubMed1981

Age and sex effects on taste of sucrose, NaCl, citric acid and caffeine.

A procedure combining forced choice discrimination with intensity scaling served to evaluate taste perception of sucrose, NaCl, citric acid and caffeine in 24 young and 24 geriatric subjects. Each group was divided equally by sex. No overall sex differences occurred for taste discrimination, and suprathreshold taste intensity scaling for sucrose and NaCl did not differ by sex or age. However, young adults generally discriminated lower concentrations of citric acid and caffeine from water blanks than did geriatric subjects. Younger subjects judged suprathreshold concentrations of caffeine significantly more intense, as did young females compared to young males; similarly, young females judged citric acid as stronger than did older males. The present suggest that age and gender are major factors in sour and bitter perception.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

Naloxone modulates gustatory perception, but not insulin and C-peptide release, in sham-fed human subjects.

In order to determine the role of the endogenous opiatergic system in modulation of human pancreatic B-cell function and taste perception, we measured the reactivity of gustatory receptors (electrogustometry), insulin and C-peptide serum concentration (radioimmunoassay) in six normal men (aged 24-26 years) during sham feeding and 0.8 mg of naloxone or placebo (saline) administration. We did not observe any differences in insulin and C-peptide concentrations during tease feeding independently of placebo or naloxone infusion. The verge of electric reactivity of gustatory perception significantly decreased in the period of food presentation and saline administration but did not change under naloxone. Our electrogustometry results support the hypothesis pointing out the role of endogenous opiates in modulation of human taste.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

Taste and salivary function.

Human taste perception was remarkably unimpaired in eight individuals with severe, chronic failure of all major and minor salivary gland function. Subjective reports of taste experience and objective measures of suprathreshold sensitivity were within normal limits for the overwhelming majority of these individuals. Impairments of threshold sensitivity for at least one quality was common, but normal thresholds for all four qualities were observed in one individual. These data demonstrated that the functional integrity of the taste system is not dependent upon the presence of normal saliva in the mouth. Thus, the suggestion that a salivary factor is responsible for the maintenance of taste receptor end organs can be rejected and attention directed toward other mechanisms, not dependent on saliva, that might account for the unusual resistance of these cells to environmental insult.

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↗

PubMed1984

Isolation of taste buds from the foliate papillae of the rabbit.

A method to isolate taste buds from the foliate papillae of the rabbit tongue is described. The method comprises (a) separation of the epidermis from the dermal layer after treatment with dilute acetic acid, and (b) mechanical removal of the taste buds from the epithelium with the use of a surgical needle. The procedure yields taste buds that are morphologically well preserved, and in quantities sufficient to enable a detailed biochemical characterization. Preliminary tests have shown the taste buds to have biochemical properties clearly distinct from those of the adjacent epithelium. The method may provide a basis for studying the molecular mechanism of taste perception in greater detail.

Acetates↗

PubMed1995

Distribution of vasoactive intestinal peptide-like immunoreactivity in the taste organs of teleost fish and frog.

Using immunohistochemistry, vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) was visualized in taste bud cells of the carp, Cyprinus carpio, and the European catfish, Silurus glanis, by means of light and electron microscopy. Intracellular membrane systems, presumably smooth endoplasmic reticulum, of light (sensory) cells, but not of dark (supporting) cells and basal cells, were densely labelled with antibody. In the frog (four species: Rana temporaria, R. ridibunda, R. arvalis, R. pipiens), taste bud cells did not label. However, the dense basal nerve fibre plexus, some subepithelial ganglionic cells, but no ascending intragemmal fibres, were immunoreactive. In fish, the results support evidence that VIP is involved in the modulation of taste transduction at the level of receptor cells. In the frog, an indirect, possibly vasodilatatory effect on taste perception may be considered.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Ultrastructure and immunocytochemistry of gustatory cells in man.

Ultrastructural and immunocytochemical features of the taste buds of the vallate, foliate and fungiform papillae in young, adult and elderly men, revealed three types of sensorial cells: dark type I cells rich in free ribosomes and large dense granules, light type II cells with large amorphous areas of cytoplasmic matrix and light type III cells with a dense core immunoreactive for 5-HT. All sensorial cells send microvillous protrusions of the apical cytoplasm into the gustative canal and make contact with nerve endings. After comparative studies, we made several hypothetical propositions on the functional value of microvillous protrusions, as well as on the apical and basal dense core vesicles of the foliate and vallate papillae. Moreover, we think that sensorial cells are implicated in taste transduction and that subject age does not seem to play any role in taste perception.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Altered food preference after cortical infarction: Korean style.

BACKGROUND: Altered food preference or preoccupation with certain food after stroke has been rarely described in the literature. METHODS: We report four Korean patients who developed altered food preference secondary to unilateral cortical infarction. RESULTS: Two patients showed preoccupation with meat such as Pulgogi or Kalbi (roast beef flavored with ingredients), which had not been their preference prior to the occurrence of stroke. All the patients became intolerant to the smell and taste of mackerel, and two disfavored hot Kimchi (cabbage salted with hot pepper). Quantitative taste assessment done in the patients revealed decreased taste perception in a variable pattern along with dysgeusia. Imaging studies showed that the region commonly involved was the frontal opercular area corresponding to the taste cortex. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that strokes involving the taste cortex may produce altered food preference associated with decreased taste sensation.

Aged↗

PubMed2000

T2Rs function as bitter taste receptors.

