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Take a deep breath. Taste anything? Actually, your lungs may. Because scientists have discovered that the same receptors that exist on the tongue to taste bitter substances are also found on the smooth muscle of the lungs.
Researchers were studying the receptors on smooth lung muscles that ___1___ of the airways. That’s when they made the discovery—which was so unexpected that the researchers themselves were ___2___.
Finally, they became convinced that the receptors were really there, though not ___3___ in taste buds as they are on the tongue. The scientists then exposed human and mouse airways to various bitter compounds to gauge the effects.
Many toxic compounds are bitter, so the researchers expected the lung muscle to ___4___ and contract—to compel the breather to move away from whatever was bitter and perhaps toxic. But, in a second surprise, bitter compounds relaxed and opened airways better than any existing asthma drug. The study is in the journal Nature Medicine.
Researchers will continue to search for the role of the receptors. Meanwhile, the work ___5___ in the search for drugs to treat asthma, emphysema or chronic bronchitis.
regulate contraction and relaxation skeptical clustered tense up represents a surprising new lead
深呼吸——嘴巴嘗到什么味道了么?也許你的肺嘗到了哦~科學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)肺部平滑肌上也有能夠“嘗”苦味的感受器,和舌頭上的一模一樣。 研究人員在研究肺部平滑肌上調(diào)節(jié)氣道伸縮的感受器時(shí)獲得了上述發(fā)現(xiàn),他們自己對此意外發(fā)現(xiàn)也感到過懷疑。 最終,他們發(fā)現(xiàn)這些感受器雖不像舌頭上的那樣成簇聚集在味蕾上,但確確實(shí)實(shí)存在。繼而他們又用各種各樣味苦的化合物測試人體和老鼠氣道的反應(yīng)。 很多有毒化合物都比較苦,因此研究人員預(yù)計(jì)肺部肌肉會(huì)緊張收縮——迫使呼吸者遠(yuǎn)離苦澀或是有毒性的物品。不過研究人員再次得到了一個(gè)驚喜——苦味化合物能夠幫助張開氣道,效果比現(xiàn)有的任何哮喘藥都好。該研究報(bào)告刊登在《自然-醫(yī)學(xué)》雜志上。 研究人員會(huì)繼續(xù)研究感受器的功用。與此同時(shí),這項(xiàng)研究也為研制治療哮喘、肺氣腫、慢性支氣管炎等疾病的藥物開辟了一條新的道路。