Levy L M, Henkin R I, Lin C S, Finley A, Schellinger D
Department of Radiology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, USA.
J Comput Assist Tomogr. 1999 Jul-Aug;23(4):499-505. doi: 10.1097/00004728-199907000-00002.
Our goal was to use functional MRI (fMRI) to measure brain activation in response to imagination of tastes in humans.
fMR brain scans were obtained in 31 subjects (12 men, 19 women) using multislice FLASH MRI and echo planar imaging (EPI) in response to imagination of tastes of salt and sweet in coronal sections selected from anterior to posterior temporal brain regions. Activation images were derived using correlation analysis, and ratios of areas of brain activated to total brain areas were calculated. Total activated pixel counts were used to quantitate regional brain activation.
Activation was present in each section in all subjects after imagination of each tastant. Activation was similar in response to imagination of either salt or sweet and was quantitatively similar to that previously reported in response to imagination of odors of banana and peppermint. Activation was similar in both men and women as opposed to previous results of odor memory in which activation in men was greater than in women. However, subjective responses of intensity of imagined tastes were significantly greater than those previously obtained for odor memory and were consistently, albeit not significantly, greater in women than in men, similar to results previously reported for odor memory. Brain regions activated in response to taste imagination were consistent with regions previously described as involved with actual taste perception in both humans and animals. Regional brain localization for salt and sweet memories could not be differentiated.
These studies indicate that (a) tastes can be imagined, (b) brain regions activated for taste imagination are consistent with regions previously described for actual taste perception, and (c) similar to odor memory for banana and menthone, regional brain localization for salt or sweet taste memories could not be differentiated.
我们的目标是使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI）来测量人类在想象味觉时大脑的激活情况。
对31名受试者（12名男性，19名女性）进行fMR脑扫描，使用多层快速低角度激发磁共振成像（FLASH MRI）和回波平面成像（EPI），以响应从颞叶脑区前部到后部选择的冠状切片中盐味和甜味的想象。使用相关分析得出激活图像，并计算大脑激活区域与全脑区域的面积比。总激活像素计数用于量化局部脑激活。
在想象每种味觉刺激后，所有受试者的每个切片中均出现激活。对盐味或甜味的想象所产生的激活相似，并且在数量上与先前报道的对香蕉和薄荷气味的想象所产生的激活相似。男性和女性的激活情况相似，这与先前关于气味记忆的结果相反，在气味记忆中男性的激活大于女性。然而，想象味觉强度的主观反应明显大于先前获得的气味记忆反应，并且女性的反应始终（尽管不显著）大于男性，这与先前报道的气味记忆结果相似。响应味觉想象而激活的脑区与先前描述的人类和动物实际味觉感知所涉及的区域一致。盐味和甜味记忆的局部脑定位无法区分。
这些研究表明：（a）味觉可以被想象；（b）因味觉想象而激活的脑区与先前描述的实际味觉感知脑区一致；（c）与香蕉和薄荷酮的气味记忆相似，盐味或甜味记忆的局部脑定位无法区分。
