Is Sweet Taste Perception Associated with Sweet Food Liking and Intake?

PubMed Central

Jayasinghe, Shakeela N.; Kruger, Rozanne; Walsh, Daniel C. I.; Cao, Guojiao; Rivers, Stacey; Richter, Marilize; Breier, Bernhard H.

2017-01-01

A range of psychophysical taste measurements are used to characterize an individual’s sweet taste perception and to assess links between taste perception and dietary intake. The aims of this study were to investigate the relationship between four different psychophysical measurements of sweet taste perception, and to explore which measures of sweet taste perception relate to sweet food intake. Forty-four women aged 20–40 years were recruited for the study. Four measures of sweet taste perception (detection and recognition thresholds, and sweet taste intensity and hedonic liking of suprathreshold concentrations) were assessed using glucose as the tastant. Dietary measurements included a four-day weighed food record, a sweet food-food frequency questionnaire and a sweet beverage liking questionnaire. Glucose detection and recognition thresholds showed no correlation with suprathreshold taste measurements or any dietary intake measurement. Importantly, sweet taste intensity correlated negatively with total energy and carbohydrate (starch, total sugar, fructose, glucose) intakes, frequency of sweet food intake and sweet beverage liking. Furthermore, sweet hedonic liking correlated positively with total energy and carbohydrate (total sugar, fructose, glucose) intakes. The present study shows a clear link between sweet taste intensity and hedonic liking with sweet food liking, and total energy, carbohydrate and sugar intake. PMID:28708085

Label-free assay based on immobilized capillary enzyme reactor of Leishmania infantum nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (LicNTPDase-2-ICER-LC/UV).

PubMed

Magalhães, Luana; de Oliveira, Arthur Henrique Cavalcante; de Souza Vasconcellos, Raphael; Mariotini-Moura, Christiane; de Cássia Firmino, Rafaela; Fietto, Juliana Lopes Rangel; Cardoso, Carmen Lúcia

2016-01-01

Nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (NTPDase) is an enzyme belonging to the apyrase family that participates in the hydrolysis of the nucleosides di- and triphosphate to the corresponding nucleoside monophosphate. This enzyme underlies the virulence of parasites such as Leishmania. Recently, an NTPDase from Leishmania infantum (LicNTPDase-2) was cloned and expressed and has been considered as a new drug target for the treatment of leishmaniasis. With the intent of developing label-free online screening methodologies, LicNTPDase-2 was covalently immobilized onto a fused silica capillary tube in the present study to create an immobilized capillary enzyme reactor (ICER) based on LicNTPDase-2 (LicNTPDase-2-ICER). To perform the activity assays, a multidimensional chromatographic method was developed employing the LicNTPDase-2-ICER in the first dimension, and an analytical Ascentis C8 column was used in the second dimension to provide analytical separation of the substrates and products. The validated LicNTPDase-2-ICER method provided the following kinetic parameters of the immobilized enzyme: KM of 2.2 and 1.8mmolL(-1) for the ADP and ATP substrates, respectively. Suramin (1mmolL(-1)) was also shown to inhibit 32.9% of the enzymatic activity. The developed method is applicable to kinetic studies and enables the recognition of the ligands. Furthermore, a comparison of the values of LicNTPDase-2-ICER with those obtained with an LC method using free enzyme in solution showed that LicNTPDase-2-ICER-LC/UV was an accurate and reproducible method that enabled automated measurements for the rapid screening of ligands. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Regulatory T cells facilitate the nuclear accumulation of inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER) and suppress nuclear factor of activated T cell c1 (NFATc1)

PubMed Central

Vaeth, Martin; Gogishvili, Tea; Bopp, Tobias; Klein, Matthias; Berberich-Siebelt, Friederike; Gattenloehner, Stefan; Avots, Andris; Sparwasser, Tim; Grebe, Nadine; Schmitt, Edgar; Hünig, Thomas; Serfling, Edgar; Bodor, Josef

2011-01-01

Inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER) is a transcriptional repressor, which, because of alternate promoter use, is generated from the 3′ region of the cAMP response modulator (Crem) gene. Its expression and nuclear occurrence are elevated by high cAMP levels in naturally occurring regulatory T cells (nTregs). Using two mouse models, we demonstrate that nTregs control the cellular localization of ICER/CREM, and thereby inhibit IL-2 synthesis in conventional CD4+ T cells. Ablation of nTregs in depletion of regulatory T-cell (DEREG) mice resulted in cytosolic localization of ICER/CREM and increased IL-2 synthesis upon stimulation. Direct contacts between nTregs and conventional CD4+ T cells led to nuclear accumulation of ICER/CREM and suppression of IL-2 synthesis on administration of CD28 superagonistic (CD28SA) Ab. In a similar way, nTregs communicated with B cells and induced the cAMP-driven nuclear localization of ICER/CREM. High levels of ICER suppressed the induction of nuclear factor of activated T cell c1 (Nfatc1) gene in T cells whose inducible Nfatc1 P1 promoter bears two highly conserved cAMP-responsive elements to which ICER/CREM can bind. These findings suggest that nTregs suppress T-cell responses by the cAMP-dependent nuclear accumulation of ICER/CREM and inhibition of NFATc1 and IL-2 induction. PMID:21262800

Structure and function of SemiSWEET and SWEET sugar transporters.

PubMed

Feng, Liang; Frommer, Wolf B

2015-08-01

SemiSWEETs and SWEETs have emerged as unique sugar transporters. First discovered in plants with the help of fluorescent biosensors, homologs exist in all kingdoms of life. Bacterial and plant homologs transport hexoses and sucrose, whereas animal SWEETs transport glucose. Prokaryotic SemiSWEETs are small and comprise a parallel homodimer of an approximately 100 amino acid-long triple helix bundle (THB). Duplicated THBs are fused to create eukaryotic SWEETs in a parallel orientation via an inversion linker helix, producing a similar configuration to that of SemiSWEET dimers. Structures of four SemiSWEETs have been resolved in three states: open outside, occluded, and open inside, indicating alternating access. As we discuss here, these atomic structures provide a basis for exploring the evolution of structure-function relations in this new class of transporters. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

SuperSweet--a resource on natural and artificial sweetening agents.

