Transduction in taste receptors.

For humans, taste plays a key role in food selection. The continuing search for low-calorie sweeteners and salt substitutes that allow less Na intake in the diet without a decline in saltiness attest to this. We are only beginning to understand how specific foodstuffs evoke taste responses. In the future, the neural, hormonal, and genetic factors that regulate the sense of taste on a long-term basis will be better understood. With this will come a better understanding of the role of taste in developing food preferences and in overall nutrition.