口腔质地感知：行为证据与神经机制。

文献信息

中文摘要

背景： 食物质地在食物偏好中具有重要作用，并引导咀嚼和吞咽。然而，哺乳动物口腔质地感知的神经机制仍知之甚少，部分原因是用于研究质地感知的动物模型很少。一个主要障碍是用于改变质地的物质常提供味觉或嗅觉线索，使得难以将质地作为唯一的感觉刺激分离出来。因此，区分物理质地线索与化学线索的行为模型对于机制研究至关重要。
亮点： 在本综述中，总结了用于研究啮齿动物口腔质地感知的行为学方法。先天偏好测试和条件学习范式与实验策略相结合，以尽量减少化学线索的影响、检验跨不同材料的泛化，并操纵测试食物的物理形态。这些方法表明，大鼠利用黏度、颗粒刺激和凝胶的机械特性作为口腔质地线索。这些发现为研究口腔质地感知的分子和神经机制提供了行为学框架。
结论： 尽量减少化学线索的行为范式表明，大鼠能够利用食物的物理特性作为口腔感觉线索。这些模型为识别口腔质地感知所涉及的受体和神经环路，以及理解质地信息如何与味觉整合提供了基础。

英文摘要

BACKGROUND: Food texture has an important role in food preferences, and it guides mastication and swallowing. However, the neural mechanisms underlying oral texture perception in mammals are poorly understood, partly because few animal models have been established for studying texture perception. A major obstacle is that the substances used to modify texture often provide taste or odor cues, making it difficult to isolate texture as the sole sensory stimulus. Therefore, behavioral models that distinguish between physical texture cues and chemical cues are essential for mechanistic studies.
HIGHLIGHT: In this review, the behavioral approaches for investigating oral texture perception in rodents are summarized. Tests of innate preference and conditioned learning paradigms were combined with experimental strategies to minimize the effects of chemical cues, examine generalizations across different materials, and manipulate the physical form of test foods. These approaches demonstrate that rats use viscosity, particulate stimuli, and the mechanical properties of gels as oral texture cues. These findings provide a behavioral framework for investigating the molecular and neural mechanisms underlying the perception of oral texture.
CONCLUSION: Behavioral paradigms that minimize chemical cues demonstrate that rats can use the physical properties of food as oral sensory cues. These models provide a foundation for identifying the receptors and neural circuits underlying oral texture perception, and for understanding how texture information is integrated with taste.