What is the pathway for gustation?

The sensory pathway for gustation travels along the facial, glossopharyngeal and vagus cranial nerves, which synapse with neurons of the solitary nucleus in the brain stem. Axons from the solitary nucleus then project to the ventral posterior nucleus of the thalamus.

How many gustatory pathways are there?

Currently five sub-modalities (tastes) are recognized, including sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami (savory taste or the taste of protein). Umami is the most recent taste sensation described, gaining acceptance in the 1980s.

What is gustation and olfaction?

Detecting a taste (gustation) is fairly similar to detecting an odor (olfaction), given that both taste and smell rely on chemical receptors being stimulated by certain molecules. The primary organ of taste is the taste bud.

What is the pathway between the taste cranial nerves and the cortex?

The cranial nerves carry taste information into the brain to a part of the brain stem called the nucleus of the solitary tract. From the nucleus of the solitary tract, taste information goes to the thalamus and then to the cerebral cortex.

What is the structure of taste?

The taste receptors are located around the small structures known as papillae found on the upper surface of the tongue, soft palate, upper esophagus, the cheek, and epiglottis. These structures are involved in detecting the five elements of taste perception: saltiness, sourness, bitterness, sweetness and umami.

What is gustation and gustatory receptors?

Seeing, Hearing, Tasting, Smelling, and Touching Taste perception or gustation is the sensory detection of food on the tongue. Taste is the sensation that occurs in the mouth when a substance reacts chemically with taste receptor cells located on taste buds or papillae (Figure 3.5.

How do gustation and olfaction work together?

What is the pathways of taste?

Three nerves carry taste signals to the brain stem: the chorda tympani nerve (from the front of the tongue), the glossopharyngeal nerve (from the back of the tongue) and the vagus nerve (from the throat area and palate).

What is Somatotopic representation?

when a specific part of the body is associated with a distinct location in the central nervous system. For example, the somatosensory cortex receives sensory information from the hands in a specific location and information from the feet in another location.

What is Thermoception sense?

Thermoception refers to temperature sensation. The temperature of the air or contacting object is sensed relative to skin temperature, which is typically maintained around 32°C.