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

The Physiology of Taste01:24

The Physiology of Taste

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 diffusion of...
Gustation01:43

Gustation

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.
Taste Buds and Receptors01:20

Taste Buds and Receptors

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,...
G-Protein Gated Ion Channels01:21

G-Protein Gated Ion Channels

GPCRs are primarily responsible for our sense of smell, taste, and vision.  The binding of a sensory stimulus activates GPCR to stimulate effector proteins, many of which are ion channels in the sensory organs. GPCRs modulate the opening and closing of the target ion channels either directly by binding them, or by releasing second messengers that activate these channels. As ions move across the membrane, the membrane potential is altered, which induces an appropriate response.
Sensory organs,...
Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex01:14

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.
Olfaction01:25

Olfaction

The sense of smell is achieved through the activities of the olfactory system. It starts when an airborne odorant enters the nasal cavity and reaches olfactory epithelium (OE). The OE is protected by a thin layer of mucus, which also serves the purpose of dissolving more complex compounds into simpler chemical odorants. The size of the OE and the density of sensory neurons varies among species; in humans, the OE is only about 9-10 cm2.
The olfactory receptors are embedded in the cilia of the...

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by
Same author

Locus Ceruleus Dynamics Are Suppressed during Licking and Enhanced Postlicking Independent of Taste Novelty.

eNeuro·2024
Same author

Natural locus coeruleus dynamics during feeding.

Science advances·2022
Same author

Chemogenetic stimulation of tonic locus coeruleus activity strengthens the default mode network.

Science advances·2022
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Assessing Pupil-linked Changes in Locus Coeruleus-mediated Arousal Elicited by Trigeminal Stimulation
07:26

Assessing Pupil-linked Changes in Locus Coeruleus-mediated Arousal Elicited by Trigeminal Stimulation

Published on: November 26, 2019

Locus coeruleus activation transforms cortical taste representations.

Will Fan, Paula To, Natale R Sciolino

    Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
    |June 12, 2026
    PubMed
    Summary

    Phasic activation of locus coeruleus (LC) neurons reshapes taste representations in the gustatory cortex (GC), enhancing palatability encoding. Tonic LC activation had different effects, showing pattern-dependent neuromodulation.

    More Related Videos

    In Vivo Calcium Imaging of Taste-Induced Neural Responses in Adult Drosophila
    06:30

    In Vivo Calcium Imaging of Taste-Induced Neural Responses in Adult Drosophila

    Published on: March 7, 2025

    In vivo Calcium Imaging of Mouse Geniculate Ganglion Neuron Responses to Taste Stimuli
    07:27

    In vivo Calcium Imaging of Mouse Geniculate Ganglion Neuron Responses to Taste Stimuli

    Published on: February 11, 2021

    Related Experiment Videos

    Last Updated: Jun 13, 2026

    Assessing Pupil-linked Changes in Locus Coeruleus-mediated Arousal Elicited by Trigeminal Stimulation
    07:26

    Assessing Pupil-linked Changes in Locus Coeruleus-mediated Arousal Elicited by Trigeminal Stimulation

    Published on: November 26, 2019

    In Vivo Calcium Imaging of Taste-Induced Neural Responses in Adult Drosophila
    06:30

    In Vivo Calcium Imaging of Taste-Induced Neural Responses in Adult Drosophila

    Published on: March 7, 2025

    In vivo Calcium Imaging of Mouse Geniculate Ganglion Neuron Responses to Taste Stimuli
    07:27

    In vivo Calcium Imaging of Mouse Geniculate Ganglion Neuron Responses to Taste Stimuli

    Published on: February 11, 2021

    Area of Science:

    • Neuroscience
    • Sensory Processing
    • Neuromodulation

    Background:

    • Norepinephrine neurons in the locus coeruleus (LC) influence brain-wide sensory processing.
    • The primary gustatory cortex (GC) is crucial for taste perception and linking sensory input to affective value.
    • How LC activity reorganizes population representations of sensory attributes is not well understood.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate how phasic and tonic LC activation modulate the encoding of taste attributes (palatability, mixture ratio, intensity) in the GC.
    • To understand the neural mechanisms underlying LC-induced changes in taste representation.
    • To explore the role of neuromodulation in sensory coding and feeding behavior.

    Main Methods:

    • In vivo miniscope calcium imaging in awake mice.
    • Optogenetic activation of LC norepinephrine neurons.
    • Analysis of GC neuronal population responses to various tastants and mixtures.

    Main Results:

    • Phasic LC activation enhanced the correlation between GC neuronal responses and tastant palatability.
    • LC activation expanded the dynamic range of taste representations, primarily through an aversive shift.
    • LC activation induced stretching and rotation of mixture ratio and concentration axes, suggesting attribute dependencies.
    • Tonic LC activation affected fewer neurons and did not produce similar population-level transformations.

    Conclusions:

    • Phasic LC activation causally reshapes GC population geometry to preferentially enhance palatability encoding.
    • The pattern of LC activation (phasic vs. tonic) determines its effects on GC population coding.
    • These findings provide a framework for understanding how neuromodulation biases taste representations relevant to feeding behavior.