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Published on: June 29, 2017
Prolonged insula activation during perception of aftertaste
George Andrew James1, Xuebing Li, Grant E DuBois
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Biomedical Imaging Technology Center, Emory University/Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. ajames@bme.emory.edu
Neuroreport
|May 16, 2009
Summary
Neuroimaging reveals the insula
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Sensory Perception
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Aftertaste perception is crucial for taste, but its neural underpinnings are unclear.
- Understanding aftertaste neural mechanisms requires advanced neuroimaging techniques.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural basis of aftertaste perception using functional neuroimaging.
- To compare the temporal dynamics of brain responses to sucrose and aspartame.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used in eight healthy volunteers.
- Participants tasted sucrose and aspartame solutions via an MRI-compatible delivery system.
Main Results:
- The insula demonstrated significantly prolonged activation in response to aspartame compared to sucrose.
- Other brain regions, including the somatosensory cortex and amygdala, did not show differential prolonged activation.
Conclusions:
- The insula plays a key role in the neural processing of aftertaste perception.
- Differential temporal activation patterns in the insula distinguish between sweeteners with varying temporal profiles.
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