Dye-coupling among frog (Rana catesbeiana) taste disk cells.

1. Dye-coupling among taste disk cells in the bullfrog fungiform papillae was examined histologically by injecting a fluorescent dye (Lucifer yellow) into the cell, and the effects of the dye-coupling on depolarizing responses induced by taste stimuli were studied electrophysiologically. 2. With dye injection into a taste cell, dye-coupling was found between taste cells (23%) or between taste cell and supporting cell (28%). With dye injection into a supporting cell, dye-coupling was found between supporting cells (34%) or between supporting cell and taste cell (27%). 3. Depolarizing responses recorded from either a taste cell or a supporting cell to stimulation with 0.5 M NaCl or 10 mM quinine-HCl were the same in amplitude whether the dye-coupling to another cell was present or not. On the other hand, depolarizing responses recorded from a taste cell for 0.5 mM acetic acid became significantly larger when dye-coupled to a supporting cell. 4. It is concluded that gustatory transduction for acid stimuli is influenced by supporting cells coupled to taste cells.