Part 3:
Taste Buds in Your Gut
The taste receptors found in your mouth are also found in your gut,
as well as in many other cell types.
as well as in many other cell types.
What do you think may be happening in the gut?
Make a copy of Student Model 2: The Gut.
Click on the picture below to open the document. Under FILE, choose Make a Copy or Download. You can also draw your own model from scratch, or click here for a PDF.
Draw on the model to show what you think is happening in the GUT taste buds when you taste a sweet taste.
Think about how the signal is perceived, or noticed, what happens inside the cell, and what the cellular response is.
Homage to the gut:
The gut has a large network of nerve cells, so extensive it is sometimes called the “second brain.” These nerve cells receive signals from the one-cell thick layer of intestinal cells that line the gut. These gut cells have several gatekeeping duties, such as communicating with friendly microbes, immune cells, and other organs and tissues, including the brain.