Bitter taste perception provides animals with critical protection against ingestion of poisonous compounds. In the accompanying paper, we report the characterization of a large family of putative mammalian taste receptors (T2Rs). Here we use a heterologous expression system to show that specific T2Rs function as bitter taste receptors. A mouse T2R (mT2R-5) responds to the bitter tastant cycloheximide, and a human and a mouse receptor (hT2R-4 and mT2R-8) responded to denatonium and 6-n-propyl-2-thiouracil. Mice strains deficient in their ability to detect cycloheximide have amino acid substitutions in the mT2R-5 gene; these changes render the receptor significantly less responsive to cycloheximide. We also expressed mT2R-5 in insect cells and demonstrate specific tastant-dependent activation of gustducin, a G protein implicated in bitter signaling. Since a single taste receptor cell expresses a large repertoire of T2Rs, these findings provide a plausible explanation for the uniform bitter taste that is evoked by many structurally unrelated toxic compounds.

Afferent Pathways↗

PubMed1996

Vallate, foliate and fungiform human papillae gustatory cells. An immunocytochemical and ultrastructural study.

We studied the classifications, topographic distribution and cellular lines of taste bud components in vallate, foliate and fungiform papillae of young, mature and old men with light microscopy, SEM, and TEM. By identifying ultrastructural and immunocytochemical characteristics, three distinct sensorial cells were identified, along with a few basal cells: dark type I cells, light type II cells and light type III cells. These cells extend from the epithelial basal lamina to the gustatory canal, where their apical cytoplasm sends long microvillous expansions. Excluding those of the fungiform papillae-which never go beyond the lower third of the gustatory canal, and are always void of dense substance-the microvillous expansions continue to the external border of the taste pore. Dark type I cells are rich in free ribosomes, tubular RER and large dense granules. Light type II cells with scarce ribosomes and RER, do not have enough peculiar ultrastructural characteristics to be considered effector or phagocyte elements. Light type III cells are characterizes by dense core vesicles whose peculiar ultrastructural characteristics in the foliate and vallate papillae, should be considered a consequence of different functional phases. After comparative evaluation the authors hypothesized on the functional value of some ultrastructural aspects and on the dense core vesicles which are immunoreactive to 5-HT. They observed that all gustatory cells are involved in taste transduction based on behaviours caused by microvilli in the gustatory canal and gustatory cell relationships with nerve endings. Moreover the authors noted that age does not seem to influence taste perception.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Confusing tastes and smells: how odours can influence the perception of sweet and sour tastes.

This study investigated the relationship between perception of an odour when smelled and the taste of a solution to which the odour is added as a flavorant. In Experiment 1 (E1) sweetness, sourness, liking and intensity ratings were obtained for 20 odours. Taste ratings were then obtained for sucrose solutions to which the odours had been added as flavorants. Certain odours were found to enhance tasted sweetness while others suppressed it. The degree to which an odour smelled sweet was the best predictor of the taste ratings. These findings were extended in Experiment 2 (E2), which included a second tastant, citric acid, and employed four odours from E1. The most sweet smelling odour, caramel, was found to suppress the sourness of citric acid and, as in E1, to enhance the sweetness of sucrose. Again, odours with low sweetness suppressed the sweetness of tasted sucrose. The study demonstrated that the effects of odours on taste perception are not limited to sweetness enhancement and apply to sour as well as sweet tastes. The overall pattern of results is consistent with an explanation of the taste properties of odours in terms of prior flavour-taste associations.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Analysis and comparison of partial sequences of clones from a taste-bud-enriched cDNA library.

Differential patterns of cellular development and function are determined, at least in part, by the specific gene expression of particular cells. Thus, determination of differential patterns of gene expression between tissues is likely to help elucidate molecular details of tissue-specific processes. Our hypothesis was that cells of the circumvallate papilla involved in taste perception would express genes that are not expressed in the surrounding epithelium and that determination of the nature of these genes could be helpful in our understanding of the molecular details of taste. Using partial sequencing of clones derived from rat circumvallate papillae, we have begun to characterize genes that could be important in taste. We prepared a cDNA library of whole circumvallate papillae and, by means of a novel subtraction procedure, enriched taste-specific clones. Characterization of the libraries showed that subtraction resulted in good enrichment of taste-specific clones. Here we report the partial sequencing and analysis of 410 cDNA clones from the taste-bud-enriched cDNA library. Approximately 25% of the genes were identified on the basis of their high homology to known transcripts. These included the developmentally important molecules Pax-1, esp1, Notch 1, and Notch 3 that may play roles in the continuous turnover of taste receptor cells. A further 20% of the genes had no significant homology to known DNA sequences and were identified as taste-specific by Southern blot analysis.

Animals↗

PubMed1992

Early developmental change in bitter taste responses in human infants.

Human newborns (birth-6 days) and older infants (14-180 days) were allowed to ingest both urea (0.12-0.24 M) in a mildly sweet diluent and the diluent alone, and multiple measures of responsivity were obtained (relative intake, sucking behavior, and hedonic ratings based on facial expressions and body movements). For newborns, there was no indication of rejection of urea relative to the diluent in measures of intake or sucking behavior; rather, their responses were predominantly controlled by the order of presentation of the two tastes. In contrast, older infants tended to reject all concentrations of urea according to these measures. Hedonic ratings provided an indication of limited rejection of the bitter taste by newborns, but older infants were still found to respond more consistently. These data suggest there is an early developmental change in bitter taste perception.

Facial Expression↗