Research team of Professor Lee Young Seok, Department of Bio and Fermentation Convergence Technology

A research team led by Prof. Lee Young Seok of the Department of Bio and Fermentation Convergence Technology at Kookmin University (President Jeong Seung Ryul) (First author: Ji-Woon Sang, Subash Dhakal: Department of Bio and Fermentation Convergence Technology, graduated in February 24, 22) studied the mechanism of high salt sensing in internal organs and published it in eLife on April 4, 2024 under the title "A single pair of pharyngeal neurons functions as a commander to reject high salt in Drosophila melanogaster" (https://elifesciences.org/reviewed-preprints/93464).

Animals prefer low concentrations of salt (NaCl), but avoid high concentrations of salt. While taste sensing of low and high salt has been well studied, Young-Seok Lee and colleagues found that the regulation of high salt intake is controlled by a pair of nerve cells in the pharynx, a gut organ. In fruit flies, the pair of neurons in the gut are activated by high salt, and the activation leads to negative feedback that inhibits high salt intake. This study is significant because it shows that neurons in the gut, rather than external organs such as the mouth, can control eating.

The first author, Dr. Jiyun Sang, received his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the Department of Biofermentation and Convergence in 2011, and is currently a postdoctoral researcher. Recently, he has broadened his interest in the regulation of internal organs to identify brain regulatory factors and is expanding his research on health functional materials. 

This research was supported by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) Basic Research Program for Science and Engineering and the Specialized Graduate School for Advanced Talent Training in Eco-Biomaterials of the Ministry of Environment (Director Park Yong Chul).