The appreciation of wine by sommeliers: a functional magnetic resonance study of sensory integration.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_8E15676C7BB3
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Title
The appreciation of wine by sommeliers: a functional magnetic resonance study of sensory integration.
Journal
Neuroimage
Author(s)
Castriota-Scanderbeg A., Hagberg G.E., Cerasa A., Committeri G., Galati G., Patria F., Pitzalis S., Caltagirone C., Frackowiak R.
ISSN
1053-8119 (Print)
ISSN-L
1053-8119
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2005
Volume
25
Number
2
Pages
570-578
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tPublication Status: ppublish
Abstract
We set out to investigate how the expertise of a sommelier is embodied in neural circuitry by comparing brain activity elicited by wine tasting with that found in naive drinkers of wine. We used fMRI to study 7 sommeliers and 7 age- and sex-matched control subjects to test the hypothesis that any difference in brain activity would reflect a learned ability to integrate information from gustatory and olfactory senses with past experience. A group analysis showed activation of a cerebral network involving the left insula and adjoining orbito-frontal cortex in sommeliers. Both these areas have been implicated in gustatory/olfactory integration in primates. In addition, activation was found bilaterally in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which is implicated in high-level cognitive processes such as working memory and selection of behavioral strategies. Naive individuals activated the primary gustatory cortex and brain areas, including the amygdala, implicated in emotional processing.
Keywords
Adult, Brain Mapping, Cerebral Cortex/physiology, Humans, Learning/physiology, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Nerve Net, Taste/physiology, Wine
Pubmed
Web of science
Create date
11/09/2011 18:24
Last modification date
20/08/2019 14:52
Usage data