Functional characterization of Gpr120 expressing cells and their role in fatty acid detection in knock-in mouse models

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Ulrich Boehm
• Subject Area: Nutritional Sciences ; Molecular Biology and Physiology of Neurons and Glial Cells
• Term: from 2008 to 2013
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 91747740

Normal weight is maintained by a fine balance between energy needs and food intake. Nutritious foods rich in fat and carbohydrates are spontaneously preferred by freely behaving animals. Experimental evidence suggests that this behavioral response is in part guided by palatability and the taste system after integration of the information provided by the taste receptors on the tongue. These observations are consistent with the existence of a fat detection system on the tongue. Previous work from our laboratory and others has shown that the long chain fatty acid transporter CD36 is important for orosensory fatty acid detection in mice. However, this transporter does not appear to meet the necessary requirements to function as a bona fide taste receptor and recent experimental evidence suggests that multiple pathways may be involved in the perception of fat compounds in rodents. Our efforts to identify additional receptors involved in fatty acid detection on the tongue have uncovered Gpr120 as a possible candidate. Gpr120 is a G protein coupled receptor activated by long chain fatty acids and expressed in taste bud cells. However, its role in taste physiology remains to be investigated. Here we propose to generate two new knock-in mouse models, which will enable us to analyze the physiological role of Gpr120 in fatty acid detection.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: France
• Participating Person: Dr. Jean-Pierre Montmayeur