Articles tagged with Taste
A twin study published by Monell Chemical Senses Center found that genes account for 53% of the variation in sour taste sensitivity, suggesting a genetic component to individual differences. This discovery may help identify the elusive taste receptor for sourness and inform strategies for promoting healthy eating.
Research reveals that butterfly mimicry benefits both species involved, as predators avoid eating the most unpalatable species but still learn to distinguish between them. The study provides insight into how insects evolve to resemble one another and change their behavior.
A Kansas State University researcher has created a way to make fiber-enriched flour that tastes like regular flour, enabling the production of healthier snacking alternatives. The process uses extrusion processing to add varying levels of bran, resulting in improved dough quality and increased soluble dietary fiber.
Researchers discovered that tiger moths use ultrasonic clicks to warn bats of their bad taste, allowing them to survive in a predator-rich environment. The study provides the first definitive evidence of acoustic mimicry as a defensive strategy.
Researchers in New Zealand have discovered cows with genes to produce skimmed milk, planning to breed herds for commercial production. The milk is low in saturated fats and high in polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, making it a healthier alternative.
University of Illinois researchers identify mouth-feel as key factor in diet soda taste, finding ingredient that gives body without adding calories. Flavour plays a crucial role in masking the mouth-feel difference, making lemon-lime flavor more appealing.
Dr. Battey's dedication to the chemical senses has led to significant contributions, including leadership in trans-NIH scientific efforts and support of promising young investigators. He will receive the Distinguished Service Award from AChemS for his record of outstanding service.
A new study published in Nature found that participants in a game were willing to reduce their own earnings to increase another player's income, demonstrating a preference for economic equality. The results suggest that egalitarian motives underlie human cooperation and reciprocity.
A study found that dairy products, non-caffeinated beverages, and fruits/vegetables can worsen the taste of cigarettes. Researchers propose a 'Quit Smoking Diet' or alternative treatments to deter smoking.
Researchers at the University of Alberta found that advanced cancer patients experience unique and persistent taste and smell abnormalities, leading to malnutrition and poor quality of life. A personalized diet tailored to an individual's needs may improve their quality of life.
Researchers analyze gene for bitter-taste receptor, finding evidence of balancing natural selection that keeps two forms active. The study suggests PTC nontasters can perceive a different compound than tasters, potentially conferring protection from a toxic compound.
Dutch researcher Rajesh S. Pillai developed a new method to visualize the microstructure of food and lipid droplets in cells using short infrared laser pulses. This technique has high promise for research into fat storage and diseases related to disrupted lipid metabolism.
A new study found that consumers trust recommendations from individuals with shared likes more than those with shared dislikes, attributed to attribute ambiguity. The researchers discovered a positivity effect in agent evaluation, where positive attributes outweigh negative ones.
A recent study by JoAndrea Hoegg and Joseph W. Alba found that the color of a drink can significantly affect how it tastes, with tint dominating taste perception over other attributes.
Scientists have pinpointed a molecular pathway regulating the development of taste buds, with Wnt proteins playing a key role in initiating taste-bud formation and connecting them to the brain. This breakthrough sheds light on the lesser-understood sense of taste.
Researchers tracked brain activity in rats while they tasted water, salt water, and sugar water, finding that a formerly disliked taste became pleasurable when the rats were deprived of salt. This study provides new insights into how the brain processes pleasure and has implications for understanding eating disorders and addiction.
Researchers found that honey bees have 170 odorant receptors, compared to 62 in fruit flies and 79 in mosquitoes. This allows them to detect pheromones, find food, and communicate with each other through subtle olfactory cues.
A study by University College London researchers found that black tea consumption reduced cortisol levels and blood platelet activation after stressful events. The study, published in Psychopharmacology, suggests that drinking black tea may speed up recovery from daily stresses.
A research team led by Virginia Tech professor Andrea Dietrich aims to identify the cause of metallic flavors in chemotherapy patients and develop preventive methods. The study will also explore the role of antioxidants and investigate the relationship between metal ions and health outcomes.
Bitter taste perception varies among individuals due to genetic differences, influencing the detection of toxins like glucosinolates in vegetables. This study establishes a link between bitter taste receptors and toxin detection, providing insights into evolutionary mechanisms.
A team from the University of California, San Diego has identified the cells and protein responsible for detecting sour taste. The researchers found that each of the five basic tastes is detected by distinct receptors in separate cells, challenging a popular view that different tastes map to specific areas of the tongue.
