Learned taste aversions induced by high doses of monosodium L-glutamate

Learned taste aversions, as measured by increased time to complete 100 licks of a sweetened condensed milk solution, were demonstrated by laboratory rats 4 days after consumption of the milk solution paired with high oral doses of monosodium 1-glutamate (MSG). The hesitancy of the rats to consume milk on the test session cannot be simply attributed to direct action of the drug on motivation (e.g., hunger) or to drug debilitation. MSG has been reported to occasionally cause aversive effects in humans (Chinese restaurant syndrome), and the present experiments demonstrate that the effects of MSG are aversive to laboratory rats as well.