# Maturation of inhibitory circuits in the gustatory cortex and expression of taste preference

> **NIH NIH F32** · STATE UNIVERSITY NEW YORK STONY BROOK · 2022 · $81,050

## Abstract

Project Summary
 As animals transition from relying on their mother’s milk to foraging and consuming foods, they experience
an abundance of new tastes. These experiences regulate taste preference later in life through a process which
likely relies on plasticity in neural circuits associated with taste and feeding. The gustatory cortex (GC) is involved
in processing tastes and is required for taste-motivated behaviors as well as learning about tastes. How these
early experiences affect the development of taste preferences or the maturation of GC circuits has not been the
subject of investigation. Maturation of inhibitory circuits in other primary sensory systems is a hallmark of
postnatal development. This proposal will investigate the role of taste experience in shaping later taste
preference, whether a postnatal sensitive window exists in which experience shapes taste preference, and the
cellular- and circuit-level GC physiology which is sensitive to taste experience, with a focus on inhibition. The
first part of the proposal will examine how taste preferences mature from juvenile to adult ages. The role of taste
experience at the time of weaning versus in adulthood in modulating taste preference will also be examined.
Maturation of inhibitory networks within the GC will be examined by quantifying parvalbumin-positive inhibitory
neurons, their connection strength onto pyramidal neurons, and the total spontaneous GABAergic synaptic
transmission onto pyramidal neurons in the GC from pre- and post-weaning ages. The role of taste experience
on inhibitory maturation will also be examined. Finally, the relationship between the maturation of inhibition and
the development of taste preferences will be assessed by chemical disruption of stabilizing proteins on
parvalbumin-positive neurons. These studies will elucidate the necessity of a mature inhibitory circuit in GC for
the behavioral expression of taste preference as well as whether a sensitive window exists in which experience
shapes taste preference. While mechanisms underlying learning about the value or physical cues associated
with tastes has been investigated in adulthood, the postnatal mechanisms leading to such a refined circuit have
not been described. The results of these studies will indicate the role of early food experiences in determining
taste-based choices throughout life.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10322668
- **Project number:** 5F32DC018485-03
- **Recipient organization:** STATE UNIVERSITY NEW YORK STONY BROOK
- **Principal Investigator:** Hillary C Schiff
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $81,050
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-01-20 → 2023-01-19

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10322668

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10322668, Maturation of inhibitory circuits in the gustatory cortex and expression of taste preference (5F32DC018485-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10322668. Licensed CC0.

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