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Updated: Sep 20, 2026

Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds
Published on: February 11, 2021
Expression of metabotropic glutamate receptor group I in rat gustatory papillae
Takashi Toyono1, Yuji Seta, Shinji Kataoka
1Department of Oral Anatomy and Neurobiology, Kyushu Dental College, Kokurakita-ku, 803-8580, Kitakyushu, Japan. toyono@kyu-dent.ac.jp
Abstract:
Taste-metabotropic glutamate receptor 4 (taste-mGluR4) and the heteromers of T1R1 and T1R3 are candidate receptors involved in the sense of umami (monosodium glutamate) taste. Although the expression of group III mGluRs (taste-mGluR4) has been demonstrated in taste tissues, no mention has been made of the expression of group I mGluRs (mGluR1 and mGluR5) in taste tissues. We examined the expression of mGluR1 and mGluR5 in rat gustatory tissues by using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy. RT-PCR assay showed that mGluR1 alpha and mGluR1 beta mRNAs were expressed in circumvallate papillae, but mGluR5 mRNA was not expressed. The positive signals of mGluR1 mRNA were detected only in circumvallate taste buds by in situ hybridization analysis. In cryosections of fungiform, foliate and circumvallate papillae, the antibody against mGluR1 alpha gave intense labeling on the taste hairs in all taste pores examined. In the developing taste buds, the positive signals of mGluR1alpha in taste hairs gradually increased with the increase in number of taste bud cells. These results show that, in addition to taste-mGluR4 and the heteromer of T1R1 and T1R3, mGluR1 alpha may function as a receptor for glutamate (umami) taste sensation.
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