Taste cells may control foraging and decision making

New research by neuroscientists has revealed that a single brain cell can both sense the environment and control foraging behavior. The study, which used computer modeling to examine a small roundworm called a nematode, was published in the journal Communications Biology. 

The scientists found that the same cells that sense the environment – in this case, cells that sense salt in microscopic nematodes (Caenorhabditis elegans) – also control decision making. 

“Our findings are startling – we found simple mechanisms by which salt tasting cells drive a rather sophisticated strategy to forage for food,” said study co-lead author Professor Netta Cohen.

“When a nematode first senses a salty environment, the sensory cell that is sensitive to increasing salt concentrations is stimulated – and provides all the information the animal needs to steer into the salt patch.”

“We think this is a mechanism built into these sensory cells. Not only is it remarkably effective, but surprisingly, because it all takes place inside the sensors, it is very easy to implement with the basic toolkit that nearly all brain cells have at their disposal.”   

The nematodes have only 302 cells altogether, including two cells that sense salt – one activated by increased levels of salt, the other turned on by decreased levels of salt. Together these cells can steer the animal towards salt. Although in some ways nematodes are simple animals, the scientists suspect that other animals may use a similar mechanism for food searches.

“We think this is a mechanism built into these sensory cells. Not only is it remarkably effective, but surprisingly, because it all takes place inside the sensors, it is very easy to implement with the basic toolkit that nearly all brain cells have at their disposal,” said Professor Cohen.

While C. elegans may use salt cues to forage for food, we suspect similar mechanisms may be used by other animals to selectively attend to other cues or features of the environment.”

—By Zach Fitzner, Earth.com Staff Writer