Stony Brook University · NeuroscienceTaste Perception and Circuitry Lab
Arianna Maffei · Stony Brook, New York
Research Focus
Dr. Arianna Maffei's lab studies how the brain processes taste and how we learn to like or dislike certain flavors. They focus on specific brain circuits and chemicals that influence our perception of taste, especially when it comes to experiences like food aversions caused by illness. This research not only enhances our understanding of taste but also has important implications for improving nutrition in patients undergoing treatment for illnesses like cancer.
taste perceptionneural circuitstaste aversiongustatory cortexneuromodulation
Research Aims
5AIM 01Investigate how taste aversions are formed in the brain.
AIM 02Analyze the role of specific neuromodulatory signals in taste perception.
AIM 03Examine how brain circuits encode the hedonic value of taste stimuli.
AIM 04Explore therapeutic targets for improving taste perception in patients.
AIM 05Study the impact of altered taste valence on food intake and health.
Skills the Lab Values
in vivo imagingelectrophysiologybehavioral assaysmouse modelscircuit analysis
Output against the department
Publications74bottom 21% of dept.532nd of 671
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations4.4kbottom 33% of dept.452nd of 671
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.