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Sung H, Vesela I, Driks H, Ferrario CR, Mistretta CM, Bradley RM, Dus M. High-sucrose diet exposure is associated with selective and reversible alterations in the rat peripheral taste system. Curr Biol 2022; 32:4103-4113.e4. [PMID: 35977546 PMCID: PMC9561051 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.07.063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Revised: 07/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Elevated sugar consumption is associated with an increased risk for metabolic diseases. Whereas evidence from humans, rodents, and insects suggests that dietary sucrose modifies sweet taste sensation, understanding of peripheral nerve or taste bud alterations is sparse. To address this, male rats were given access to 30% liquid sucrose for 4 weeks (sucrose rats). Neurophysiological responses of the chorda tympani (CT) nerve to lingual stimulation with sugars, other taste qualities, touch, and cold were then compared with controls (access to water only). Morphological and immunohistochemical analyses of fungiform papillae and taste buds were also conducted. Sucrose rats had substantially decreased CT responses to 0.15-2.0 M sucrose compared with controls. In contrast, effects were not observed for glucose, fructose, maltose, Na saccharin, NaCl, organic acid, or umami, touch, or cold stimuli. Whereas taste bud number, size, and innervation volume were unaffected, the number of PLCβ2+ taste bud cells in the fungiform papilla was reduced in sucrose rats. Notably, the replacement of sucrose with water resulted in a complete recovery of all phenotypes over 4 weeks. The work reveals the selective and modality-specific effects of sucrose consumption on peripheral taste nerve responses and taste bud cells, with implications for nutrition and metabolic disease risk. VIDEO ABSTRACT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hayeon Sung
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, The College of Literature, Arts, and Science, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Iva Vesela
- Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences & Prosthodontics, School of Dentistry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Hannah Driks
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, The College of Literature, Arts, and Science, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Carrie R Ferrario
- Department of Pharmacology, The University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Psychology (Biopsychology), College of Literature, Arts, and Science, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Charlotte M Mistretta
- Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences & Prosthodontics, School of Dentistry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Robert M Bradley
- Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences & Prosthodontics, School of Dentistry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, The University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
| | - Monica Dus
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, The College of Literature, Arts, and Science, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
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May CE, Dus M. Confection Confusion: Interplay Between Diet, Taste, and Nutrition. Trends Endocrinol Metab 2021; 32:95-105. [PMID: 33384209 PMCID: PMC8021035 DOI: 10.1016/j.tem.2020.11.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2020] [Revised: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Although genetics shapes our sense of taste to prefer some foods over others, taste sensation is plastic and changes with age, disease state, and nutrition. We have known for decades that diet composition can influence the way we perceive foods, but many questions remain unanswered, particularly regarding the effects of chemosensory plasticity on feeding behavior. Here, we review recent evidence on the effects of high-nutrient diets, especially high dietary sugar, on sweet taste in vinegar flies, rodents, and humans, and discuss open questions about molecular and neural mechanisms and research priorities. We also consider ways in which diet-dependent chemosensory plasticity may influence food intake and play a role in the etiology of obesity and metabolic disease. Understanding the interplay between nutrition, taste sensation, and feeding will help us define the role of the food environment in mediating chronic disease and design better public health strategies to combat it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina E May
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Monica Dus
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
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McCluskey LP, He L, Dong G, Harris R. Chronic exposure to liquid sucrose and dry sucrose diet have differential effects on peripheral taste responses in female rats. Appetite 2019; 145:104499. [PMID: 31669578 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2019.104499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2019] [Revised: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 10/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Sugar-sweetened beverages are the major source of added calories in the Western diet and their prevalence is associated with obesity and metabolic disruption. Despite the critical role of the taste system in determining food selection and consumption, the effects of chronic sucrose consumption on the peripheral taste system in mammals have received limited attention. We offered female Sprague Dawley rats free access to water and one of three diets for up to 40 days: (1) sucrose-free chow or "NS" diet; (2) a high-sucrose dry diet or "HS"; or (3) 30% sucrose solution and the NS diet, designated "LiqS" diet. Sucrose consumption by LiqS rats gradually increased and by day 14 was equal to that of HS rats. Food intake decreased in LiqS rats, but their energy intake remained higher than for NS or HS rats. There was no significant difference in weight gain of the groups during the study. Recordings from the chorda tympani nerve (CT), which innervates taste buds on the anterior tongue, revealed decreased responses to 1 M sucrose in both LiqS and HS rats and to acesulfame K and salt tastants in LiqS rats after 40 days on diet. Umami, bitter, and acid response magnitudes were unchanged in both groups. These results demonstrate that chronic sucrose exposure inhibits taste responses to higher concentrations of sweet stimuli. More surprisingly, CT responses to NaCl and 0.5M NaAc were significantly reduced in rats on the LiqS diet. Thus, the physical form of the diet influences taste responsiveness to salt and sweet taste function. These data suggest that taste buds are previously unappreciated targets of chronic sucrose consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lynnette Phillips McCluskey
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, United States.
| | - Lianying He
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, United States; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, United States
| | - Guankuo Dong
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, United States
| | - Ruth Harris
- Department of Physiology, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, United States
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