The purpose of this application is to elucidate the structural and functional bases for development of the gustatory system. The proposed project will use ultrastructural, immunohistochemical, immunocytochemical and electrophysiological approaches to correlate structure with function in developing taste buds of the rat. The rat was selected for this study because the gustatory system develops during the first few weeks after birth. Specific features of developing taste buds will be studied at selected ages, including: formation of the taste pore, types of taste cells present, time of first synapse formation and the types of taste cells involved, specificity of synaptic connections within the taste buds, immunoreactivity to antibodies directed against neuronal, growth- related and other specific proteins. The patch-clamp technique will be used to monitor the first expression and development of specific ion channels, amiloride sensitivity, and responses to chemical stimulation in developing gustatory receptor cells. The results of these studies will help answer fundamental questions regarding the development of gustation in mammals and how the nervous system interacts with taste buds during ontogeny. An understanding of the process of development in the gustatory system will also provide valuable information that may enhance our understanding of the regeneration of taste buds and other portions of the nervous system after physical trauma or disease states.

Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
Budget End
Support Year
10
Fiscal Year
1994
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Colorado Denver
Department
Type
DUNS #
065391526
City
Aurora
State
CO
Country
United States
Zip Code
80045
Finger, Thomas E; Bartel, Dianna L; Shultz, Nicole et al. (2017) 5HTR3A-driven GFP labels immature olfactory sensory neurons. J Comp Neurol 525:1743-1755
Tizzano, Marco; Finger, Thomas E (2013) Chemosensors in the nose: guardians of the airways. Physiology (Bethesda) 28:51-60
Finger, Thomas E (2009) Evolution of gustatory reflex systems in the brainstems of fishes. Integr Zool 4:53-63
Ikenaga, Takanori; Ogura, Tatsuya; Finger, Thomas E (2009) Vagal gustatory reflex circuits for intraoral food sorting behavior in the goldfish: cellular organization and neurotransmitters. J Comp Neurol 516:213-25
Huesa, Gema; Ikenaga, Takanori; Bottger, Barbel et al. (2008) Calcium-fluxing glutamate receptors associated with primary gustatory afferent terminals in goldfish (Carassius auratus). J Comp Neurol 506:694-707
Finger, Thomas E (2008) Sorting food from stones: the vagal taste system in Goldfish, Carassius auratus. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 194:135-43
Yee, Cindy; Bartel, Dianna L; Finger, Thomas E (2005) Effects of glossopharyngeal nerve section on the expression of neurotrophins and their receptors in lingual taste buds of adult mice. J Comp Neurol 490:371-90
Linschoten, Miriam R; Harvey Jr, Lewis O (2004) Detecting malingerers by means of response-sequence analysis. Percept Psychophys 66:1190-201
Hall, Joshua M H; Bell, Melanie L; Finger, Thomas E (2003) Disruption of sonic hedgehog signaling alters growth and patterning of lingual taste papillae. Dev Biol 255:263-77
Finger, Thomas E; Bottger, Barbel; Hansen, Anne et al. (2003) Solitary chemoreceptor cells in the nasal cavity serve as sentinels of respiration. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 100:8981-6

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