However, it is still not known whether these channels serve as a salt receptor. All tastes are detected and perceived via these taste receptors, which mediate signal cascades through second messenger molecules [45�C49].Figure 1.Taste receptors for five basic taste qualities and signal transduction pathways. G, GTP-binding protein; PLC, phospholipase C-type �� 2; IP3, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate; pathway signaling IP3R3, 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor type 3; TRPM5, transient receptor potential …Current research shows that the taste-receptor proteins play a key role in sensing taste but it may be difficult to create artificial protein-based taste sensors because proteins Inhibitors,Modulators,Libraries have low chemical and thermodynamic stability.

However, research in the mid-1970s [50,51] showed that the membrane potential Inhibitors,Modulators,Libraries of filter Inhibitors,Modulators,Libraries paper impregnated with all the lipids extracted from bovine tongue epithelium changed like that of a living taste receptor cell in response to salts and acids. What is important is how the five basic taste qualities are discriminated and their intensities are quantified. As described later sensors using lipid membranes provide satisfactory results. Following this early lead, we started developing taste sensors using artificial lipids. Most lipid molecules are composed of hydrophobic and hydrophilic groups, so lipids are thought to interact with various taste materials via electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. After more than 10 years in R&D [8�C28], the first commercial SA401 Taste Sensing System was introduced in Japan in 1993. However, taste sensors at that time had inadequate selectivity for evaluating taste objectively.

We launched new research in 1999 to make a Inhibitors,Modulators,Libraries breakthrough in taste sensors by achieving higher selectivity for each taste [52�C54], especially bitterness and astringency, which are difficult to evaluate by conventional chemical analysis. We found that sensor selectivity for each taste is improved by modulating both the hydrophobic interaction between the taste sensor and bitter or astringent substance [52,53] and the membrane charge density [54] (See Sections 3.1 and 3.2 for more details).

Breakthrough innovation from the perspective of sensor engineering rather than biology suggests four requirements are needed to achieve objective taste evaluation: (1) The taste sensor must respond consistently to the same taste Brefeldin_A like the human tongue (global selectivity); (2) The taste sensor threshold must be the same as human taste threshold; (3) There must be a clearly defined unit of information from the taste sensor; and (4) The taste sensor must detect interactions between taste substances (see Section 3). Our current www.selleckchem.com/products/Bortezomib.html taste sensors satisfy all the requirements. High correlation with human sensory score means taste sensors respond to samples even at different intensity just like the human gustatory sense.