A Microfluidic Co-Culture Platform for Studying Taste Cell-Neuron Signalling

Taste perception begins when taste receptor cells detect chemicals in food and transmit signals to gustatory neurons. Studying this communication in vitro is difficult because conventional cell cultures do not reproduce the spatial separation and tightly controlled chemical stimulation found in living tissue. Static and diffusion-based systems can also expose both cell types to the same stimulus, making it difficult to determine whether neuronal activity results from direct exposure or signaling from taste cells. To address this limitation, the researchers developed a microfluidic co-culture platform that physically separates taste cells and neurons while allowing them to communicate.

The microfluidic device contains separate chambers for taste receptor cells and geniculate ganglion neurons, which carry taste information toward the central nervous system. Narrow microchannels connect the two microfluidic compartments, allowing neuronal projections to grow toward the taste cells while restricting bulk fluid movement between the chambers. An integrated pneumatic pumping system delivers tastants specifically to the taste-cell microfluidic compartment, helping preserve the natural direction of signaling from taste cells to neurons.

For microfluidics fabrication, the researchers used photolithography and soft lithography to produce a multilayer PDMS device. The flow layer included the culture chambers, reservoirs, and 10-µm-wide axon-guidance channels, while a second layer contained pneumatic valves and an on-chip peristaltic pump. The assembled microfluidic chip was bonded to glass and placed in a confocal imaging dish. Sequential actuation of the pneumatic valves generated controlled, one-directional perfusion without requiring an external syringe pump.

Primary taste cells and geniculate ganglion neurons were isolated from neonatal rats. The neurons were seeded first and cultured for several days so that their axons could extend through the connecting microchannels. Taste cells were then introduced into the neighboring microfluidic chamber using the integrated pump. To monitor functional communication, the research team loaded the cells with the calcium-sensitive dye Fluo-4 AM and performed live-cell fluorescence imaging while selectively exposing the taste cells to sucrose as a sweet stimulus or denatonium benzoate as a bitter stimulus.

For both sweet and bitter stimulation, calcium activity appeared first in the taste cells and later in the connected neurons. In contrast, neurons cultured without taste cells showed little response when the same tastants were delivered, supporting the idea that neuronal activation in the co-culture originated from upstream taste-cell signalling rather than direct chemical exposure. This microfluidic platform also allowed the researchers to wash away the stimulus and repeat controlled stimulation while maintaining separation between the two cell populations. Sweet and bitter tastants produced somewhat different calcium-response patterns, showing that the system could resolve differences in taste signalling dynamics.

Overall, the study demonstrates a microfluidic approach for recreating and monitoring communication between taste receptor cells and gustatory neurons under controlled flow conditions. By combining compartmentalized cell culture, programmable perfusion, axonal connectivity, and live calcium imaging, the microfluidic platform provides a way to examine taste signalling with greater spatial and temporal control than conventional co-culture systems. The authors suggest that the system could eventually support studies of additional taste modalities, screening of taste-modulating compounds, investigations of taste dysfunction, and development of sensory or bioelectronic platforms. 

Figures are reproduced from Seo, H.H., Abueva, C., Lee, Y. et al. Development of a microfluidic co-culture platform with integrated channel and flow dynamics to monitor taste cell–neuron responses to sweet and bitter tastants. NPG Asia Mater (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41427-026-00677-0, under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Read the original article: Development of a microfluidic co-culture platform with integrated channel and flow dynamics to monitor taste cell–neuron responses to sweet and bitter tastants

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