PubMed

Ahmed, Jessica; Preissner, Saskia; Dunkel, Mathias; Worth, Catherine L; Eckert, Andreas; Preissner, Robert

2011-01-01

A vast number of sweet tasting molecules are known, encompassing small compounds, carbohydrates, d-amino acids and large proteins. Carbohydrates play a particularly big role in human diet. The replacement of sugars in food with artificial sweeteners is common and is a general approach to prevent cavities, obesity and associated diseases such as diabetes and hyperlipidemia. Knowledge about the molecular basis of taste may reveal new strategies to overcome diet-induced diseases. In this context, the design of safe, low-calorie sweeteners is particularly important. Here, we provide a comprehensive collection of carbohydrates, artificial sweeteners and other sweet tasting agents like proteins and peptides. Additionally, structural information and properties such as number of calories, therapeutic annotations and a sweetness-index are stored in SuperSweet. Currently, the database consists of more than 8000 sweet molecules. Moreover, the database provides a modeled 3D structure of the sweet taste receptor and binding poses of the small sweet molecules. These binding poses provide hints for the design of new sweeteners. A user-friendly graphical interface allows similarity searching, visualization of docked sweeteners into the receptor etc. A sweetener classification tree and browsing features allow quick requests to be made to the database. The database is freely available at: http://bioinformatics.charite.de/sweet/.

Isothermal titration calorimetry study of the interaction of sweeteners with fullerenols as an artificial sweet taste receptor model.

PubMed

Chen, Zhong-Xiu; Guo, Gang-Min; Deng, Shao-Ping

2009-04-08

A fullerenol-based synthetic sweetness receptor model, consisting of polyhydroxy groups for potential hydrogen bond donor along with a spherical hydrophobic center, was proposed according to the widely accepted sweetness hypothesis. An isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) technique was used to study mimetic interaction of this sweet receptor model with a series of sweeteners having increasing sweetness intensity. The results showed that ITC is an effective method to provide thorough and precise characterization of the energies of molecular complex formation. Binding of all of the studied sweeteners with fullerenols was found through two sets of site models. More heat was released from sweeter synthetic compounds binding with fullerenols than from less sweet carbohydrates. The results imply that hydrogen bond formation is necessary for the sweeteners to bind to the fullerenol receptor in the first stage, whereas hydrophobic effect and conformation changes that lead to favorable entropy changes occur in most cases. The preliminary results of this study help to cover the lack of information about the thermodynamic basis of understanding of the initiation of the sweet sensation. It also adds complementary physicochemical measurements available for comparison with the sweetness hypothesis. On the other hand, a correlation between the thermodynamic parameters and sweetness intensity has been made as well, which exhibits potential as a useful tool in sensory analysis.

Integrative View of the Diversity and Evolution of SWEET and SemiSWEET Sugar Transporters.

PubMed

Jia, Baolei; Zhu, Xiao Feng; Pu, Zhong Ji; Duan, Yu Xi; Hao, Lu Jiang; Zhang, Jie; Chen, Li-Qing; Jeon, Che Ok; Xuan, Yuan Hu

2017-01-01

Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporter (SWEET) and SemiSWEET are recently characterized families of sugar transporters in eukaryotes and prokaryotes, respectively. SemiSWEETs contain 3 transmembrane helices (TMHs), while SWEETs contain 7. Here, we performed sequence-based comprehensive analyses for SWEETs and SemiSWEETs across the biosphere. In total, 3,249 proteins were identified and ≈60% proteins were found in green plants and Oomycota, which include a number of important plant pathogens. Protein sequence similarity networks indicate that proteins from different organisms are significantly clustered. Of note, SemiSWEETs with 3 or 4 TMHs that may fuse to SWEET were identified in plant genomes. 7-TMH SWEETs were found in bacteria, implying that SemiSWEET can be fused directly in prokaryote. 15-TMH extraSWEET and 25-TMH superSWEET were also observed in wild rice and oomycetes, respectively. The transporters can be classified into 4, 2, 2, and 2 clades in plants, Metazoa, unicellular eukaryotes, and prokaryotes, respectively. The consensus and coevolution of amino acids in SWEETs were identified by multiple sequence alignments. The functions of the highly conserved residues were analyzed by molecular dynamics analysis. The 19 most highly conserved residues in the SWEETs were further confirmed by point mutagenesis using SWEET1 from Arabidopsis thaliana . The results proved that the conserved residues located in the extrafacial gate (Y57, G58, G131, and P191), the substrate binding pocket (N73, N192, and W176), and the intrafacial gate (P43, Y83, F87, P145, M161, P162, and Q202) play important roles for substrate recognition and transport processes. Taken together, our analyses provide a foundation for understanding the diversity, classification, and evolution of SWEETs and SemiSWEETs using large-scale sequence analysis and further show that gene duplication and gene fusion are important factors driving the evolution of SWEETs.

Integrative View of the Diversity and Evolution of SWEET and SemiSWEET Sugar Transporters

PubMed Central

Jia, Baolei; Zhu, Xiao Feng; Pu, Zhong Ji; Duan, Yu Xi; Hao, Lu Jiang; Zhang, Jie; Chen, Li-Qing; Jeon, Che Ok; Xuan, Yuan Hu

