Expression, physiological action, and coexpression patterns of neuropeptide Y in rat taste-bud cells.

ABSTRACT: Recent studies have suggested that neuropeptides could play previously unrecognized functional roles in peripheral gustation. To date, two peptides, cholecystokinin and vasoactive intestinal peptide, have been localized to subsets of taste-bud (TB) cells (TBC) and one, cholecystokinin, has been demonstrated to produce excitatory physiological actions. This study extends our knowledge of neuropeptides in TBC in three significant ways. First, using techniques of immunocytochemistry and RT-PCR, evidence is presented for the expression of a third peptide, neuropeptide Y (NPY). Like other peptide expression patterns, NPY expression is circumscribed to a subset of cells within the taste bud. Second, using physiological studies, we demonstrate that NPY specifically enhances an inwardly rectifying

SUBMITTER: Zhao FL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1182420 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature