Taste bud. Coloured light micrograph of a section through the tongue, showing a taste bud. This taste bud is seen as a round purple mass slightly to the right of the vertical white line. The white groove is part of the large pink papilla (tongue projection) seen at centre. Taste buds are mostly located on the papillae on the tongue but are also scattered on the palate, pharynx and epiglottis. They are situated in an epithelial layer (purple) and have a taste pore that is exposed to the food meeting the tongue. Four types of taste are recognised: sweet, bitter, acid and salt. Although each taste is recognised on a different region of the tongue, the buds have the same structure throughout. Magnification: x320 when printed 10cm tall.