2017-01-01

Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporter (SWEET) and SemiSWEET are recently characterized families of sugar transporters in eukaryotes and prokaryotes, respectively. SemiSWEETs contain 3 transmembrane helices (TMHs), while SWEETs contain 7. Here, we performed sequence-based comprehensive analyses for SWEETs and SemiSWEETs across the biosphere. In total, 3,249 proteins were identified and ≈60% proteins were found in green plants and Oomycota, which include a number of important plant pathogens. Protein sequence similarity networks indicate that proteins from different organisms are significantly clustered. Of note, SemiSWEETs with 3 or 4 TMHs that may fuse to SWEET were identified in plant genomes. 7-TMH SWEETs were found in bacteria, implying that SemiSWEET can be fused directly in prokaryote. 15-TMH extraSWEET and 25-TMH superSWEET were also observed in wild rice and oomycetes, respectively. The transporters can be classified into 4, 2, 2, and 2 clades in plants, Metazoa, unicellular eukaryotes, and prokaryotes, respectively. The consensus and coevolution of amino acids in SWEETs were identified by multiple sequence alignments. The functions of the highly conserved residues were analyzed by molecular dynamics analysis. The 19 most highly conserved residues in the SWEETs were further confirmed by point mutagenesis using SWEET1 from Arabidopsis thaliana. The results proved that the conserved residues located in the extrafacial gate (Y57, G58, G131, and P191), the substrate binding pocket (N73, N192, and W176), and the intrafacial gate (P43, Y83, F87, P145, M161, P162, and Q202) play important roles for substrate recognition and transport processes. Taken together, our analyses provide a foundation for understanding the diversity, classification, and evolution of SWEETs and SemiSWEETs using large-scale sequence analysis and further show that gene duplication and gene fusion are important factors driving the evolution of SWEETs. PMID:29326750

Sweet neutron crystallography.

PubMed

Teixeira, S C M; Blakeley, M P; Leal, R M F; Gillespie, S M; Mitchell, E P; Forsyth, V T

2010-11-01

Extremely sweet proteins isolated from tropical fruit extracts are promising healthy alternatives to sugar and synthetic sweeteners. Sweetness and taste in general are, however, still poorly understood. The engineering of stable sweet proteins with tailored properties is made difficult by the lack of supporting high-resolution structural data. Experimental information on charge distribution, protonation states and solvent structure are vital for an understanding of the mechanism through which sweet proteins interact with taste receptors. Neutron studies of the crystal structures of sweet proteins allow a detailed study of these biophysical properties, as illustrated by a neutron study on the native protein thaumatin in which deuterium labelling was used to improve data quality.

The human sweet tooth.

PubMed

Reed, Danielle R; McDaniel, Amanda H

2006-06-15

Humans love the taste of sugar and the word "sweet" is used to describe not only this basic taste quality but also something that is desirable or pleasurable, e.g., la dolce vita. Although sugar or sweetened foods are generally among the most preferred choices, not everyone likes sugar, especially at high concentrations. The focus of my group's research is to understand why some people have a sweet tooth and others do not. We have used genetic and molecular techniques in humans, rats, mice, cats and primates to understand the origins of sweet taste perception. Our studies demonstrate that there are two sweet receptor genes (TAS1R2 and TAS1R3), and alleles of one of the two genes predict the avidity with which some mammals drink sweet solutions. We also find a relationship between sweet and bitter perception. Children who are genetically more sensitive to bitter compounds report that very sweet solutions are more pleasant and they prefer sweet carbonated beverages more than milk, relative to less bitter-sensitive peers. Overall, people differ in their ability to perceive the basic tastes, and particular constellations of genes and experience may drive some people, but not others, toward a caries-inducing sweet diet. Future studies will be designed to understand how a genetic preference for sweet food and drink might contribute to the development of dental caries.

Upregulation of CREM/ICER suppresses wound endothelial CRE-HIF-1α-VEGF-dependent signaling and impairs angiogenesis in type 2 diabetes

PubMed Central

Bitar, Milad S.; Al-Mulla, Fahd

2015-01-01

Impaired angiogenesis and endothelial dysfunction in type 2 diabetes constitute dominant risk factors for non-healing wounds and most forms of cardiovascular disease. We propose that diabetes shifts the ‘angiogenic balance’ in favor of an excessive anti-angiogenic phenotype. Herein, we report that diabetes impairs in vivo sponge angiogenic capacity by decreasing VEGF expression and fibrovascular invasion, and reciprocally enhances the formation of angiostatic molecules, such as thrombospondins, NFκB and FasL. Defective in vivo angiogenesis prompted cellular studies in cultured endothelial cells derived from subcutaneous sponge implants (SIECs) of control and Goto-Kakizaki rats. Ensuing data from diabetic SIECs demonstrated a marked upregulation in cAMP-PKA-CREB signaling, possibly stemming from increased expression of adenylyl cyclase isoforms 3 and 8, and decreased expression of PDE3. Mechanistically, we found that oxidative stress and PKA activation in diabetes enhanced CREM/ICER expression. This reduces IRS2 cellular content by inhibiting cAMP response element (CRE) transcriptional activity. Consequently, a decrease in the activity of Akt-mTOR ensued with a concomitant reduction in the total and nuclear protein levels of HIF-1α. Limiting HIF-1α availability for the specific hypoxia response elements in diabetic SIECs elicited a marked reduction in VEGF expression, both at the mRNA and protein levels. These molecular abnormalities were illustrated functionally by a defect in various pro-angiogenic properties, including cell proliferation, migration and tube formation. A genetic-based strategy in diabetic SIECs using siRNAs against CREM/ICER significantly augmented the PKA-dependent VEGF expression. To this end, the current data identify the importance of CREM/ICER as a negative regulator of endothelial function and establish a link between CREM/ICER overexpression and impaired angiogenesis during the course of diabetes. Moreover, it could also point to

Utilization of Baked-Smashed Sweet Potato and Vegetables on Patisserie Product

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ana, A.; Subekti, S.; Sudewi, S.; Perdani, E. N.; Hanum, F.; Suciani, T.; Tania, V.

2018-02-01

The research was an experimental study in Green Skill Patisserie Course using Project-Based Learning model. It aims to complete the project development of pie named guramnis rainbow pie. Several experiments were carried out to produce a pie dough crust mixed with baked-smashed sweet potato and added with vegetables extract as the food coloring. The experiment method in order to make a better appearance or an attractive shape and to have more nutrition. In addition, the pie was filled with a mixture of sweet and sour gurame as Indonesian traditional food. By applying an organoleptic test to 10 respondents, the result shows that pie dough recipe using flour substituted by baked-smashed sweet potato with 2:1 of a ratio. Coloring pie dough adding extract vegetables (carrots, beets and celery) as color. We found that pie dough has more interesting pie color (90%) and the texture of the pie with a quite level of crispness (60%). Moreover, the pie taste is fairly (70%) and tasty (70%). Nutritional analysis results show that per size, serving guramnis rainbow pie contains energy as much as 81.72 calories, carbohydrates 12.5 grams, fat 2.32 grams and 2.77 grams of protein. The main findings are the pie appearance and taste was different compared to the previous pies because of the pie was served with gurame asam manis as the filling and had flour and cilembu sweet potato as the basic ingredients. The color of guramnis rainbow pie was resulted not only from food coloring but also from vegetables extract namely carrot (orange), bit (red), and salary (green). Thus, it had many benefits for health and adds the nutrition. The researchers recommend a further study in order to make pie dough with baked sweet potato and vegetables extract having an optimal level of crispness.

