Genetic Tracing Shows Segregation of Taste Neuronal Circuitries for Bitter and Sweet

Sugita, Makoto; Shiba, Yoshiki

doi:10.1126/science.1110787

Cited by 85 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 19 publications

(34 reference statements)

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“…Although reflexes of acceptance and avoidance might not need the presence of the GC (Grill and Norgren, 1978), our results provided the evidence for functional taste differentiation even at the cortical level, although the territories are not strictly distinct. Our results are in agreement with previous electrophysiological studies (Yamamoto et al, 1985(Yamamoto et al, , 1989 and partially consistent with the genetic tracing study (Sugita and Shiba, 2005) because the labeled neurons might belong to the regions that we found activated by one but not by the other taste modality. However, the presence of overlapping regions does not allow us to state that the two modalities have a segregated cortical representation.…”

Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)supporting

confidence: 83%

“…Anatomical and genetic tracing studies also provided evidence of segregated pathways for taste processing from the periphery to the brain in both insects and rodents (Wang et al, 2004;Sugita and Shiba, 2005), confirming that basic organizing principles of sensory processing are conserved among different species. In Drosophila, axon labeling experiments showed that projections from peripheral taste neurons to the brain are segregated by organ and therefore by position of the taste stimulus.…”

Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)mentioning

confidence: 84%

“…The "across-fiber" theory says that different tastants are represented by different activity across a neuronal population. Focusing on the GC level, consistent with the labeled-line model, a recent genetic tracing approach showed partially segregated neuronal circuitries for bitter and sweet along the entire gustatory pathway (Sugita and Shiba, 2005). Using extracellular recordings from anesthetized rats, a chemotopic organization of the primary GC was proposed (Yamamoto et al, 1985).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…An imaging study demonstrated the functional segregation of bitter and sweet qualities at the first relay of the fly brain (Marella et al, 2006). In rodents, a genetic approach (Sugita and Shiba, 2005) suggested a segregation of bitter and sweet and umami projections up to the cortical level. In humans, imaging by functional magnetic resonance the insular cortex, where the primary GC is located (Small et al, 2003), indicated a certain degree of spatial organization.…”

Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Differential Spatial Representation of Taste Modalities in the Rat Gustatory Cortex

Accolla¹,

Bathellier²,

Petersen³

et al. 2007

J. Neurosci.

178

175

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Discrimination between foods is crucial for the nutrition and survival of animals. Remarkable progress has been made through molecular and genetic manipulations in the understanding of the coding of taste at the receptor level. However, much less is known about the cortical processing of taste sensation and the organizing principles of the gustatory cortex (GC). Using genetic tracing, it has recently been shown that sweet and bitter taste are processed through segregated neuronal circuitries along the gustatory pathway up to the cortical level. This is in disagreement with the evidence that GC neurons recorded in both anesthetized and behaving animals responded to multiple taste modalities (including sweet and bitter). To investigate the functional architecture of the GC in regard to taste modalities, we used in vivo intrinsic optical imaging, a technique that has been successfully applied to explore the organization of other neocortical regions. We found that four of the primary taste modalities (sweet, bitter, salty, and sour) are represented by distinctive spatial patterns but that no region was specific to a single modality. In addition, we found that two tastants of similar hedonic value (pleasant or unpleasant) activated areas with more common regions than two tastants with opposite hedonic value. In summary, we propose that these specific cortical patterns can be used to discriminate among various tastants.

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Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)supporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)mentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Evidences For Segregation (Or Labeled-line)mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Differential Spatial Representation of Taste Modalities in the Rat Gustatory Cortex

Accolla¹,

Bathellier²,

Petersen³

et al. 2007

J. Neurosci.

178

175

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…How taste qualities map to these areas is not understood, but a recent study suggests that intermediate brain locations do maintain quality-dependent geography. For instance, most sweet-activated neurons map to the rostral fields of these regions [15].…”

Section: Taste Biologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Diverse tastes: Genetics of sweet and bitter perception

Reed

Tanaka

McDaniel

2006

Physiology & Behavior

160

129

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Humans will eat almost anything, from caribou livers to rutabagas, but there are some types of foods, and their associated taste qualities, that are preferred by large groups of people regardless of culture or experience. When many choices are available, humans chose foods that taste good, that is, create pleasing sensations in the mouth. The concept of good taste for most people encompasses both flavor and texture of food, and these sensations merge with taste proper to form the concept of goodness. Although we acknowledge the universality of the goodness (sweet) or badness (bitter) of basic taste qualities, we also find that people differ, sometimes extremely so, in their ability to perceive and enjoy these qualities and, by extension, food and drink. The reasons for these differences among people are not clear but are probably due to a combination of experience beginning at an early age, perhaps in utero; learning, for example, as with conditioned taste aversions; sex and maturity; and perceptual differences that arise from genetic variation. In this review, we focus on individual variations that arise from genetic differences and review two domains of science: recent developments in the molecular biology of taste transduction, with a focus on the genes involved and second, studies that examine biological relatives to determine the heritability of taste perception. Because the receptors for sweet, savory (umami), and bitter have recently been discovered, we summarize what is known about their function by reviewing the effect of naturally occurring and man-made alleles of these receptors, their shape and function based on receptor modeling techniques, and how they differ across animal species that vary in their ability to taste certain qualities. We discuss this literature in the context of how taste genes may differ among people and give rise to individuated taste experience, and what is currently known about the genetic effects on taste perception in humans.

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Neural architecture of the primary gustatory center of Drosophila melanogaster visualized with GAL4 and LexA enhancer‐trap systems

Miyazaki¹,

Ito²

2010

J of Comparative Neurology

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Gustatory information is essential for animals to select edible foods and avoid poisons. Whereas mammals detect tastants with their taste receptor cells, which convey gustatory signals to the brain indirectly via the taste sensory neurons, insect gustatory receptor neurons (GRNs) send their axons directly to the primary gustatory center in the suboesophageal ganglion (SOG). In spite of this relatively simple architecture, the precise structure of the insect primary gustatory center has not been revealed in enough detail. To obtain comprehensive anatomical knowledge about this brain area, we screened the Drosophila melanogaster GAL4 enhancer-trap strains that visualize specific subsets of the gustatory neurons as well as putative mechanosensory neurons associated with the taste pegs. Terminals of these neurons form three branches in the SOG. To map the positions of their arborization areas precisely, we screened newly established LexA::VP16 enhancer-trap strains and obtained a driver line that labels a large subset of peripheral sensory neurons. By double-labeling specific and landmark neurons with GAL4 and LexA strains, we were able to distinguish 11 zones in the primary gustatory center, among which 5 zones were identified newly in this study. Arborization areas of various known GRNs on the labellum, oesophagus, and legs were also mapped in this framework. The putative mechanosensory neurons terminate exclusively in three zones of these areas, supporting the notion of segregated primary centers that are specialized for chemosensory and mechanosensory signals associated with gustatory sensation.

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Genetic Tracing Shows Segregation of Taste Neuronal Circuitries for Bitter and Sweet

Cited by 85 publications

References 19 publications

Differential Spatial Representation of Taste Modalities in the Rat Gustatory Cortex

Differential Spatial Representation of Taste Modalities in the Rat Gustatory Cortex

Diverse tastes: Genetics of sweet and bitter perception

Neural architecture of the primary gustatory center of Drosophila melanogaster visualized with GAL4 and LexA enhancer‐trap systems

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