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Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds
Published on: February 11, 2021
GPR expression in the rat taste bud relating to fatty acid sensing
Shigenobu Matsumura1, Takafumi Mizushige, Takeshi Yoneda
1Laboratory of Nutrition Chemistry, Division of Food Science and Biotechnology, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Oiwakecho, Kitashirakawa, Japan.
Abstract:
We investigated the expression of G protein-coupled receptor GPR40 and GPR120 in the rat tongue. Using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, we detected a significant expression of GPR120 mRNA in the epithelium of the circumvallate papillae but not in the nonsensory epithelium, while the expression of GPR40 mRNA was undetectable in the sensory papillae. Western blotting analysis of colon and circumvallate papillae for GPR120 showed a protein band with a molecular weight that corresponds to that of GPR120, indicating that this antibody could recognize a native form of GPR120. Immunohistochemistry using anti-GPR120 antibody revealed GPR120 immunoreactivity in the enteroendocrine cells of the colon. Furthermore, some cells in each taste bud were stained positively with more intense labeling in the apical part of the cells. These results suggested that GPR120 is expressed in the taste cells of the circumvallate papillae to sense dietary fat, like the receptor expressed in the enteroendocrine cells.
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