title: Preference for sucralose predicts behavioral responses to sweet and bittersweet tastants.
abstract: Rats can be classified as either sucralose avoiders (SA) or sucralose preferrers (SP) based on their behavioral responses in 2-bottle preference, 1-bottle intake, and brief-access licking tests. The present study demonstrates that this robust phenotypic variation in the preference for sucralose predicts acceptance of saccharin, an artificial sweetener with a purported concentration-dependent "bitter" side taste and a 0.25 M sucrose solution adulterated with increasing concentrations of quinine hydrochloride (QHCl). Specifically, SA displayed decreased preference for and intakes of saccharin (≥41.5 mM) and sucrose-QHCl (>0.5 mM QHCl) solutions, relative to SP. In a second experiment involving brief-access (30-s) tests, SP and SA did not differ in their unconditioned licking responses across a range of sodium chloride or QHCl solutions (0.03-1 mM). However, the acceptability threshold for sucrose was lower in SA, relative to SP (0.06 and 0.13 M, respectively). Our findings suggest that phenotypic differences in sucralose preference are indicative of a more general difference in the hedonic processing of stimuli containing "bittersweet" or "sweet" taste qualities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Florida State University, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4301, USA.
authors.forename: Gregory C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Loney
authors.forename: Ann-Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Torregrossa
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Carballo
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Eckel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005518:Food Preferences / Q000502:physiology*; D006120:Grooming / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D011803:Quinine / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D012439:Saccharin / Q000494:pharmacology; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D013395:Sucrose / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D013549:Sweetening Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D013649:Taste / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D055697:Taste Perception / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D013549:Sweetening Agents; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D013395:Sucrose; C026285:trichlorosucrose; D011803:Quinine; D012439:Saccharin