Genetics of sweet taste preferences†

PubMed Central

Bachmanov, Alexander A; Bosak, Natalia P; Floriano, Wely B; Inoue, Masashi; Li, Xia; Lin, Cailu; Murovets, Vladimir O; Reed, Danielle R; Zolotarev, Vasily A; Beauchamp, Gary K

2011-01-01

Sweet taste is a powerful factor influencing food acceptance. There is considerable variation in sweet taste perception and preferences within and among species. Although learning and homeostatic mechanisms contribute to this variation in sweet taste, much of it is genetically determined. Recent studies have shown that variation in the T1R genes contributes to within- and between-species differences in sweet taste. In addition, our ongoing studies using the mouse model demonstrate that a significant portion of variation in sweetener preferences depends on genes that are not involved in peripheral taste processing. These genes are likely involved in central mechanisms of sweet taste processing, reward and/or motivation. Genetic variation in sweet taste not only influences food choice and intake, but is also associated with proclivity to drink alcohol. Both peripheral and central mechanisms of sweet taste underlie correlation between sweet-liking and alcohol consumption in animal models and humans. All these data illustrate complex genetics of sweet taste preferences and its impact on human nutrition and health. Identification of genes responsible for within- and between-species variation in sweet taste can provide tools to better control food acceptance in humans and other animals. PMID:21743773

Phylogenetic evidence for a fusion of archaeal and bacterial SemiSWEETs to form eukaryotic SWEETs and identification of SWEET hexose transporters in the amphibian chytrid pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.

PubMed

Hu, Yi-Bing; Sosso, Davide; Qu, Xiao-Qing; Chen, Li-Qing; Ma, Lai; Chermak, Diane; Zhang, De-Chun; Frommer, Wolf B

2016-10-01

SWEETs represent a new class of sugar transporters first described in plants, animals, and humans and later in prokaryotes. Plant SWEETs play key roles in phloem loading, seed filling, and nectar secretion, whereas the role of archaeal, bacterial, and animal transporters remains elusive. Structural analyses show that eukaryotic SWEETs are composed of 2 triple-helix bundles (THBs) fused via an inversion linker helix, whereas prokaryotic SemiSWEETs contain only a single THB and require homodimerization to form transport pores. This study indicates that SWEETs retained sugar transport activity in all kingdoms of life, and that SemiSWEETs are likely their ancestral units. Fusion of oligomeric subunits into single polypeptides during evolution of eukaryotes is commonly found for transporters. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that THBs of eukaryotic SWEETs may not have evolved by tandem duplication of an open reading frame, but rather originated by fusion between an archaeal and a bacterial SemiSWEET, which potentially explains the asymmetry of eukaryotic SWEETs. Moreover, despite the ancient ancestry, SWEETs had not been identified in fungi or oomycetes. Here, we report the identification of SWEETs in oomycetes as well as SWEETs and a potential SemiSWEET in primitive fungi. BdSWEET1 and BdSWEET2 from Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a nonhyphal zoosporic fungus that causes global decline in amphibians, showed glucose and fructose transport activities.-Hu, Y.-B., Sosso, D., Qu, X.-Q., Chen, L.-Q., Ma, L., Chermak, D., Zhang, D.-C., Frommer, W. B. Phylogenetic evidence for a fusion of archaeal and bacterial SemiSWEETs to form eukaryotic SWEETs and identification of SWEET hexose transporters in the amphibian chytrid pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. © FASEB.

Type utilization of baked-smashed sweet potato and vegetables on patisserie product

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ana; Subekti, S.; Sudewi; Perdani, E. N.; Hanum, F.; Suciani, T.; Tania, V.

2016-04-01

The research was an experimental study in Green Skill Patisserie Course using Project-Based Learning model. It aims to complete the project development of pie named guramnis rainbow pie. Several experiments were carried out to produce a pie dough crust mixed with baked-smashed sweet potato and added with vegetables extract as the food coloring. The experiment method in order to make a better appearance or an attractive shape and to have more nutrition. In addition, the pie was filled with a mixture of sweet and sour gurame as Indonesian traditional food. By applying an organoleptic test to 10 respondents, the result shows that pie dough recipe using flour substituted by baked-smashed sweet potato with 2:1 of a ratio. Coloring pie dough adding extract vegetables (carrots, beets and celery) as color. We found that pie dough has more interesting pie color (90%) and the texture of the pie with a quite level of crispness (60%). Moreover, the pie taste is fairly (70%) and tasty (70%). Nutritional analysis results show that per size, serving guramnis rainbow pie contains energy as much as 81.72 calories, carbohydrates 12.5 grams, fat 2.32 grams and 2.77 grams of protein. The main findings are the pie appearance and taste was different compared to the previous pies because of the pie was served with gurame asam manis as the filling and had flour and cilembu sweet potato as the basic ingredients. The color of guramnis rainbow pie was resulted not only from food coloring but also from vegetables extract namely carrot (orange), bit (red), and salary (green). Thus, it had many benefits for health and adds the nutrition. The researchers recommend a further study in order to make pie dough with baked sweet potato and vegetables extract having an optimal level of crispness.

Sweet Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leung, Shuk-kwan S.; Lo, Jane-Jane

2010-01-01

This article features Sweet play math, a "math by the month" activity that involves decorating and making sugar cubes. Teachers may want to substitute straws, paper squares, alphabet blocks, or such commercially made manipulatives as Unifix[R] cubes for the real sweets. Given no allergy concerns, teachers and students alike would enjoy some sweet…

Sweet Conclusion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shirley, Britt M.; Wooldridge, Barbara Ross; Camp, Kerri M.

2012-01-01

Jen Harrington is the owner and pastry chef of Sweet Conclusion, a bakery in Tampa, Florida. Most of Harrington's business comes from baking wedding cakes, but she has been attempting to attract customers to her retail bakery, where she sells cupcakes, pies, ice cream, and coffee. Nearly four years she opened Sweet Conclusion, the retail part of…

Intake of sweet drinks and sweet treats versus reported and observed caries experience.

PubMed

Lee, J G; Messer, L B

2010-02-01

This was to study the intakes of sweet drinks and sweet treats of children and their caries risk using the Paediatric Risk Assessment Tool (PRAT, 2003) and Caries-risk Assessment Tool (CAT, 2007-8). Parents of 266 healthy primary school children completed the PRAT questionnaire during their child's dental appointment at the Royal Dental Hospital of Melbourne, Australia, describing their fluid and sweet treat intakes in the past 24 hours, oral hygiene practices and past caries. A subgroup (n=100) was examined clinically (CAT) for caries requiring restoration, visible plaque, gingivitis, orthodontic appliances, enamel defects, and use of dental care. The estimated mean daily fluid intake was 1.5+/-0.5L; fluids were consumed 3-5/ day by 57% of children and 78% usually had evening/night drinks. Fluids consumed were: tap water by 90%, milk by 74%, juice by 50%, regular soft drink by 30%; sweet treats were consumed by 62% and confectionery by 25%. Most children (69%) brushed their teeth > or =2/day; 5% flossed daily. Parentally-reported caries was associated significantly with increasing treats frequency (p=0.006). In the subgroup, 81% were at high caries risk; 47% had irregular dental care; 21% had sweet drinks/foods frequently between meals; 49% had visible plaque/gingivitis, and 34% had enamel demineralisation. Caries observed in the past 12 months was associated significantly with evening sweet drinks (p=0.004), and suboptimal fluoride exposure (p=0.009). Caries observed in the past 24 months was associated significantly with treats frequency (p=0.006), intake of sweet drinks plus treats (p=0.000), enamel demineralisation (p=0.000) and irregular dental care (p=0.000). The PRAT and CAT are valuable tools in assessing children's caries risk. The risk of caries from frequent intake of sweet drinks, either alone or in addition to sweet treats, must be emphasised to parents. All parents, and particularly those of children assessed at high risk from intakes of sweet drinks

Sweeteners and sweetness enhancers.

PubMed

Belloir, Christine; Neiers, Fabrice; Briand, Loïc

2017-07-01

The current review summarizes and discusses current knowledge on sweeteners and sweetness enhancers. The perception of sweet taste is mediated by the type 1 taste receptor 2 (T1R2)/type 1 taste receptor 3 (T1R3) receptor, which is expressed in the oral cavity, where it provides input on the caloric and macronutrient contents of ingested food. This receptor recognizes all the compounds (natural or artificial) perceived as sweet by people. Sweeteners are highly chemically diverse including natural sugars, sugar alcohols, natural and synthetic sweeteners, and sweet-tasting proteins. This single receptor is also the target for developing novel sweet enhancers. Importantly, the expression of a functional T1R2/T1R3 receptor is described in numerous extraoral tissues. In this review, the physiological impact of sweeteners is discussed. Sweeteners and sweetness enhancers are perceived through the T1R2/T1R3 taste receptor present both in mouth and numerous extraoral tissues. The accumulated knowledge on sugar substitutes raises the issue of potential health effects.

Sweetness determinant sites of brazzein, a small, heat-stable, sweet-tasting protein.

PubMed

Assadi-Porter, F M; Aceti, D J; Markley, J L

2000-04-15

Brazzein, originally isolated from the fruit of the African plant Pentadiplandra brazzeana Baillon, is the smallest, most heat-stable and pH-stable member of the set of proteins known to have intrinsic sweetness. These properties make brazzein an ideal system for investigating the chemical and structural requirements of a sweet-tasting protein. We have used the three-dimensional structure of the protein (J. E. Caldwell et al. (1998) Nat. Struct. Biol. 5, 427-431) as a guide in designing 15 synthetic genes in expression constructs aimed at delineating the sweetness determinants of brazzein. Protein was produced heterologously in Escherichia coli, isolated, and purified as described in the companion paper (Assadi-Porter, F. M., Aceti, D., Cheng, H., and Markley, J. L., this issue). Analysis by one-dimensional (1)H NMR spectroscopy indicated that all but one of these variants had folded properly under the conditions used. A taste panel compared the gustatory properties of solutions of these proteins to those of sucrose and brazzein isolated from fruit. Of the 14 mutations in the des-pGlu1-brazzein background, four exhibited almost no sweetness, six had significantly reduced sweetness, two had taste properties equivalent to des-pGlu1-brazzein (two times as sweet as the major form of brazzein isolated from fruit which contains pGlu1), and two were about twice as sweet as des-pGlu1-brazzein. Overall, the results suggest that two regions of the protein are critical for the sweetness of brazzein: a region that includes the N- and C-termini of the protein, which are located close to one another, and a region that includes the flexible loop around Arg43. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.

Sweet clover poisoning

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet clover poisoning occurs when spoiled sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis and M. alva) hay or silage that contain dicumarol are consumed by livestock. This updated chapter is a succinct review of the clinical disease and pathologic lesions of poisoning. It also reviews current strategies and ...

Drug versus sweet reward: greater attraction to and preference for sweet versus drug cues.

PubMed

Madsen, Heather B; Ahmed, Serge H

2015-05-01

Despite the unique ability of addictive drugs to directly activate brain reward circuits, recent evidence suggests that drugs induce reinforcing and incentive effects that are comparable to, or even lower than some nondrug rewards. In particular, when rats have a choice between pressing a lever associated with intravenous cocaine or heroin delivery and another lever associated with sweet water delivery, most respond on the latter. This outcome suggests that sweet water is more reinforcing and attractive than either drug. However, this outcome may also be due to the differential ability of sweet versus drug levers to elicit Pavlovian feeding-like conditioned responses that can cause involuntary lever pressing, such as pawing and biting the lever. To test this hypothesis, rats first underwent Pavlovian conditioning to associate one lever with sweet water (0.2% saccharin) and a different lever with intravenous cocaine (0.25 mg) or heroin (0.01 mg). Choice between these two levers was then assessed under two operant choice procedures: one that permitted the expression of Pavlovian-conditioned lever press responses during choice, the other not. During conditioning, Pavlovian-conditioned lever press responses were considerably higher on the sweet lever than on either drug lever, and slightly greater on the heroin lever than on the cocaine lever. Importantly, though these differences in Pavlovian-conditioned behavior predicted subsequent preference for sweet water during choice, they were not required for its expression. Overall, this study confirms that rats prefer the sweet lever because sweet water is more reinforcing and attractive than cocaine or heroin. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Endocannabinoids selectively enhance sweet taste.

