Scientists Discover Protein Receptor For Carbonation Taste
In 1767, chemist Joseph Priestley stood in his laboratory one day with an idea to help English mariners stay healthy on long ocean voyages. He infused water with carbon dioxide to create an effervescent liquid that mimicked the finest mineral waters consumed at European health spas. Priestley's man-made tonic, which he urged his benefactors to test aboard His Majesty's ships, never prevented a scurvy outbreak. But, as the decades passed, his carbonated water became popular in cities and towns for its enjoyable taste and later as the main ingredient of sodas, sparkling wines, and all variety of carbonated drinks.
Missing from this nearly 250-year-old story is a scientific explanation of how people taste the carbonation bubbling in their glass. In this week's issue of the journal Science, researchers at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), part of the National Institutes of Health, and their colleagues from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) report that they have discovered the answer in mice, whose sense of taste closely resembles that of humans.
Sparkling water. (Credit: iStockphoto/Jesus Ayala)
Missing from this nearly 250-year-old story is a scientific explanation of how people taste the carbonation bubbling in their glass. In this week's issue of the journal Science, researchers at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), part of the National Institutes of Health, and their colleagues from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) report that they have discovered the answer in mice, whose sense of taste closely resembles that of humans.
