title: A histochemical study of APUD ability in the taste buds of experimentally induced zinc-deficient mice.
abstract: To explore the relationship between taste acuity and zinc deficiency, a histochemical investigation was made into the taste buds of mice fed a zinc-deficient diet. Nine weeks after the start of the diet, the average serum zinc level of the mice was 45% lower than that of a control group of mice. Moreover, growth was arrested significantly. Two-bottle preference tests revealed that the intake ratio of 10(-5) M quinine hydrochloride solutions had increased markedly in the zinc-deficient mice compared with the controls. The circumvallate taste buds showed no morphological changes. Fluorescent histochemical examination showed an uptake of a monoamine precursor (5-HTP) by the gustatory cells in the zinc-deficient mice after the 5-HTP treatment. Upon immunohistological examination, however, no serotonin immunoreactivity appeared in the gustatory cells of the zinc-deficient mice after the 5-HTP treatment. These results suggest that zinc-deficiency may induce hypogeusia and decrease the ability to transform a monoamine precursor to monoamine in the gustatory cells, albeit the monoamine precursor uptake ability is not affected.
mesh_terms: D001078:APUD Cells / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D000370:Ageusia / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D013194:Staining and Labeling; D013650:Taste Buds / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D013651:Taste Disorders / Q000378:metabolism*; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015032:Zinc