The role of lipolysis in human orosensory fat perception

Taste perception elicited by food constituents and facilitated by sensory cells in the oral cavity is important for the survival of organisms. In addition to the five basic taste modalities, sweet, umami, bitter, sour, and salty, orosensory perception of stimuli such as fat constituents is intensely...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of lipid research 2014-05, Vol.55 (5), p.870-882
Main Authors: Voigt, Nadine, Stein, Julia, Galindo, Maria Mercedes, Dunkel, Andreas, Raguse, Jan-Dirk, Meyerhof, Wolfgang, Hofmann, Thomas, Behrens, Maik
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Dietary Fats - pharmacology
Esterification
Female
free fatty acid
G protein-coupled receptor
Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic - drug effects
HEK293 Cells
Humans
Lactones - pharmacology
lipase
Lipase - genetics
Lipase - metabolism
Lipolysis - drug effects
Male
Oleic Acid - chemistry
Oleic Acid - pharmacology
Orlistat
Saliva - drug effects
Saliva - metabolism
Salivary Glands - drug effects
Salivary Glands - metabolism
Salivary Glands - physiology
taste
Taste Perception - drug effects
triglyceride
Triolein - chemistry
Triolein - pharmacology
von Ebner's gland
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Summary:Taste perception elicited by food constituents and facilitated by sensory cells in the oral cavity is important for the survival of organisms. In addition to the five basic taste modalities, sweet, umami, bitter, sour, and salty, orosensory perception of stimuli such as fat constituents is intensely investigated. Experiments in rodents and humans suggest that free fatty acids represent a major stimulus for the perception of fat-containing food. However, the lipid fraction of foods mainly consists of triglycerides in which fatty acids are esterified with glycerol. Whereas effective lipolysis by secreted lipases (LIPs) liberating fatty acids from triglycerides in the rodent oral cavity is well established, a similar mechanism in humans is disputed. By psychophysical analyses of humans, we demonstrate responses upon stimulation with triglycerides which are attenuated by concomitant LIP inhibitor administration. Moreover, lipolytic activities detected in minor salivary gland secretions directly supplying gustatory papillae were correlated to individual sensitivities for triglycerides, suggesting that differential LIP levels may contribute to variant fat perception. Intriguingly, we found that the LIPF gene coding for lingual/gastric LIP is not expressed in human lingual tissue. Instead, we identified the expression of other LIPs, which may compensate for the absence of LIPF.
ISSN:0022-2275
1539-7262
DOI:10.1194/jlr.M046029