Abstract P514: The Role Of Sweet And Umami Taste Receptors In The Heart

2021 ◽  
Vol 129 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Papadaki ◽  
Sara Osorio- Valencia ◽  
Jonathan A Kirk

The tongue can distinguish between five different tastes via the taste receptors, which are G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). There are two classes of taste receptors, the TAS1 (T1) and TAS2 (T2) families, and the T1R1-T1R3 dimer senses the umami taste and T1R2-T1R3 senses the sweet taste. Recently, the taste receptors have also been found in the brain, lungs, intestine and pancreas, where they sense changes in the nutrient environment and respond through GPCR signalling. Given the importance of glucose and amino acid metabolism in the heart, we hypothesized that the sweet and umami taste receptors have an important function in the heart. Using a variety of technologies and disease states, we have identified that T1R1, T1R2 and T1R3 are expressed in the heart. More specifically, mass spectrometry of a dog model of dyssynchrony has shown the presence of T1R1, T1R3 and T1R2. RNA seq of human patients who received a Left Ventricular Assist device and those who did not also revealed the presence of T1R1 and T1R3. The expression of these proteins was also confirmed using Western blot. We further showed T1R2 and T1R3 protein is localized in the plasma membrane of the cardiomyocytes by immunofluorescence (colocalized with Na/K ATPase) and PM enrichment. When we compared the taste receptor protein levels in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) compared to donor heart tissue, we found that T1R2 was overexpressed in DCM, showing that taste receptors may be important in nutrient sensing in disease. Furthermore, when neonatal rat ventricular myocytes were treated with sweet and umami agonists (aspartame for the sweet taste receptor and monosodium glutamate for the umami receptor), they had increased calcium transients as shown by an increase in peak calcium. Cardiomyocytes treated with aspartame also showed a decrease in time to relax. We hypothesize that in the heart, sweet and umami receptors induce positive inotropy upon a change in nutrient environment.

2009 ◽  
Vol 101 (5) ◽  
pp. 2459-2471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian H. Lemon ◽  
Robert F. Margolskee

T1r3 is a critical subunit of T1r sweet taste receptors. Here we studied how the absence of T1r3 impacts responses to sweet stimuli by taste neurons in the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) of the mouse. The consequences bear on the multiplicity of sweet taste receptors and how T1r3 influences the distribution of central gustatory neurons. Taste responses to glycine, sucrose, NaCl, HCl, and quinine were electrophysiologically recorded from single NTS neurons in anesthetized T1r3 knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) C57BL/6 mice. Other stimuli included l-proline, d-fructose, d-glucose, d-sorbitol, Na-saccharin, acesulfame-K, monosodium glutamate, NaNO3, Na-acetate, citric acid, KCl, denatonium, and papaverine. Forty-one WT and 41 KO neurons were recorded. Relative to WT, KO responses to all sweet stimuli were significantly lower, although the degree of attenuation differed among stimuli, with near zero responses to sugars but salient residual activity to artificial sweeteners and glycine. Residual KO across-neuron responses to sweet stimuli were variably similar to nonsweet responses, as indexed by multivariate and correlation analyses. In some cases, this suggested that residual KO activity to “sweet” stimuli could be mediated by nonsweet taste receptors, implicating T1r3 receptors as primary contributors to NTS sweet processing. The influence of T1r3 on the distribution of NTS neurons was evaluated by comparing neuron types that emerged between WT and KO cells. Neurons tuned toward sweet stimuli composed 34% of the WT sample but did not appear among KO cells. Input from T1r3-containing receptors critically guides the normal development of NTS neurons oriented toward sweet tastants.


2007 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masashi Inoue ◽  
John I. Glendinning ◽  
Maria L. Theodorides ◽  
Sarah Harkness ◽  
Xia Li ◽  
...  

The Tas1r3 gene encodes the T1R3 receptor protein, which is involved in sweet taste transduction. To characterize ligand specificity of the T1R3 receptor and the genetic architecture of sweet taste responsiveness, we analyzed taste responses of 129.B6- Tas1r3 congenic mice to a variety of chemically diverse sweeteners and glucose polymers with three different measures: consumption in 48-h two-bottle preference tests, initial licking responses, and responses of the chorda tympani nerve. The results were generally consistent across the three measures. Allelic variation of the Tas1r3 gene influenced taste responsiveness to nonnutritive sweeteners (saccharin, acesulfame-K, sucralose, SC-45647), sugars (sucrose, maltose, glucose, fructose), sugar alcohols (erythritol, sorbitol), and some amino acids (d-tryptophan, d-phenylalanine, l-proline). Tas1r3 genotype did not affect taste responses to several sweet-tasting amino acids (l-glutamine, l-threonine, l-alanine, glycine), glucose polymers (Polycose, maltooligosaccharide), and nonsweet NaCl, HCl, quinine, monosodium glutamate, and inosine 5′-monophosphate. Thus Tas1r3 polymorphisms affect taste responses to many nutritive and nonnutritive sweeteners (all of which must interact with a taste receptor involving T1R3), but not to all carbohydrates and amino acids. In addition, we found that the genetic architecture of sweet taste responsiveness changes depending on the measure of taste response and the intensity of the sweet taste stimulus. Variation in the T1R3 receptor influenced peripheral taste responsiveness over a wide range of sweetener concentrations, but behavioral responses to higher concentrations of some sweeteners increasingly depended on mechanisms that could override input from the peripheral taste system.


