Acid taste thresholds assessed by conditioned taste aversion and two-bottle preference in rats.

The conditioned taste aversion (CTA) threshold for either citric acid (CA) or HCl solutions and the two-bottle taste preference (TBP) threshold were determined in rats that are familiarized to the odor of conditioning solutions or that are naive. The CTA method appeared to be more sensitive than the TBP test, particularly when rats were not familiarized to the odor of the conditioning solution. The CTA threshold for HCl-conditioned rats and familiarized to the odor of conditioning solution lies between 1.00 and 2.00 mmol; in unconditioned rats, it lies between 4.00 and 5.00 mmol. In CA-conditioned and odor-familiarized rats, the threshold lies between 0.09 and 0.20 mmol; in unconditioned rats, it lies between 7.00 and 10.00 mmol. In rats not familiarized to the odor of the conditioning solution, the threshold for HCl-conditioned rats lies between 0.90 and 1.00 mmol; in unconditioned rats, it lies between 2.00 and 3.00 mmol. In CA-conditioned rats, the CTA threshold lies between 0.03 and 0.05 mmol; in unconditioned rats, it lies between 4.00 and 7.00 mmol. The two-bottle test is less sensitive than the CTA method. The TBP threshold lies between HCl 4.00 and 5.00 mmol, and between CA 4.00 and 7.00 mmol. The odor of a solution may potentiate the ability of rats to detect the concentration of CA and HCl solutions.