Electrophysiological Studies of Thermal and Taste Reception in Chickens and Pigeons.

Abstract

Electrophysiological studies of thermal and taste reception in chickens and pigeons. Acta physiol. scand. 1959. 46. 133-151. -The impulse traffic in thermal and taste nerve fibres from the tongue of chickens and pigeons were analyzed while applying adequate stimuli to the tongue. Receptors were found in the tongue and pharynx which respond, in general, like those found in mammals. The thermal and taste receptors discharge through two peripheral branches of the 9th nerve only. In the chicken positive responses from the nerves followed the application of distilled water, salt, glycerine, ethylene glycol, quinine and acetic acid t o the tongue but not of sucrose and saccharine. The taste responses in the pigeon's nerves were similar with the exception that no responses were observed to quinine and that 50 per cent of the pigeons responded positively to saccharine although sucrose was ineffective. In both species large number of "cold fibres" were observed while warming the tongue gave no response iintil the temperature was

Taste and its importance to the domestic chicken

“…It may be post-ingestional in origin. This agrees with the neurophysiological results of Kitchell et al (1959) who were unable to draw firm conclusions from recordings of lingual-nerve signals when they used sucrose as the stimulus. The slight preference for citric acid is present only in intact birds and appears to be an oral taste preference.…”

“…Sham-operated control birds were treated in exactly the same way save that the lingual nerves were not cut. The lingual nerves have been shown by Kitchell, Strom and Zotterman (1959) to conduct the gustatory signals. Lindenmaier and Kare (1959) demonstrated that taste buds were present only in the posterior region of the tongue and it has been shown (Gentle, 1971) that following denervation the taste buds undergo degeneration similar to that seen in the mammal.…”

Avian Adjustments to Cold

“…The thermosensory functions of these areas have been demonstrated by neural recording and by appropriate thermoregulatory responses to local heating and cooling. Neural recording has revealed warm-and cold-sensitive neurons with similar characteristics to thermoreceptors in mammals (Kitchell et al 1959;Leitner and Roumy 1974;Necker 1972Necker , 1973. Certain of these receptors, e.g., those on the brood patch and the beak, appear to mediate behavioral and physiological responses for maintenance of egg and nest temperatures rather than T b (Rautenberg 1986).…”

Sensory involvement in the control of food intake in poultry

“…Cold receptors have been identified in the mouth and they respond to cooling of the surface of the beak and oral epithelium (Kitchell et al 1959;Gregory, 1973;Necker, 1973;Leitner & Roumy, 19743 Food intake, and its control by farm animals 317 increase in temperature, have been found in the pigeon (Necker, 1972(Necker, , 1973Necker & Reiner, 1980) but not in the chicken (Kitchell et al 1959). …”

“…It was originally thought that taste information was relayed to the brain entirely along branches of the glossopharyngeal nerve (Kitchell et al 1959) but recent work has shown that the chorda tympani branch of the facial nerve has an important role in taste perception (Gentle, 1983). The chorda tympani relays taste information from those taste buds in the anterior mandibular area.…”