2019 ◽  
Vol 484 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-120
Author(s):  
V. O. Murovets ◽  
E. A. Sozontov ◽  
T. G. Zachepilo

Protein T1R3, the main subunit of sweet, as well as amino acid, taste receptor, is expressed in the epithelium of the tongue and gastro intestinal tract, in β–cells of the pancreas, hypothalamus, and numerous other organs. Recently, convincing witnesses of T1R3 involvement in control of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, and control of production of incretines and insulin, have been determined. In the study on Tas1r3-gene knockout mouse strain and parent strain C57Bl/6J as control, priority data concerning the effect of T1R3 on the morphological characteristics of Langerhans islets in the pancreas, are obtained. In Tas1r3 knockout animals, it is found that the size of the islets and their density in pancreatic tissue are reduced, as compared to the parent strain. Additionally, a decrease of expression of active caspase-3 in islets of gene-knockouts is demonstrated. The obtained data show that the lack of a functional, gene encoding sweet-taste receptor protein causes a dystrophy of the islet tissue and associates to the development of pathological changes in the pancreas specific to type-2 diabetes and obesity in humans.


2010 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 1337-1349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijay Lyall ◽  
Tam-Hao T. Phan ◽  
ZuoJun Ren ◽  
Shobha Mummalaneni ◽  
Pamela Melone ◽  
...  

Regulation of the putative amiloride and benzamil (Bz)-insensitive TRPV1t salt taste receptor by phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) was studied by monitoring chorda tympani (CT) taste nerve responses to 0.1 M NaCl solutions containing Bz (5 × 10−6 M; a specific ENaC blocker) and resiniferatoxin (RTX; 0–10 × 10−6 M; a specific TRPV1 agonist) in Sprague-Dawley rats and in wildtype (WT) and TRPV1 knockout (KO) mice. In rats and WT mice, RTX elicited a biphasic effect on the NaCl + Bz CT response, increasing the CT response between 0.25 × 10−6 and 1 × 10−6 M. At concentrations >1 × 10−6 M, RTX inhibited the CT response. An increase in PIP2 by topical lingual application of U73122 (a phospholipase C blocker) or diC8-PIP2 (a short chain synthetic PIP2) inhibited the control NaCl + Bz CT response and decreased its sensitivity to RTX. A decrease in PIP2 by topical lingual application of phenylarsine oxide (a phosphoinositide 4 kinase blocker) enhanced the control NaCl + Bz CT response, increased its sensitivity to RTX stimulation, and inhibited the desensitization of the CT response at RTX concentrations >1 × 10−6 M. The ENaC-dependent NaCl CT responses were not altered by changes in PIP2. An increase in PIP2 enhanced CT responses to sweet (0.3 M sucrose) and bitter (0.01 M quinine) stimuli. RTX produced the same increase in the Bz-insensitive Na+response when present in salt solutions containing 0.1 M NaCl + Bz, 0.1 M monosodium glutamate + Bz, 0.1 M NaCl + Bz + 0.005 M SC45647, or 0.1 M NaCl + Bz + 0.01 M quinine. No effect of RTX was observed on CT responses in WT mice and rats in the presence of the TRPV1 blocker N-(3-methoxyphenyl)-4-chlorocinnamide (1 × 10−6 M) or in TRPV1 KO mice. We conclude that PIP2 is a common intracellular effector for sweet, bitter, umami, and TRPV1t-dependent salt taste, although in the last case, PIP2 seems to directly regulate the taste receptor protein itself, i.e., the TRPV1 ion channel or its taste receptor variant, TRPV1t.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huazhong He

More than thirty years ago, I proposed a theory about sweet and bitter molecules’ recognition by protein helical structures. Unfortunately the papers could not go to public platform until now. Inspired by the sweet taste theory<sup>1,2</sup>, this bitter taste theory conveys that bitter molecules are recognized by receptor protein helical structures. The recognition process is a dynamic action, in which the receptor protein helices have a torsion-spring-like oscillation between helical structures of 3.6 and 4 amino acids per turn. Based on the characteristics of the bitter receptor protein helix oscillation, it perfectly explains why in bitter molecules, only one unit of hydrogen donor (DH) or hydrogen acceptor (B) is enough in helping molecules to elicit bitter taste. The potential DH and B in bitter receptor are any NH or O of receptor’s peptide NHs and Os, which are the ones forming intramolecular H-bonds responsible for the formation of receptor protein helical structures. Furthermore, only one unit of DH or B is allowed for structurally simple ligands. As recognition sites are only associated with a small fraction – helix structure of whole bitter receptor, multiple binding sites or multiple receptors are well expected. As the oscillation may have different extent, it translates to bitterness intensity. According to ligand-receptor binding motion, bitter receptor could be divided into two kinds of spaces, which are similar to the situation in sweet taste receptor: main and side grooves. These have been discussed in context and especially great details in paper titled deciphering aspartyl peptide sweeteners <sup>2</sup>.