PubMed

Yoshida, Ryusuke; Ohkuri, Tadahiro; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Yasuo, Toshiaki; Horio, Nao; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Yamamoto, Tsuneyuki; Margolskee, Robert F; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2010-01-12

Endocannabinoids such as anandamide [N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA)] and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) are known orexigenic mediators that act via CB(1) receptors in hypothalamus and limbic forebrain to induce appetite and stimulate food intake. Circulating endocannabinoid levels inversely correlate with plasma levels of leptin, an anorexigenic mediator that reduces food intake by acting on hypothalamic receptors. Recently, taste has been found to be a peripheral target of leptin. Leptin selectively suppresses sweet taste responses in wild-type mice but not in leptin receptor-deficient db/db mice. Here, we show that endocannabinoids oppose the action of leptin to act as enhancers of sweet taste. We found that administration of AEA or 2-AG increases gustatory nerve responses to sweeteners in a concentration-dependent manner without affecting responses to salty, sour, bitter, and umami compounds. The cannabinoids increase behavioral responses to sweet-bitter mixtures and electrophysiological responses of taste receptor cells to sweet compounds. Mice genetically lacking CB(1) receptors show no enhancement by endocannnabinoids of sweet taste responses at cellular, nerve, or behavioral levels. In addition, the effects of endocannabinoids on sweet taste responses of taste cells are diminished by AM251, a CB(1) receptor antagonist, but not by AM630, a CB(2) receptor antagonist. Immunohistochemistry shows that CB(1) receptors are expressed in type II taste cells that also express the T1r3 sweet taste receptor component. Taken together, these observations suggest that the taste organ is a peripheral target of endocannabinoids. Reciprocal regulation of peripheral sweet taste reception by endocannabinoids and leptin may contribute to their opposing actions on food intake and play an important role in regulating energy homeostasis.

BitterSweetForest: A Random Forest Based Binary Classifier to Predict Bitterness and Sweetness of Chemical Compounds

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Priyanka; Preissner, Robert

2018-01-01

Taste of a chemical compound present in food stimulates us to take in nutrients and avoid poisons. However, the perception of taste greatly depends on the genetic as well as evolutionary perspectives. The aim of this work was the development and validation of a machine learning model based on molecular fingerprints to discriminate between sweet and bitter taste of molecules. BitterSweetForest is the first open access model based on KNIME workflow that provides platform for prediction of bitter and sweet taste of chemical compounds using molecular fingerprints and Random Forest based classifier. The constructed model yielded an accuracy of 95% and an AUC of 0.98 in cross-validation. In independent test set, BitterSweetForest achieved an accuracy of 96% and an AUC of 0.98 for bitter and sweet taste prediction. The constructed model was further applied to predict the bitter and sweet taste of natural compounds, approved drugs as well as on an acute toxicity compound data set. BitterSweetForest suggests 70% of the natural product space, as bitter and 10% of the natural product space as sweet with confidence score of 0.60 and above. 77% of the approved drug set was predicted as bitter and 2% as sweet with a confidence score of 0.75 and above. Similarly, 75% of the total compounds from acute oral toxicity class were predicted only as bitter with a minimum confidence score of 0.75, revealing toxic compounds are mostly bitter. Furthermore, we applied a Bayesian based feature analysis method to discriminate the most occurring chemical features between sweet and bitter compounds using the feature space of a circular fingerprint. PMID:29696137

BitterSweetForest: A random forest based binary classifier to predict bitterness and sweetness of chemical compounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banerjee, Priyanka; Preissner, Robert

2018-04-01

Taste of a chemical compounds present in food stimulates us to take in nutrients and avoid poisons. However, the perception of taste greatly depends on the genetic as well as evolutionary perspectives. The aim of this work was the development and validation of a machine learning model based on molecular fingerprints to discriminate between sweet and bitter taste of molecules. BitterSweetForest is the first open access model based on KNIME workflow that provides platform for prediction of bitter and sweet taste of chemical compounds using molecular fingerprints and Random Forest based classifier. The constructed model yielded an accuracy of 95% and an AUC of 0.98 in cross-validation. In independent test set, BitterSweetForest achieved an accuracy of 96 % and an AUC of 0.98 for bitter and sweet taste prediction. The constructed model was further applied to predict the bitter and sweet taste of natural compounds, approved drugs as well as on an acute toxicity compound data set. BitterSweetForest suggests 70% of the natural product space, as bitter and 10 % of the natural product space as sweet with confidence score of 0.60 and above. 77 % of the approved drug set was predicted as bitter and 2% as sweet with a confidence scores of 0.75 and above. Similarly, 75% of the total compounds from acute oral toxicity class were predicted only as bitter with a minimum confidence score of 0.75, revealing toxic compounds are mostly bitter. Furthermore, we applied a Bayesian based feature analysis method to discriminate the most occurring chemical features between sweet and bitter compounds from the feature space of a circular fingerprint.

Tea plant SWEET transporters: expression profiling, sugar transport, and the involvement of CsSWEET16 in modifying cold tolerance in Arabidopsis.

