Gene discovery and the genetic basis of calcium consumption

Tordoff, Michael G.

doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2008.04.004

Cited by 15 publications

(20 citation statements)

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“…'New' taste qualities and the chemical sense Besides bitter, sweet, umami, sour, and salty, several new taste qualities have been identified, such as the taste of minerals, which may arise from the TRPV1 (transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1) receptor [79,80] or the taste of calcium, arising from a heterodimer of T1R3 and the calcium-sensing receptor [81]. Humans also perceive chemicals such as menthol (cool) or capsaicin (chili hot).…”

Section: Differences In Umami Sour and Salty Taste Detectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Newcomb

Xia

Reed

2012

Flavour

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The combined senses of taste, smell and the common chemical sense merge to form what we call 'flavor.' People show marked differences in their ability to detect many flavors, and in this paper, we review the role of genetics underlying these differences in perception. Most of the genes identified to date encode receptors responsible for detecting tastes or odorants. We list these genes and describe their characteristics, beginning with the best-studied case, that of differences in phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) detection, encoded by variants of the bitter taste receptor gene TAS2R38. We then outline examples of genes involved in differences in sweet and umami taste, and discuss what is known about other taste qualities, including sour and salty, fat (termed pinguis), calcium, and the 'burn' of peppers. Although the repertoire of receptors involved in taste perception is relatively small, with 25 bitter and only a few sweet and umami receptors, the number of odorant receptors is much larger, with about 400 functional receptors and another 600 potential odorant receptors predicted to be non-functional. Despite this, to date, there are only a few cases of odorant receptor variants that encode differences in the perception of odors: receptors for androstenone (musky), isovaleric acid (cheesy), cis-3-hexen-1-ol (grassy), and the urinary metabolites of asparagus. A genome-wide study also implicates genes other than olfactory receptors for some individual differences in perception. Although there are only a small number of examples reported to date, there may be many more genetic variants in odor and taste genes yet to be discovered.Keywords: Flavor, Genetics, Evolution, Taste, Odor, Receptor, Polymorphism Review Why we differ in taste perceptionHumans use several kinds of information to decide what to eat, and the combination of experience and sensory evaluation helps us to choose whether to consume a particular food. If the sight, smell, and taste of the food are acceptable, and we see others enjoying it, we finish chewing and swallow it. Several senses combine to create the idea of food flavor in the brain. For example, a raw chili pepper has a crisp texture, an odor, a bitter and sour taste, and a chemesthetic 'burn.' Each of these sensory modalities is associated with a particular group of receptors: at least three subtypes of somatosensory receptors (touch, pain, and temperature), human odor receptors, which respond either singly or in combination; [1,2], at least five types of taste receptors (bitter, sour, sweet, salty, and umami (the savory experience associated with monosodium glutamate [3])), and several families of other receptors tuned to the irritating chemicals in foods, especially of herbs and spices (for example, eugenol found in cloves [4] or allicin found in garlic [5]). The information from all these receptors are transmitted to the brain, where it is processed and integrated [6]. Experience is a potent modifier of chemosensory perception, and persistent exposure to an odorant is enough to change...

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Section: Differences In Umami Sour and Salty Taste Detectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Newcomb

Xia

Reed

2012

Flavour

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“…Are vegetables avoided because of the calcium they contain? Animal studies suggest calcium is detected by specific calcium gustatory receptors (Tordoff, 2001; Tordoff, 2008; Tordoff, Reed, & Shao, 2008; Tordoff, Shao et al, 2008) and, consistent with this, humans using semantic differential or similarity ratings describe the taste of calcium solutions as falling outside the sweet-salty-sour-bitter basic taste tetrahedron (Henning, 1916; Lim & Lawless, 2005; Schiffman & Erickson, 1971). Subjects asked to attribute taste components to calcium salts rate them as having minor metallic, umami, astringent, spicy and sweet components, a moderate sour component, and a predominant bitter component (Lawless, Rapacki, Horne, & Hayes, 2003; Tordoff, 1996; Yang & Lawless, 2005).…”

