title: Expression of taste reception response of fleshfly in Xenopus oocytes.
abstract: Functional expression of the gustatory sensitivity to amino acids and sugars was investigated in Xenopus oocytes injected with poly(A+) RNA extracted from fleshfly labellar taste organs. The current induced by the application of amino acids and sugars that stimulate fleshfly sugar receptor cells was recorded under voltage clamp conditions. L-Phenylalanine and L-valine induced a large transient inward current in poly(A+) RNA-injected oocytes but only small responses in uninjected control oocytes. Glucose and fructose also produced inward currents in the RNA-injected oocytes. N-methylated compounds or D-isomers of these amino acids induced either no response or a much smaller response than L-amino acids as they did in the fleshfly sugar receptor cells. The oocyte expression system is a useful tool for characterizing the taste transduction mechanism.
authors.affiliation: Biological Institute, Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koganezawa
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shingai
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Isono
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Shimada
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002628:Chemoreceptor Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D004175:Diptera / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005947:Glucose / Q000494:pharmacology; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D008745:Methylation; D009865:Oocytes / Q000502:physiology*; D010649:Phenylalanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D013237:Stereoisomerism; D013649:Taste / Q000502:physiology*; D014633:Valine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D014982:Xenopus laevis
chemical_list: D010649:Phenylalanine; D014633:Valine; D005947:Glucose