Associate Dean, College of Arts & Sciences James C. Smith Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience
Office
B439 PDB
Phone Number
(850) 644-1751
Email
Research
Research Interest
Roles of early dietary experience, taste, hormones, and
the brain in control of appetite, energy balance, and blood pressure
regulation. Special focus is on plasticity, hypertension, and obesity.
Analyses include behavioral, physiological, and anatomical approaches.
Current Research
The research focuses on how the rodent peripheral gustatory system codes information about taste quality and intensity, as well as how internal (e.g. sodium deprivation, hormone levels) and external (e.g. stimulus temperature) factors influence coding using electrophysiological recording methods of whole nerve and single-cell responses and parallel psychophysical studies of taste-mediated behavior.
Publications
Selected Publications
Breza, JM & RJ Contreras. Anion size modulates salt taste in rats. J. Neurophysiol. 107:1632-1648, 2012. PDF
Lawhern, V, Nikonov, AA, Wu, W, and Contreras RJ. Spike rate and spike timing contributions to coding taste quality information in rat periphery. Frontiers in Integrative Neurosci. doi:10.3389/fnint.2011.00018. PDF
Breza, JM, Nikonov, AA, and Contreras, RJ. Response latency to lingual taste stimulation distinguishes neuron types within the geniculate ganglion. J. Neurophysiol., 103: 1771-1784, 2010. PDF
Stratford, JM & Contreras, RJ. Saliva and other taste stimuli are important for gustatory processing of linoleic acid. Am. J. Physiol. Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol., 297: R1162-R1170, 2009. PDF
Garcia, JM, Curtis, KS, and Contreras, RJ. Behavioral and electrophysiological taste responses change following brief or prolonged dietary sodium deprivation. Am. J. Physiol. Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol., 295: R1754-R1761, 2008. PDF
Frank, ME, Lundy, RF, and Contreras, RJ. Cracking Taste Codes by Tapping into Sensory Neuron Impulse Traffic. Progress in Neurobiology, 86: 245-263, 2008. PDF
Stratford, JM, Curtis, KS, and Contreras, RJ. Linoleic acid increases chorda tympani nerve responses to and behavioral preferences for monosodium glutamate by male and female rats. Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol 295: 764-772, 2008. PDF
Krause, EG, Curtis, KS, TL, Markle, JP, and Contreras, RJ. Oestrogen affects the cardiovascular and central responses to isoproterenol of female rats. J. Physiol. 582.1: 435-447, 2007. PDF
Breza, JM, Curtis, KS, and Contreras, RJ. Monosodium glutamate but not linoleic acid differentially activates gustatory neurons of the rat geniculate ganglion. Chem. Senses, 32: 833-846, 2007. PDF
Breza, J.M., Curtis, K.S.,
& Contreras, R. J. Temperature Modulates Taste Responsiveness and
Stimulates Gustatory Neurons in the Rat Geniculate Ganglion. J. Neurophysiol 95: 674-685, 2006. PDF
Dietz, D.M., Curtis, K.S.,
& Contreras, R. J. Taste, Salience, and Increased NaCl Ingestion after Repeated
Sodium Depletions. Chem. Senses 31: 33-41, 2006. PDF
Curtis,
KS and Contreras, RJ. Sex differences in electrophysiological and
behavioral responses to NaCl taste. Behav. Neurosci., 120:
917-924, 2006. PDF
Krause,
EG, Curtis, KS, Stincic, TL, Markle, JP, and Contreras, RJ. Oestrogen
and weight loss decrease isoproterenol-induced Fos immunoreactivity
and angiotensin type 1 mRNA in the subfornical organ of female rats.
J. Physiol., 573: 251-262, 2006. PDF
Stratford,
JM, Curtis, KS, and Contreras, RJ. Chorda tympani nerve transection
alters linoleic acid taste discrimination by male and female rats.
Physiol. Behav., 89: 311-319, 2006. PDF
Curtis, KS,
JM Stratford, and RJ Contreras. Estrogen increases the taste threshold
for sucrose in rats. Physiol. Behav., 86: 281-286, 2005. PDF
Curtis,
K.S., Krause, E.G., Wong, D. L., & Contreras, R.J. Gestational and
early postnatal NaCl levels affect NaCl intake, but not stimulated
water intake, by adult rats. Am. J. Physiol. Regul. Integ. Comp. Physiol.,
286: R1043-R1050, 2004. PDF