PubMed

Wang, Lu; Yao, Lina; Hao, Xinyuan; Li, Nana; Qian, Wenjun; Yue, Chuan; Ding, Changqing; Zeng, Jianming; Yang, Yajun; Wang, Xinchao

2018-04-01

Thirteen SWEET transporters were identified in Camellia sinensis and the cold-suppression gene CsSWEET16 contributed to sugar compartmentation across the vacuole and function in modifying cold tolerance in Arabidopsis. The sugars will eventually be exported transporters (SWEET) family of sugar transporters in plants is a recently identified protein family of sugar uniporters that contain seven transmembrane helices harbouring two MtN3 motifs. SWEETs play important roles in various biological processes, including plant responses to environmental stimuli. In this study, 13 SWEET transporters were identified in Camellia sinensis and were divided into four clades. Transcript abundances of CsSWEET genes were detected in various tissues. CsSWEET1a/1b/2a/2b/2c/3/9b/16/17 were expressed in all of the selected tissues, whereas the expression of CsSWEET5/7/9a/15 was not detected in some tissues, including those of mature leaves. Expression analysis of nine CsSWEET genes in leaves in response to abiotic stresses, natural cold acclimation and Colletotrichum camelliae infection revealed that eight CsSWEET genes responded to abiotic stress, while CsSWEET3 responded to C. camelliae infection. Functional analysis of 13 CsSWEET activities in yeast revealed that CsSWEET1a/1b/7/17 exhibit transport activity for glucose analogues and other types of hexose molecules. Further characterization of the cold-suppression gene CsSWEET16 revealed that this gene is localized in the vacuolar membrane. CsSWEET16 contributed to sugar compartmentation across the vacuole and function in modifying cold tolerance in Arabidopsis. Together, these findings demonstrate that CsSWEET genes play important roles in the response to abiotic and biotic stresses in tea plants and provide insights into the characteristics of SWEET genes in tea plants, which could serve as the basis for further functional identification of such genes.

Positive allosteric modulators of the human sweet taste receptor enhance sweet taste

PubMed Central

Servant, Guy; Tachdjian, Catherine; Tang, Xiao-Qing; Werner, Sara; Zhang, Feng; Li, Xiaodong; Kamdar, Poonit; Petrovic, Goran; Ditschun, Tanya; Java, Antoniette; Brust, Paul; Brune, Nicole; DuBois, Grant E.; Zoller, Mark; Karanewsky, Donald S.

2010-01-01

To identify molecules that could enhance sweetness perception, we undertook the screening of a compound library using a cell-based assay for the human sweet taste receptor and a panel of selected sweeteners. In one of these screens we found a hit, SE-1, which significantly enhanced the activity of sucralose in the assay. At 50 μM, SE-1 increased the sucralose potency by >20-fold. On the other hand, SE-1 exhibited little or no agonist activity on its own. SE-1 effects were strikingly selective for sucralose. Other popular sweeteners such as aspartame, cyclamate, and saccharin were not enhanced by SE-1 whereas sucrose and neotame potency were increased only by 1.3- to 2.5-fold at 50 μM. Further assay-guided chemical optimization of the initial hit SE-1 led to the discovery of SE-2 and SE-3, selective enhancers of sucralose and sucrose, respectively. SE-2 (50 μM) and SE-3 (200 μM) increased sucralose and sucrose potencies in the assay by 24- and 4.7-fold, respectively. In human taste tests, 100 μM of SE-1 and SE-2 allowed for a reduction of 50% to >80% in the concentration of sucralose, respectively, while maintaining the sweetness intensity, and 100 μM SE-3 allowed for a reduction of 33% in the concentration of sucrose while maintaining the sweetness intensity. These enhancers did not exhibit any sweetness when tasted on their own. Positive allosteric modulators of the human sweet taste receptor could help reduce the caloric content in food and beverages while maintaining the desired taste. PMID:20173092

Localization of sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV) in synergic infection with potyviruses in sweet potato.

PubMed

Nome, Claudia Fernanda; Nome, Sergio Fernando; Guzmán, Fabiana; Conci, Luis; Laguna, Irma Graciela

2007-01-01

Among diseases reported worldwidely for sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L) Lam) crop, one of the most frequent is the Sweet potato virus disease (SPVD), caused by sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV) and sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) co-infection. In Argentina, there exists the sweet potato chlorotic dwarf (SPCD), a sweet potato disease caused by triple co-infection with SPCSV, SPFMV and sweet potato mild speckling virus (SPMSV). Both diseases cause a synergism between the potyviruses (SPFMV and SPMSV) and the crinivirus (SPCSV). Up to date, studies carried out on the interaction among these three viruses have not described their localization in the infected tissues. In single infections, virions of the crinivirus genus are limited to the phloem while potyviral virions are found in most tissues of the infected plant. The purpose of this work was to localize the heat shock protein 70 homolog (HSP70h), a movement protein for genus crinivirus, of an Argentinean SPCSV isolate in its single infection and in its double and triple co-infection with SPFMV and SPMSV. The localization was made by in situ hybridization (ISH) for electron microscopy (EM) on ultrathin sections of sweet potato cv. Morada INTA infected tissues. The results demonstrated that viral RNA coding HSP70h is restricted to phloem cells during crinivirus single infection, while it was detected outside the phloem in infections combined with the potyviruses involved in chlorotic dwarf disease.

Innovative production technology ethanol from sweet sorghum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kashapov, N. F.; Nafikov, M. M.; Gazetdinov, M. X.; Nafikova, M. M.; Nigmatzyanov, A. R.

2016-06-01

The paper considers the technological aspects of production of ethanol from nontraditional for Russian Federation crops - sweet sorghum. Presents the technological scheme of alcohol production and fuel pellets from sweet sorghum. Special attention is paid to assessing the efficiency of alcohol production from sweet sorghum. The described advantage of sugar content in stem juice of sweet sorghum compared with other raw materials. Allegedly, the use of the technology for producing alcohol from sweet sorghum allows to save resources.

Yellow sweet potato flour: use in sweet bread processing to increase β-carotene content and improve quality.

