Nutrients 2017, 9(7), 653; doi:10.3390/nu9070653
Sugars, Sweet Taste Receptors, and Brain Responses
1
1500 East Medical Center Drive, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5362, USA
2
3912 Taubman Center, SPC 5362, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5362, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 10 April 2017 / Revised: 20 June 2017 / Accepted: 21 June 2017 / Published: 24 June 2017
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dietary Fructose and Glucose: The Multifacetted Aspects of their Metabolism and Implication for Human Health)
Abstract
Sweet taste receptors are composed of a heterodimer of taste 1 receptor member 2 (T1R2) and taste 1 receptor member 3 (T1R3). Accumulating evidence shows that sweet taste receptors are ubiquitous throughout the body, including in the gastrointestinal tract as well as the hypothalamus. These sweet taste receptors are heavily involved in nutrient sensing, monitoring changes in energy stores, and triggering metabolic and behavioral responses to maintain energy balance. Not surprisingly, these pathways are heavily regulated by external and internal factors. Dysfunction in one or more of these pathways may be important in the pathogenesis of common diseases, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. View Full-TextKeywords:
sweet taste receptors; glucose sensing; nutrient sensing; leptin; hypothalamus
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Lee, A.A.; Owyang, C. Sugars, Sweet Taste Receptors, and Brain Responses. Nutrients 2017, 9, 653.
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