| Two-dimensional Molecular Fingerprints in Molecules Exhibiting the Sweet Flavor |
| Paper ID : 1250-IGA |
| Authors |
|
Chiquito Joaquim Crasto * Texas Tech University |
| Abstract |
| We studied 120 sweet-tasting organic molecules, to identify molecular fingerprints—reproducible electronic-structural features—that contribute to this taste. These fingerprints were planar regions in the molecules formed by atom triads. The electronic aspect of the fingerprint is the 13C Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) chemical shift for the atom; the structural aspect of the fingerprint is the interatomic distance between the atom pairs and the interatomic angle between atom triads. The sweet-tasting molecules were identified at TheGoodScentsCompany web resource. We narrowed our results to eight atom-triad matches, which, in addition to the sweet taste, possess other flavors, such as fruity, green, waxy, creamy, floral, oily and spicy. Flavors such as green and brown combine vision and taste. Our results demonstrate that molecules that have similar sweet and nuanced flavors show reproducible planar regions. The consequences of such a study are that we can provide a molecular view as to the causes of the sweet taste as well as point to the positive and negative implications of the use of sweet tasting compounds in daily life. This methodology is universally applicable to any cohort of molecules that share a property. |
| Keywords |
| Molecular Fingerprints, Taste Molecules, NMR Chemical Shifts, Atom-Triads |
| Status: Accepted |
