Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Taste Buds and Receptors01:20

Taste Buds and Receptors

2.7K
Gustation, or the sense of taste, is intrinsically linked to the anatomical structures located on the tongue. This organ's surface, along with the entirety of the oral cavity, is adorned with stratified squamous epithelium. Evident on the tongue are elevated structures known as papillae (singular = papilla), which house the mechanisms for the transduction of gustatory stimuli. Four distinct types of papillae exist, each identified by their unique morphological attributes: the circumvallate,...
2.7K
The Physiology of Taste01:24

The Physiology of Taste

4.2K
The perception of a salty flavor is facilitated by sodium ions within the oral salivary fluid. Upon consumption of a salty substance, salt crystals disassemble, leading to the liberation of its constituents—Na+ and Cl- ions. These ions subsequently dissolve into the salivary fluid present in the oral cavity. The external environment of the gustatory cells experiences an elevation in Na+ concentration, thereby establishing a potent concentration gradient. This gradient propels the...
4.2K
Gustation01:43

Gustation

48.8K
Gustation is a chemical sense that, along with olfaction (smell), contributes to our perception of taste. It starts with the activation of receptors by chemical compounds (tastants) dissolved in the saliva. The saliva and filiform papillae on the tongue distribute the tastants and increase their exposure to the taste receptors.
48.8K
The Tongue and Taste Buds00:49

The Tongue and Taste Buds

37.3K
The surface of the tongue is covered with various small bumps called papillae, which either distribute what has been ingested (filiform papillae) or contain the sensory taste (or gustatory) receptor cells (fungiform, circumvallate, and foliate papillae). Embedded within each taste-related papilla are the taste buds—clusters of 30 to 100 gustatory receptor cells.
37.3K
Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway01:20

Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway

9.4K
Humans detect odors with the help of specialized cells located in the upper part of the nasal cavity, called olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs). ORNs possess hair-like structures called cilia, which are receptive to sensations from the inhaled air. When an odorant molecule binds to a specific receptor on the cell of the cilia, it leads to a series of events that ultimately cause the ORN to send electrical signals to the olfactory bulb in the brain through the olfactory nerves.
The olfactory...
9.4K
Conditioned Taste Aversion01:14

Conditioned Taste Aversion

224
Conditioned taste aversion, also known as sauce béarnaise syndrome, is a phenomenon in which an individual develops an aversion to a certain food taste following a negative experience, typically illness. This form of aversion is a type of classical conditioning in which the taste of the food (conditioned stimulus, CS) is associated with the experience of illness (unconditioned stimulus, UCS).
A notable characteristic of conditioned taste aversion is that it often requires only a single...
224

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Validity of Wearable Inertial Sensors for Postural Sway Analysis: A Systematic Review.

Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland)·2026
Same author

Resting-state functional connectivity and cognitive impairment after COVID-19 infection: Evidence from a large-scale fMRI study.

European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists·2026
Same author

Gender Differences in Emotional Burden in Chronic Rhinosinusitis: The Role of Sleep-Related Impairment.

Journal of clinical medicine·2026
Same author

Beyond GLM: Inter-Subject Variability as a Complementary Approach to Detect Longitudinal Changes in Emotion Processing in Multiple Sclerosis.

Journal of imaging·2026
Same author

Mapping cardiac and respiratory pulsations simultaneously with functional connectivity in the rat brain using zero echo time fMRI.

Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism·2026
Same author

Ultra-high-field fMRI study of insular discrimination of taste quality and perceived taste valence.

Chemical senses·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 6, 2025

Taste Exam: A Brief and Validated Test
07:10

Taste Exam: A Brief and Validated Test

Published on: August 17, 2018

16.5K

Sex differences in the taste-evoked functional connectivity network.

Sara Ponticorvo1, Anna Prinster2, Elena Cantone3

  • 1Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, Baronissi, Italy.

Chemical Senses
|June 24, 2022
PubMed
Summary

Men and women show distinct neural responses to sweet and bitter tastes. This study reveals sex differences in the brain

Keywords:
functional connectivitygustatory networksex differencestaste

More Related Videos

Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds
07:40

Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds

Published on: February 11, 2021

3.6K
Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila
04:31

Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila

Published on: September 8, 2016

9.8K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Sep 6, 2025

Taste Exam: A Brief and Validated Test
07:10

Taste Exam: A Brief and Validated Test

Published on: August 17, 2018

16.5K
Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds
07:40

Whole-Mount Staining, Visualization, and Analysis of Fungiform, Circumvallate, and Palate Taste Buds

Published on: February 11, 2021

3.6K
Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila
04:31

Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila

Published on: September 8, 2016

9.8K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory Perception
  • Human Brain Imaging

Background:

  • Neural functional connectivity in the central gustatory pathway is modulated by taste stimulation.
  • Previous research suggests links between gustatory perception and sex, but specific network differences remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate sex-based differences in the functional connectivity of the central gustatory network in response to sweet and bitter tastes.
  • To define the key regions of the gustatory network through meta-analysis and analyze taste-evoked connectivity patterns.

Main Methods:

  • A meta-analysis of 35 functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) taste activation studies identified gustatory network regions.
  • A separate 3 Tesla fMRI study analyzed taste-evoked functional connectivity in 44 subjects (19 women) exposed to varying concentrations of sweet and bitter solutions.
  • Graph-based analysis assessed nodal characteristics like strength and centrality within the network.

Main Results:

  • Men exhibited higher functional connectivity than women between the right middle insula and bilateral thalami for bitter taste.
  • Men showed greater connectivity than women between the bilateral thalamus and insula for low bitter and middle-high sweet concentrations.
  • Graph analysis confirmed these sex differences in network strength and centrality.

Conclusions:

  • The study highlights significant sex differences in the functional connectivity of the gustatory network during the perception of sweet and bitter tastes.
  • Findings provide new insights into the neural mechanisms underlying taste processing and sex-related variations in gustatory perception.
  • Results may inform future research on the neurobiological basis of taste disorders and individual differences.