Researchers identified the cells and receptor responsible for sour taste, a primary gateway in all mammals for detecting spoiled food sources. The PKD2L1 receptor is found in a subpopulation of taste receptor cells on the tongue that do not function for sweet, bitter, or umami taste.
Researchers identified PKD1L3 and PKD2L1 proteins in human taste buds responsible for detecting sour tastes. The discovery could lead to developing ways to alter the perception of sour tastes, such as in children's medicines or health foods that currently taste sweet.
Dr. McCluskey receives the Ajinomoto Award for Young Investigators in Gustation for her work on taste bud regeneration and its relation to the immune system. She aims to understand how macrophages, a type of immune cell, affect neural function in injured nerves.
Scientists found that certain artificial sweeteners like sodium saccharin and acesulfame-K paradoxically inhibit sweetness at high concentrations. When rinsed with water, the sweetness returns, revealing potential applications in medicine and food industry.
Researchers present new discoveries on topics ranging from molecular biology to clinical diagnosis and treatment of smell and taste disorders. Key findings include zebrafish exhibiting robust light responses, flavor and fragrance scientists working to uncover basic science behind sensory delights.
Researchers found that humans and chimps harbor different kinds of mutations that influence PTC taste sensitivity. Humans carry two functional forms of the gene, while chimps have a broken form that likely emerged due to changes in their diet and environment.
A study by Ohio State University found that while sucralose was rated as the most acceptable alternative to sugar, many other sugar substitutes were deemed unpalatable due to sour and bitter tastes. Xylitol, a sweetener used in chewing gum, was also highly rated.
Researchers are developing new artificial sweeteners and non-calorie sweetness enhancers to reduce health risks associated with high sugar consumption. The ACS symposium highlights potential breakthroughs in treating taste disorders, identifying supertasters at risk of colon cancer, and creating safe natural sweeteners.
Researchers at HortResearch have completed public release of world's most extensive apple DNA sequences, unlocking secrets of taste, health and color. The release comprises over 50,000 apple gene sequences, enabling fruit breeders to create new varieties tailored to consumer tastes and industry demand.
A recent study published in Nicotine and Tobacco Research found a significant link between genetic variations in the PTC gene and smoking behavior. Smokers with reduced bitterness sensitivity were more likely to smoke for taste, while those with a specific less common genetic variant were 20% less likely to smoke.
Researchers have successfully created living taste cells in a lab culture, opening new avenues for understanding the sense of taste and potentially treating disorders. The breakthrough could lead to new insights into how basal cells turn into functional taste cells.
A team of University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists reports that the brain can be rewired in anticipation of sensory input to respond in prescribed ways. By manipulating expectancy, the brain code for tastes is activated less when a cue suggests a lesser taste, and the perception of the taste matches the prediction.
A study by Andrew D. Gershoff and Gita Johar found that people overestimate their closest friends' knowledge of their tastes and preferences, leading to less accurate recommendations. The researchers suggest that this overestimation is driven by a desire to maintain self-image and protect relationships.
The study reveals that specific cells in fly brains detect distinct tastes, with separate neurons responding to sweet and bitter substances. This discovery suggests a model of taste encoding in the brain where dedicated neural circuits dictate behavioral outputs.
Researchers found that sweet taste's analgesic efficacy is influenced by how much a child likes sweets and their weight status. In the study, sucrose preferences were determined for 198 children, with those who preferred higher levels of sweetness experiencing reduced pain when consuming sweet tastes.
Research found that infant birth weight is inversely related to salty taste acceptance, suggesting a lasting influence on flavor and food preferences. The study's results could inform programs aimed at reducing salt intake, which is linked to high blood pressure.
A study identifies CD36 as a multifunctional glycoprotein that detects fat in the mouth, influencing behavior and digestive physiology. Altering this system may increase obesity risk through feeding dysregulation.
Researchers have discovered a potential mechanism to eliminate the unwanted taste of artificial sweeteners by inhibiting the natural termination of taste-receptor signals. By targeting specific receptors and kinases, scientists hope to develop more effective and pleasant sugar substitutes.
Researchers found that brain responds differently to odors introduced through the nose versus the mouth, with distinct brain regions activated. The study suggests that olfactory referral illusion is robust and cognitively impenetrable, and may play a role in flavor perception.
