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Updated: May 26, 2026

Assaying Surface Expression of Chemosensory Receptors in Heterologous Cells
Published on: February 23, 2011
Chemesthesis and the chemical senses as components of a "chemofensor complex"
1The John B. Pierce Laboratory, New Haven, CT 06519, USA. green@jbpierce.org
Abstract:
An important function of the chemical senses is to warn against dangerous biological and chemical agents in the environment. The discovery in recent years of "taste" receptor cells outside the oral cavity that appear to have protective functions has raised new questions about the nature and scope of the chemical senses in general and of chemesthesis in particular. The present paper briefly reviews these findings within the context of what is currently known about the body's chemically sensitive protective mechanisms, including nonsensory processes that help to expel or neutralize threatening agents once they have been encountered. It is proposed that this array of defense mechanisms constitutes a "chemofensor complex" in which chemesthesis is the most ubiquitous, functionally diverse, and interactive chemosensory component.
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