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Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Real-time Analysis of Gut-brain Neural Communication: Cortex wide Calcium Dynamics in Response to Intestinal Glucose Stimulation
Published on: December 29, 2023
Sensing of glucose in the gastrointestinal tract
1Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Davis, CA 95616, USA. heraybould@ucdavis.edu
Abstract:
In general, nutrient sensing mechanisms in the intestine are not well understood. Potential sensors include the terminals of extrinsic afferent nerves, enteric nerves, endocrine cells and other epithelial cells including enterocytes and immune cells. This short review will concentrate on the neural pathways that are activated by the presence of glucose in the intestinal lumen and the role of a specialized endocrine cell, the enterochromaffin cell in glucose-sensing and the subsequent activation of extrinsic neural pathways.
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