Mammalian taste bud cells are classi
fi
ed into four subsets (type I, II,
III and IV) in function of their structural and functional character-
istics
[4]
. In the lingual epithelium, taste buds are located in three
typesof gustatory papillae(i.e. fungiform,foliate and circumvallate)
and establish synaptic contacts with afferent
fi
bers of chorda
tympani and glossopharyngeal nerves (VIIth and IXth cranial
nerves, respectively)