Abstract
Objective: Previous studies have reported that individuals with obesity have reduced taste perception, but the relationship between obesity and taste is poorly understood. Earlier work has demonstrated that diet-induced obesity directly impairs taste. Currently, it is not clear whether these changes to taste are due to obesity or to the high-fat diet exposure. The goal of the current study was to determine whether diet or excess weight is responsible for the taste deficits induced by diet-induced obesity.
Methods: C57BL/6 mice were placed on either high-fat or standard chow in the presence or absence of captopril. Mice on captopril did not gain weight when exposed to a high-fat diet. Changes in the responses to different taste stimuli were evaluated using live cell imaging, briefaccess licking, immunohistochemistry, and real-time polymerase chain reaction.
Results: Diet and weight gain each affected taste responses, but their effects varied by stimulus. Two key signaling proteins, α-gustducin and phospholipase Cβ2, were significantly reduced in the mice on the highfat diet with and without weight gain, identifying a potential mechanism for the reduced taste responsiveness to some stimuli.
Conclusions: Our data indicate that, for some stimuli, diet alone can cause taste deficits, even without the onset of obesity.
Methods: C57BL/6 mice were placed on either high-fat or standard chow in the presence or absence of captopril. Mice on captopril did not gain weight when exposed to a high-fat diet. Changes in the responses to different taste stimuli were evaluated using live cell imaging, briefaccess licking, immunohistochemistry, and real-time polymerase chain reaction.
Results: Diet and weight gain each affected taste responses, but their effects varied by stimulus. Two key signaling proteins, α-gustducin and phospholipase Cβ2, were significantly reduced in the mice on the highfat diet with and without weight gain, identifying a potential mechanism for the reduced taste responsiveness to some stimuli.
Conclusions: Our data indicate that, for some stimuli, diet alone can cause taste deficits, even without the onset of obesity.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 284-292 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Obesity |
Volume | 28 (2020) |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 31 Dec 2019 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 23 Jan 2020 |
Keywords
- diet
- weight
- taste
- obesity