L-Glutamic acid (L-GA), a seaweed ingredient, identified in 1908 by Japanese scientists responsible for enhancing flavor for food is now best known scientifically as monosodium glutamate (MSG). The sodium salt of glutamic acid (GA) is called as MSG. The other names include – S-(+)-GA, L-GA, 2aminoglutaric acid, and an anionic form of MSG at physiological pH known as glutamate. MSG, a derivative...

Archana Kumari,* Alexandre N. Ermilov,* Benjamin L. Allen,* Robert M. Bradley,* Andrzej A. Dlugosz,* and Charlotte M. Mistretta* Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences, School of Dentistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Department of Dermatology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, Medical School,...

Vismodegib, a highly selective inhibitor of hedgehog (Hh) pathway, is an approved treatment for basal-cell carcinoma. Patients on treatment with vismodegib often report profound alterations in taste sensation. The cellular mechanisms underlying the alterations have not been studied. Sonic Hh (Shh) signaling is required for cell growth and differentiation. In taste buds, Shh is exclusively expre...

Investigating molecular mechanisms underlying human taste sensation requires functionally dedicated and at the same time proliferating human taste cells. Here, we isolated viable human fungiform taste papillae cells from biopsy samples, adenovirally transduced proliferation promoting genes, and obtained stably proliferating cell lines. Analysis of gene expression of 1 human taste cell line term...

Despite distinct peripheral and central pathways, stimulation of both the olfactory and the gustatory systems may give rise to the sensation of sweetness. Whether there is a common central mechanism producing sweet quality sensations or two discrete mechanisms associated independently with gustatory and olfactory stimuli is currently unknown. Here we used fMRI to determine whether odor sweetnes...

If for no other reason than the fact that eating and drinking gives us pleasure, it is of interest to understand the physiology of gustation. In this issue, Lyall et al. (2002a) have uncovered the key cellular mechanisms that occur in taste receptor cells (TRCs) when certain mixtures of chemicals (tastants) are applied to the anterior tongue. In much the same way as music produced by a quartet ...

Previous reports that the sensitivity to the bitter tasting substance 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) is related to the sensitivity to other tastes, to chemical irritants, and to fats and oils have led to adoption of PROP as a measure of general oral sensitivity and as a predictor of dietary habits that could impact health. The results, however, have not been consistent. It was recently discovered ...