How temperature affects our food choices and preferences
Official title: Temperature and thermogustatory preferences
Funded at University of Oklahoma · NIH-11110466 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project explores how the temperature of food influences our taste experiences and eating behaviors.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Oklahoma NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Norman, United States) |
| Project start | July 3, 2023 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $476,415 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DC020843-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11110466 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This foundational research is conducted in mice, but future studies may be relevant to individuals experiencing issues with appetite, food preferences, or eating disorders.
✕Less likely to help
Patients seeking immediate treatment or direct clinical intervention will not receive direct benefit from this basic science project.
What this research studies
When we eat, the temperature of our food plays a role alongside taste and smell in creating its overall flavor. This project aims to understand how our bodies sense temperature in the mouth and how these sensations guide our food preferences and eating habits. Researchers are using special equipment with mice to observe how they respond to different food temperatures, especially focusing on a specific cold-sensing receptor. This work will help us learn more about the basic biology of flavor and how it affects what we choose to eat.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could provide foundational knowledge to better understand appetite regulation and eating disorders in humans.
How similar studies have gone: This area of how temperature sensing impacts ingestive preferences is largely unexplored, making this a novel approach.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Oklahoma
Norman, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lemon, Christian H — University of Oklahoma
- Study coordinator: Lemon, Christian H
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Personalized 3D molds to shape breast reconstruction
A doctor-relevant project is testing patient-specific 3D printed molds to guide breast reconstruction after mastectomy, aiming to improve body image and quality of life for feminine-presenting individuals.
-
Faster 3D/4D imaging to speed up testing of cancer drugs on tumor organoids
This project builds a new, ultrafast label-free 4D imaging system with AI to watch how patient-like tumor organoids respond to cancer drugs, helping researchers find more promising treatments.
-
How our genes control skin color and pigmentation
Scientists are studying how epigenetic and transcriptional controls shape human skin color and related pigmentation differences.
-
Nanomedicine delivery framework for skeletal muscle therapies
A new framework aims to safely and efficiently deliver tiny nanoparticles carrying drugs or genetic payloads to skeletal muscle cells.
-
Atlas of bacterial drug entry and exit to help design better antibiotics
Researchers are building smart computer models and chemical tests to understand how to get drugs into Gram-negative bacteria like Acinetobacter baumannii so new antibiotics can work.
-
Understanding protein forms in disease with advanced mass spectrometry
A researchers team will use a cutting-edge mass spectrometry approach to map and measure the full shape and connections of disease-related proteins in human biology.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.