2002 ◽  
Vol 74 (7) ◽  
pp. 1135-1140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander A. Bachmanov ◽  
Danielle R. Reed ◽  
Xia Li ◽  
Gary K. Beauchamp

Inbred mouse strains display marked differences in avidity for sweet solutions due in part to genetic differences among strains. Using several techniques, we have located a number of regions throughout the genome that influence sweetener acceptance. One prominent locus regulating differences in sweetener preferences among mouse strains is the saccharin preference (Sac) locus on distal chromosome 4. Afferent responses of gustatory nerves to sweeteners also vary as a function of allelic differences in the Sac locus, suggesting that this gene may encode a sweet taste receptor. Using a positional cloning approach, we identified a gene (Tas1r3) encoding the third member of the T1R family of putative taste receptors, T1R3. Introgression by serial back-crossing of a chromosomal fragment containing the Tas1r3 allele from the high sweetener-preferring strain onto the genetic background of the low sweetener-preferring strain rescued its low sweetener-preference phenotype. Tas1r3 has two common haplotypes, one found in mouse strains with elevated sweetener preference and the other in strains relatively indifferent to sweeteners. This study, in conjunction with complimentary recent studies from other laboratories, provides compelling evidence that Tas1r3 is equivalent to the Sac locus and that the T1R3 receptor (when co-expressed with taste receptor T1R2) responds to sweeteners. However, other sweetness receptors may remain to be identified.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Menizibeya O. Welcome ◽  
Nikos E. Mastorakis ◽  
Vladimir A. Pereverzev

Sweet taste receptors are transmembrane protein network specialized in the transmission of information from special “sweet” molecules into the intracellular domain. These receptors can sense the taste of a range of molecules and transmit the information downstream to several acceptors, modulate cell specific functions and metabolism, and mediate cell-to-cell coupling through paracrine mechanism. Recent reports indicate that sweet taste receptors are widely distributed in the body and serves specific function relative to their localization. Due to their pleiotropic signaling properties and multisubstrate ligand affinity, sweet taste receptors are able to cooperatively bind multiple substances and mediate signaling by other receptors. Based on increasing evidence about the role of these receptors in the initiation and control of absorption and metabolism, and the pivotal role of metabolic (glucose) regulation in the central nervous system functioning, we propose a possible implication of sweet taste receptor signaling in modulating cognitive functioning.


2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (8) ◽  
pp. 1188-1197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric M. Wauson ◽  
Andrés Lorente-Rodríguez ◽  
Melanie H. Cobb

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are membrane proteins that recognize molecules in the extracellular milieu and transmit signals inside cells to regulate their behaviors. Ligands for many GPCRs are hormones or neurotransmitters that direct coordinated, stereotyped adaptive responses. Ligands for other GPCRs provide information to cells about the extracellular environment. Such information facilitates context-specific decision making that may be cell autonomous. Among ligands that are important for cellular decisions are amino acids, required for continued protein synthesis, as metabolic starting materials and energy sources. Amino acids are detected by a number of class C GPCRs. One cluster of amino acid-sensing class C GPCRs includes umami and sweet taste receptors, GPRC6A, and the calcium-sensing receptor. We have recently found that the umami taste receptor heterodimer T1R1/T1R3 is a sensor of amino acid availability that regulates the activity of the mammalian target of rapamycin. This review focuses on an array of findings on sensing amino acids and sweet molecules outside of neurons by this cluster of class C GPCRs and some of the physiologic processes regulated by them.


Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 990
Author(s):  
Moemi Iwamura ◽  
Risa Honda ◽  
Kazuki Nagasawa

The gustation system for sweeteners is well-known to be regulated by nutritional and metabolic conditions, but there is no or little information on the underlying mechanism. Here, we examined whether elevation of the blood glucose level was involved in alteration of the expression of sweet taste receptors in circumvallate papillae (CP) and sweet taste sensitivity in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats under 4 h-fed conditions following 18 h-fasting exhibited elevated blood glucose levels and decreased pancreatic T1R3 expression, compared to rats after 18 h-fasting treatment, and they exhibited increased protein expression of sweet taste receptors T1R2 and T1R3 in CP. Under streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes mellites (DM) conditions, the protein expression levels of T1R2 and T1R3 in CP were higher than those under control conditions, and these DM rats exhibited increased lick ratios in a low sucrose concentration range in a brief access test with a mixture of sucrose and quinine hydrochloride (QHCl). These findings indicate that the elevation of blood glucose level is a regulator for an increase in sweet taste receptor protein expression in rat CP, and such alteration in STZ-induced DM rats is involved in enhancement of their sweet taste sensitivity.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document