September 2, 2022 -The taste buds in our tongues contain receptor cells that detect food particles dissolved in saliva.  G-protein coupled receptors on the surface of those receptor cells have been identified that respond to sweet, savory, or bitter tasting chemicals.  Twenty-five different G-protein coupled bitter taste receptors have been identified in humans. 

September 2, 2022 -On March 31st, 2022, I flew on a redeye flight to Lima, Peru. This was my first time going to South America and I was very excited to be going to a new continent! My Spanish language skills were and still are severely lacking, so I made sure to download google translate onto my phone. It was a life saver while I was there! On April 1st, I arrived in the capital of Peru in the evening.

September 2, 2022 -The DeRouen Center has been working on an NIH D71 Planning Grant in Kenya. In February, 2022, a group of researchers including Ana Lucia Seminario, Arthur Kemoli, Immaculate Opondo, Matthew Saxton, and Sara Stanley traveled to four sites in Kenya to meet with stakeholders in oral health and HIV research.