| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
MURAMOTO Kenichiro Dept. Electrical Engineering, Toyama National College of Technology, Associate P, 電気工学科, 助教授 (70042835)
FUKUDA Masaji Dept. Physiol., Fac. Med., Toyama Med. & Phramaceu. Univ., Assistant Professor, 医学部, 助教授 (60126547)
NAKAMURA Kiyomi Dept. Physiol., Fac. Med., Toyama Med. & Phramaceu. Univ., Assistant Professor, 医学部, 助手 (20143860)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,000,000)
Fiscal Year 1988: ¥1,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,000,000)
Fiscal Year 1987: ¥3,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,000,000)
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| Research Abstract |
Anatomical and physiological studies indicate that the association cortex-amygdala-lateral hypothalamus axis is important-in-recognizing biological significance of external sensory stimuli, such as cue signals predicting food or non-food and the consequent operant responses. However, brain mechanisms in olfactory or gustatory recognition of biologically significant odors and tastes and their associated behavioral responses are not well understood.
We have developed two systems for the determination of odor preference ranking and taste preference ranking using microcomputers. these systems consist of an equilateral octagonal cage, a microcomputer, a display, interface of data input and output, a feeder, a light-dark controller, levers or taps on the cage walls, drivers to spray various odor substances or present various tastants with drop sensors, and a deodorization fan. A rat can obtain an odor by pressing the corresponding lever on the wall, or a tastant by licking its tap on the wall
… More
. A total of eight kinds of odor in one system or tastant in the other can be tested to determine odor preference or taste preference ranking. In this system, all conditions such as lever pressing or drinking signals, input-output relations, light-dark control and recording intervals are under computer control, and data of more than one week, are stored on floppy disks.
Using these systems, we analyzed odor and taste preferences of rats in normal, essential amino acid deficient, and food deprived states. Combined with our previously developed operant learning equipment, we clarified changes in responsiveness of hypothalamic neurons under these behaviorally quantified different conditions. These systems are useful for behavioral study of odor and taste preference ranking. and for study, at the single neuron level, of brain mechanisms of olfactory and gustatory recognition of biologically significant odorants and tastants, regulation of internal amino acid correlation with salt or umami appetite, etc. Less
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