Researchers found evidence that specific variants of a bitter-taste receptor gene were strongly favored in early human evolution, leading to increased sensitivity to toxic compounds. This suggests a pivotal role for bitter-taste perception in toxin avoidance in humans.
Researchers at Ohio State University found that neuropeptide Y (NPY) and cholecystokinin (CCK) peptides trigger different responses in taste bud cells, helping the brain distinguish between bitter and sweet tastes. The study's findings provide new insights into how our brains process taste information.
A study published in Journal of Consumer Research reveals how consumers evaluate an experience by drawing connections between positive and negative events. The research suggests that people find comfort in ambivalence when a bad experience is compared immediately to a good one, providing valuable insights for marketing professionals.
Researchers found that genetic variation in bitter taste receptors affects how people perceive bitterness, with some having heightened sensitivity and others being insensitive. This study expands our understanding of individual differences in taste perception and may lead to new insights into the role of bitter compounds in human health.
Researchers found that a person's specific allele of a single bitter-taste-receptor gene determines their perceptual sensitivity to PTC and related compounds. This suggests that genetic variations play a dominant role in determining individual differences in bitter-taste perception.
Researchers found that brain center's neurons encoded learning associated with taste stimuli, revealing different circuitry for processing rewarding and aversive stimuli. The study supports the idea that individual NAc neurons play a role in aversion and Pavlovian learning.
Researchers found that genetic variation in the TAS2R38 gene affects bitter taste sensitivity in children, influencing their food preferences. Children with a bitter-sensitive allele prefer sweeter tastes, while those with two bitter-insensitive alleles tend towards vegetable consumption.
A Dartmouth researcher uses Amazon.com book ratings and reviews to study literary tastes, finding patterns in how readers react to different books. The analysis reveals predictable regularities in taste, including high grades for classics and books with large fan bases.
Professor Daphne Maurer's research found that infants perceive sounds as colors and associate certain feelings with tastes. As individuals develop, these connections are often inhibited, leading people with synesthesia to experience the world differently.
A study found that genetic variations in taste receptors affect the way people perceive the bitterness of alcohol, influencing their drinking habits. Individuals who are supertasters and can't taste the bitterness of PROP may consume more alcohol than those who are nontasters.
A study by Brian Wansink found that vegetable enthusiasts eat more spicy foods, drink wine with dinner, and cook elaborate meals. Fruit lovers prefer sweets, are less adventurous in the kitchen, and eat desserts after dinner. Tailoring healthy eating recommendations to these groups can be more effective.
A recent study found that Coke preference is influenced by brand knowledge and activates specific brain regions, including the hippocampus. This discovery highlights the role of cultural messages in shaping taste perception and has important implications for understanding obesity and other health issues related to sugared colas.
A multidisciplinary team is investigating the impact of inflammation on taste and smell function, with potential therapeutic interventions for chemosensory dysfunction. The studies aim to improve diagnosis and treatment targeting for patients with conditions like chronic rhinosinusitis and radiation-induced taste loss.
In a breakthrough study, Johns Hopkins scientists identified that nerve cells use target-derived cues and proteins like NGF to guide them to their final targets. The research sheds new light on the complex process of nerve growth and cell targeting during development.
Researchers found that artificial sweeteners impair the body's natural ability to regulate food intake and weight. They suggest focusing on calorie consumption and exercise instead of relying on diet drinks.
A study by UC Berkeley neuroscientists found that fruit flies have taste receptors similar to humans, with four types devoted to sweet and bitter flavors. The researchers mapped the taste receptor nerve cells into the brain, revealing a map both of location and type of taste.
Researchers at Duke University Medical Center found that flies have distinct combinations of bitter-sensitive nerve cells on their tongue, allowing them to discern among different bitter tastes. This unique ability might enable flies to select the best food item among multiple suboptimal choices.
A study found that exercise can reduce the preference for sweetened fluids in rats, with a temporary increase in perception of sweetness after consumption. The researchers suggest that this could lead to the development of foods and supplements that meet post-exercise nutritional needs.
A study found that infants fed protein hydrolysate formula for seven months developed a taste preference for the formula, while those fed standard milk-based formula rejected it. Early flavor exposure influences long-term food choices.
A study by Queen's University researchers found that taste and odour-causing algae have increased in 90% of lakes in the Muskoka-Haliburton region since the early 1800s. The increase is attributed to climate change and acidic deposition, with significant rises over the past two decades.