Taste Preference for Fatty Acids Is Mediated by GPR40 and GPR120

TLDR

Recent evidence indicates that taste, mediated by GPR40 and GPR120 receptors activated by medium and long‑chain fatty acids, contributes to the oral perception of fat, which was previously thought to depend mainly on texture and olfaction. Knockout of GPR120 or GPR40 in mice reduces preference for linoleic and oleic acids and weakens taste‑nerve responses, demonstrating that these receptors mediate fatty‑acid taste.

Abstract

The oral perception of fat has traditionally been considered to rely mainly on texture and olfaction, but recent findings suggest that taste may also play a role in the detection of long chain fatty acids. The two G-protein coupled receptors GPR40 (Ffar1) and GPR120 are activated by medium and long chain fatty acids. Here we show that GPR120 and GPR40 are expressed in the taste buds, mainly in type II and type I cells, respectively. Compared with wild-type mice, male and female GPR120 knock-out and GPR40 knock-out mice show a diminished preference for linoleic acid and oleic acid, and diminished taste nerve responses to several fatty acids. These results show that GPR40 and GPR120 mediate the taste of fatty acids.