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confidence: 72%

“…The genetic model involved PWK/PhJ mice which, in a screen of 40 inbred strains, had the highest preferences for various concentrations of calcium chloride and calcium lactate solutions (Tordoff et al, 2007). Recent work suggests that the PWK/PhJ strain’s avidity for calcium is due to mutations in two taste receptors, T1R3 (Tordoff, Reed et al, 2008; Tordoff, Shao et al, 2008) and CaSR (Tordoff, 2008; Tordoff, Reed et al, 2008). The PWK/PhJ strain’s appetite for calcium generalizes to magnesium but not exemplars of the basic tastes (Tordoff, Shao et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the first, we compared mice of the C57BL/6J and PWK/PhJ strains. The PWK/PhJ strain has a genetic predisposition to consume calcium that is probably due to mutations in taste receptor genes [(Tordoff, 2008; Tordoff, Reed et al, 2008; Tordoff, Shao et al, 2008); discussed below] and the C57BL/6J strain is a convenient “control” strain that has low calcium preferences (Tordoff et al, 2007). In the second experiment, we compared nutritionally-replete Sprague Dawley rats with those fed a low-calcium diet for 3 wk.…”

Section: Vegetable Choice By Animals Predisposed To Consume Calciummentioning

confidence: 99%

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Vegetable bitterness is related to calcium content

Tordoff

Sandell

2009

Appetite

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In the U.S. and Europe, most people do not consume the recommended amounts of either calcium or vegetables. We investigated whether there might be a connection; specifically, whether the taste of calcium in vegetables contributes to their bitterness and thus acceptability. We found a strong correlation between the calcium content of 24 vegetables, based on USDA Nutrient Database values, and bitterness, based on the average ratings of 35 people (r = 0.93). Correlations between the content of other nutrients and bitterness were lower and most were not statistically significant. To assess whether it is feasible that humans can detect calcium in vegetables we tested two animal models known to display a calcium appetite. Previous work indicates that calcium solutions are preferentially ingested by PWK/PhJ mice relative to C57BL/6J mice, and by rats deprived of dietary calcium relative to replete controls. In choice tests between collard greens, a high-calcium vegetable, and cabbage, a low-calcium vegetable, the calcium-favoring animals had higher preferences for collard greens than did controls. These observations raise the possibility that the taste of calcium contributes to the bitterness and thus acceptability of vegetables.

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“…Recent studies point to the involvement of T1R3 and CaSR as receptors in calcium detection in the oral cavity [6,7]; however, the exact mechanisms remain unknown [8,9]. In addition to a receptor unit, a sensing mechanism requires a neural pathway to provide the signal to the brain.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chorda tympani nerve modulates the rat's avoidance of calcium chloride

Golden

Voznesenskaya

Tordoff

2012

Physiology & Behavior

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Calcium intake depends on orosensory factors, implying the presence of a mechanism for calcium detection in the mouth. To better understand how information about oral calcium is conveyed to the brain, we examined the effects of chorda tympani nerve transection on calcium chloride (CaCl2) taste preferences and thresholds in male Wistar rats. The rats were given bilateral transections of the chorda tympani nerve (CTX) or control surgery. After recovery, they received 48-h two-bottle tests with an ascending concentration series of CaCl2. Whereas control rats avoided CaCl2 at concentrations of 0.1 mM and higher, rats with CTX were indifferent to CaCl2 concentrations up to 10 mM. Rats with CTX had significantly higher preference scores for 0.316 and 3.16 mM CaCl2 than did control rats. The results imply that the chorda tympani nerve is required for the normal avoidance of CaCl2 solution.

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Gene discovery and the genetic basis of calcium consumption

Cited by 15 publications

References 91 publications

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Vegetable bitterness is related to calcium content

Chorda tympani nerve modulates the rat's avoidance of calcium chloride

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