Olfaction & Gustation: Sensory Detection, Anatomy, and Neural Pathways

What do olfaction and gustation detect in the environment?

Chemicals

Where are sensory receptors for olfaction located?

Olfactory epithelium

Where are taste buds found?

Papillae

What are the airborne chemical molecules that contribute to odors?

Odorants

Where is the first place in the brain that processes olfactory information?

Olfactory bulbs

Which papillae do not serve a gustatory function?

Filiform Papillae

What are the small structures that contain receptor cells for taste?

Taste buds

What term describes the perceptual experience from detecting odorants?

Odors

What percent of smell contributes to taste?

80%

What phenomenon occurs when a person cannot recall the name of a familiar odor?

Tip of the nose

What type of receptors detect molecules in food and air?

Chemoreceptors

What is the combined sensory experience of food called?

Flavor

What cells become new receptors and gustatory cells?

Basal cells

What do columnar supporting cells help avoid?

Smelling the same smell for the rest of your life

What molecules are recognized by taste receptors in gustation?

Tastants

Which tastes alert us to foods with needed nutrients?

Salty, Sweet, Umami

What type of illusion affects how an odorant is perceived?

Context effects

What role do chemical senses serve in the body?

A warning system

What is retronasal olfaction?

Perceiving odors through the mouth while chewing

How do we measure odorants?

PPM (Parts per million)

What is different about how gustatory information is carried through the brain?

It receives ipsilateral input

What is gustation?

The sense of taste

What are tastants?

Molecules recognized by taste receptors on the tongue

Where are taste buds located?

Throughout the oral cavity, not just on the tongue

What is flavor?

Combination of taste, odor, trigeminal nerve effects, and visual cues

What is the function of the five basic tastes?

Alert to foods with needed nutrients and warn against harmful substances.

What does sweetness signal in terms of food?

Energy source

What does saltiness signal in terms of food?

Electrolyte balance

What does sourness indicate about food?

Potentially spoiled food

What does bitterness signal?

Possible toxins

What does umami indicate about food?

Protein-rich foods.

What are the types of papillae on the tongue?

Fungiform, Foliate, Circumvallate, Filiform.

Where do taste signals synapse in the brain?

Medulla (specifically the solitary nucleus)