High concentrations of salt activate sour- and bitter-taste-sensing cells in the tongues of mice, and genetic silencing of these pathways abolishes behavioural aversion to concentrated salt; this ‘co-opting’ of the two primary aversive taste pathways (sour and bitter) may have evolved so that high salt levels reliably trigger behavioural rejection.
- Yuki Oka
- Matthew Butnaru
- Charles S. Zuker
