Bitter Taste Receptors Found in Lung Blood Vessels; Discovery Could Pave Way for New Lung Treatments; Study Finds Stimulation of These Receptors Prevents Fluid from Entering Lung

Scientists have discovered a new family of helpful proteins in the lung, with the finding potentially paving the way for a new course of treatment for patients with respiratory failure. Researchers from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) (UK), alongside colleagues from Brown University and the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Rhode Island, USA, have identified for the first time that bitter taste receptors commonly found in the tongue, called T2Rs, are also present in the walls of blood vessels in the lung. Over 10% of patients in intensive care units worldwide suffer from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and it has a mortality rate of nearly 40%. ARDS requires patients to undergo ventilation and is commonly caused by pneumonia, major surgery, trauma, sepsis, and, more recently, COVID-19.