The role of a noxious taste in determining food intake in the rat.

Adult female rats were given access to cornstarch, fat, and 2 cups of casein ad lib. Sucrose octaacetate was added to one or both casein cups in concentrations of 0, 0.1, or 2.5%. The lower concentrations of SOA had no effect on total caloric intake or food choices, although a taste aversion experiment indicated that the rats could detect SOA at this level. The 2.5% concentration had no effect on total caloric intake. If only one casein cup was treated with SOA, the animals consumed 70% of their protein from the unadulterated casein supply, but total protein intake was unchanged. If both cups were treated with 2.5% SOA, protein intake decreased, but carbohydrate consumption showed a compensatory increase. Fat intake was unchanged.