The impact of temperature and a chemesthetic cooling agent on lingual roughness sensitivity.

This article investigates how thermal sensations influence lingual tactile sensitivity to surface roughness, a key factor in food texture perception. Using stainless steel stimuli at varying temperatures, the study found that cold temperature (8 °C) significantly reduced tongue sensitivity to roughness compared to ambient temperature (21 °C), while warm and hot temperatures had no significant effect. Additionally, application of Evercool 190, a TRPM8 agonist that chemically induces a cooling sensation, did not alter roughness sensitivity, suggesting that the thermal modulation of tactile perception is not mediated by TRPM8 channels. These findings imply that physical cooling affects oral mechanoreception through peripheral mechanisms distinct from chemically evoked cold sensations, contributing to a deeper understanding of how temperature impacts oral somatosensory processing relevant to food perception.