Liquan Huang
Associate Member

Ph.D.
(Molecular Biology; Yale University)

My primary research interest is in molecular mechanisms underlying taste perception. With the completion of genome sequencing projects for humans, mice and other model organisms, nearly all genes in these genomes are identified, which presents an opportunity and challenge to elucidate genome-wide gene expression patterns for individual cells. I use single cell RT-PCR and other amplification methods, quantitative PCR and DNA arrays to establish global gene expression profiles for various morphological and physiological types of individual taste cells from taste buds. I utilize bioinformatics, molecular and biochemical methods to analyze gene expression patterns and to characterize gene products’ function in particular cells and to correlate cells’ “polygenotypes” with their physiological phenotypes. Results from these studies may contribute to uncovering taste cells’ intra- and inter-cellular signaling networks and to a more complete understanding of taste perception.

Selected Publications

 

1. Lerner, M.R., Golovyan, L., Graminski, G.F., Harris, K., Huang, L., Jayawickreme, C.K., Karne, S., McCintock, T.S., Potenza, M.N., Roby-Shemkovitz, A., and Quillan, M. (1996) Tools for investigating functional interactions between lipid-derived autacoids and their receptors. Amer. J. Therap. 3: 280-286. PubMed

 

2. Huang, L., Gopi, Y.G., Dubauskaite, J., Zheng, J.Z., Yan, W., Rosenzweig, S., Spielman, A.I., Max, M., and Margolskee, R.F. (1999) Gg13 colocalizes with gustducin in taste receptor cells and mediates IP3 responses to bitter denatonium. Nature Neuroscience 2:1055-1062. PubMed

 

3. Max, M., Shanker, Y.G., Huang, L., Rong, M., Liu, Z., Campagne, F., Weinstein, H., Damak, S., and Margolskee, R.F. (2001) Tas1r3, encoding a new candidate taste receptor, is allelic to the sweet responsiveness locus Sac. Nature Genetics 28:58-63. PubMed

 

4. *Perez, C. A., *Huang, L., Rong, M., Kozak, A., Preuss, A., Zhang, H. Max, M., and Margolskee, R. F. (2002) A transient receptor potential channel expressed in taste receptor cells. Nature Neuroscience 5:1169-1176. (* these authors contributed equally to this work). PubMed

 

5. Huang, L., Max, M., Margolskee, R.F., Su, H., Masland, R.H., and Euler, T. (2003) G protein subunit Gg13 is coexpressed with Gao, Gb3 and Gb4 in retinal ON bipolar cells. J. Comp. Neurol. 455:1-10. PubMed

 

6. Reed, D.R., Li, S., Li, X., Huang, L., Tordoff, M.G., Starling-Roney, R., Taniguchi, K., West, D.B., Ohmen, J.D., Beauchamp, G.K., and Bachmanov,  A.A. (2004) Polymorphisms in the taste receptor gene (Tas1r3) region are associated with saccharin preference in thirty mouse strains. J. Neurosci. 24:938-946. PubMed

 

7. Lu, K., McDaniel, A.H., Tordoff, M.G., Li, X., Beauchamp, G.K., Bachmanov, A.A., Vanderweele, D.A., Chapman, C.D., Dess, N.K., Huang, L., Wang, H., and Reed, D.R. (2005) No relationship between sequence variation in protein coding regions of the Tas1r3 gene and saccharin preference in rats. Chem. Senses 30:231-240. PubMed

 

8. Li, X., Li, W., Wang, H., Cao, J., Maehashi, K., Huang, L., Bachmanov, A.A., Reed, D.R., Legrand-Defretin, V., Beauchamp, G.K. and Brand, J.G. (2005) Pseudogenization of a sweet receptor gene accounts for cats?indifference toward sugar. PLoS Genetics 1(1): e3. PubMed

 

9. *Huang, L., Cao, J., Wang, H., Vo, L.A. and Brand, J.G. (2005) Identification and functional characterization of a voltage-gated chloride channel and its novel splice variant in taste bud cells. J. Biol. Chem. 280:36150-36157. (* corresponding author) PubMed

 

10. Breslin, P.A. and Huang, L. (2006) Human taste: peripheral anatomy, taste transduction and coding. Adv. Otorhinolaryngol. 63:152-90. PubMed

 

11. Naim, M., Huang, L., Spielman, A.I., Shaul, M.E. and Aliluiko, A. (2006)Stimulation of taste cells by sweet taste compounds. In Spillane, W.J. (ed), Optimising sweet taste in foods. CRC press, Woodhead Publishing, Cambridge England, 3-29.   

 

12. Li, X., Li, W., Wang, H., Bayley, D.L., Cao, J., Reed, D.R., Bachmanov, A.A., Huang, L., Legrand-Defretin, V., Beauchamp, G.K. and Brand, J.G. (2006) Cats lack a sweet taste receptor. J. Nutr. 136: 1932S-1934S. PubMed

 

13. Wang, H., Zhou, M., Brand, J. and Huang, L., (2007) Inflammation activates the interferon signaling pathways in taste bud cells. J. Neurosci. 27: 10703-10713. PubMed

 

14. Maehashi, K., Matano, M., Wang, H., Vo, L.A., Yamamoto, Y. and Huang, L. (2008) Bitter peptides activate hTAS2Rs, the human bitter receptors. Biochem. Biophys. Res .Commun. 365: 851-855. PubMed

 

15. Naim, M., Shaul, M. E., Spielman, A. I., Huang, L., and Peri, I., (2008) Permeation of amphipathic sweeteners into taste-bud cells and their interactions with post-receptor signaling components: Possible implications for sweet-taste quality. In Weerasinghe, D. K., and DuBois, G. (eds) Sweetness and Sweeteners: Biology, Chemistry and Psychophysics. Oxford University Press, 241-255.