The nervus intermedius (the sensory and parasympathetic root of CN VII) carries taste from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue via the chorda tympani. The cell bodies of these taste afferents reside in:

• A Geniculate ganglion of CN VII ✓
• B Inferior ganglion (nodose) of CN X
• C Superior ganglion of CN IX
• D Trigeminal (Gasserian) ganglion

Explanation

The chorda tympani nerve carries taste afferents from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue and preganglionic secretomotor fibres for the submandibular and sublingual glands. The peripheral processes of taste neurons travel with the chorda tympani and then with the lingual nerve (a branch of CN V3) to the tongue. Their cell bodies (pseudounipolar neurons) are located in the geniculate ganglion of the facial nerve in the petrous bone. Central processes enter the brainstem via nervus intermedius and synapse in the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS). The nodose ganglion contains taste afferents from the epiglottis and pharynx (CN X).

Reference: BD Chaurasia's Human Anatomy, 8th ed.

High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP

Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.