Ogawa H
Department of Physiology, Kumamoto University School of Medicine, Japan.
Neurosci Res. 1994 Jul;20(1):1-13. doi: 10.1016/0168-0102(94)90017-5.
Clinical and physiological studies of patients with ageusia or gustatory hallucination suggest that the primary gustatory area (area G) lies at the anterior insula or at the base of the central sulcus. However, physiological and anatomical studies in subhuman primates, e.g. squirrel monkeys or macaque monkeys, locate area G at the buried frontal operculum (Fop) and dorsal insula. The presence of secondary or higher gustatory areas are claimed because taste neurons are found in the precentral opercular area (PrCO) or orbitofrontal cortex in alert monkeys. Part of the anterior insula is suggested to subserve the interface between area G and the amygdala. Many physiological studies have been conducted lacking knowledge of the histological boundaries of the primary and secondary gustatory areas. Some difference has been found in the physiological properties of taste neurons in the primary and secondary gustatory areas: the primary gustatory area contains various categories of taste neurons, whereas most of the taste neurons in the secondary gustatory areas (e.g., PrCO, area 1-2) are specifically sensitive to one of the four basic tastes, and taste neurons in the orbitofrontal opercular area (OFO), another secondary gustatory area, show sensory-specific hunger as well.
对味觉丧失或幻味患者的临床和生理学研究表明，主要味觉区（G区）位于脑岛前部或中央沟底部。然而，对非人灵长类动物（如松鼠猴或猕猴）的生理学和解剖学研究将G区定位在埋藏的额盖（Fop）和岛叶背侧。由于在警觉的猴子的中央前盖区（PrCO）或眶额叶皮层中发现了味觉神经元，因此有人认为存在次级或更高级的味觉区。有人认为脑岛前部的一部分是G区与杏仁核之间的接口。许多生理学研究在缺乏对主要和次要味觉区组织学边界了解的情况下进行。在主要和次要味觉区的味觉神经元的生理特性方面发现了一些差异：主要味觉区包含各种类型的味觉神经元，而次要味觉区（如PrCO、1-2区）中的大多数味觉神经元对四种基本味觉之一具有特异性敏感性，并且另一个次要味觉区眶额叶盖区（OFO）中的味觉神经元也表现出感觉特异性饥饿。