PubMed

Nogueira, Amanda C; Sehn, Georgia A R; Rebellato, Ana Paula; Coutinho, Janclei P; Godoy, Helena T; Chang, Yoon K; Steel, Caroline J; Clerici, Maria Teresa P S

2018-01-01

Yellow sweet potato is mostly produced by small farmers, and may be a source of energy and carotenoids in the human diet, but it is a highly perishable crop. To increase its industrial application, yellow sweet potato flour has been produced for use in bakery products. This study aimed to evaluate the technological quality and the carotenoids content in sweet breads produced with the replacement of wheat flour by 0, 3, 6, and 9% yellow sweet potato flour. Breads were characterized by technological parameters and β-carotene levels during nine days of storage. Tukey's test (p<0.05) was used for comparison between means. The increase in yellow sweet potato flour concentrations in bread led to a decrease of specific volume and firmness, and an increase in water activity, moisture, orange coloring, and carotenoids. During storage, the most significant changes were observed after the fifth day, with a decrease in intensity of the orange color. The β-carotene content was 0.1656 to 0.4715 µg/g in breads with yellow sweet potato flour. This work showed a novel use of yellow sweet potato in breads, which brings benefits to consumers' health and for the agricultural business.

Impacts of aircraft deicer and anti-icer runoff on receiving waters from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Texas, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Corsi, S.R.; Harwell, G.R.; Geis, S.W.; Bergman, D.

2006-01-01

From October 2002 to April 2004, data were collected from Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport (TX, USA) outfalls and receiving waters (Trigg Lake and Big Bear Creek) to document the magnitude and potential effects of aircraft deicer and anti-icer fluid (ADAF) runoff on water quality. Glycol concentrations at outfalls ranged from less than 18 to 23,800 mg/L, whereas concentrations in Big Bear Creek were less because of dilution, dispersion, and degradation, ranging from less than 18 to 230 mg/L. Annual loading results indicate that 10 and 35% of what was applied to aircraft was discharged to Big Bear Creek in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Glycol that entered Trigg Lake was diluted and degraded before reaching the lake outlet. Dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations at airport outfalls sometimes were low (5.0 mg/L). Results of toxicity tests indicate that effects on Ceriodaphnia dubia, Pimephales promelas, and Selanastrum capricornutum are influenced by type IV ADAF (anti-icer), not just type I ADAF (deicer) as is more commonly assumed. ?? 2006 SETAC.

Modulation of sweet taste by umami compounds via sweet taste receptor subunit hT1R2.

PubMed

Shim, Jaewon; Son, Hee Jin; Kim, Yiseul; Kim, Ki Hwa; Kim, Jung Tae; Moon, Hana; Kim, Min Jung; Misaka, Takumi; Rhyu, Mee-Ra

2015-01-01

Although the five basic taste qualities-sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami-can be recognized by the respective gustatory system, interactions between these taste qualities are often experienced when food is consumed. Specifically, the umami taste has been investigated in terms of whether it enhances or reduces the other taste modalities. These studies, however, are based on individual perception and not on a molecular level. In this study we investigated umami-sweet taste interactions using umami compounds including monosodium glutamate (MSG), 5'-mononucleotides and glutamyl-dipeptides, glutamate-glutamate (Glu-Glu) and glutamate-aspartic acid (Glu-Asp), in human sweet taste receptor hT1R2/hT1R3-expressing cells. The sensitivity of sucrose to hT1R2/hT1R3 was significantly attenuated by MSG and umami active peptides but not by umami active nucleotides. Inhibition of sweet receptor activation by MSG and glutamyl peptides is obvious when sweet receptors are activated by sweeteners that target the extracellular domain (ECD) of T1R2, such as sucrose and acesulfame K, but not by cyclamate, which interact with the T1R3 transmembrane domain (TMD). Application of umami compounds with lactisole, inhibitory drugs that target T1R3, exerted a more severe inhibitory effect. The inhibition was also observed with F778A sweet receptor mutant, which have the defect in function of T1R3 TMD. These results suggest that umami peptides affect sweet taste receptors and this interaction prevents sweet receptor agonists from binding to the T1R2 ECD in an allosteric manner, not to the T1R3. This is the first report to define the interaction between umami and sweet taste receptors.

SWEETs, transporters for intracellular and intercellular sugar translocation.

PubMed

Eom, Joon-Seob; Chen, Li-Qing; Sosso, Davide; Julius, Benjamin T; Lin, I W; Qu, Xiao-Qing; Braun, David M; Frommer, Wolf B

2015-06-01

Three families of transporters have been identified as key players in intercellular transport of sugars: MSTs (monosaccharide transporters), SUTs (sucrose transporters) and SWEETs (hexose and sucrose transporters). MSTs and SUTs fall into the major facilitator superfamily; SWEETs constitute a structurally different class of transporters with only seven transmembrane spanning domains. The predicted topology of SWEETs is supported by crystal structures of bacterial homologs (SemiSWEETs). On average, angiosperm genomes contain ∼20 paralogs, most of which serve distinct physiological roles. In Arabidopsis, AtSWEET8 and 13 feed the pollen; SWEET11 and 12 provide sucrose to the SUTs for phloem loading; AtSWEET11, 12 and 15 have distinct roles in seed filling; AtSWEET16 and 17 are vacuolar hexose transporters; and SWEET9 is essential for nectar secretion. The remaining family members await characterization, and could play roles in the gametophyte as well as other important roles in sugar transport in the plant. In rice and cassava, and possibly other systems, sucrose transporting SWEETs play central roles in pathogen resistance. Notably, the human genome also contains a glucose transporting isoform. Further analysis promises new insights into mechanism and regulation of assimilate allocation and a new potential for increasing crop yield. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sweet Marjoram

PubMed Central

Bina, Fatemeh; Rahimi, Roja

2016-01-01

Origanum majorana L. commonly known as sweet marjoram has been used for variety of diseases in traditional and folklore medicines, including gastrointestinal, ocular, nasopharyngeal, respiratory, cardiac, rheumatologic, and neurological disorders. Essential oil containing monoterpene hydrocarbons and oxygenated monoterpenes as well as phenolic compounds are chemical constituents isolated and detected in O majorana. Wide range of pharmacological activities including antioxidant, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, anti-platelet, gastroprotective, antibacterial and antifungal, antiprotozoal, antiatherosclerosis, anti-inflammatory, antimetastatic, antitumor, antiulcer, and anticholinesterase inhibitory activities have been reported from this plant in modern medicine. This article summarizes comprehensive information concerning traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacological activities of sweet marjoram. PMID:27231340

The importance of electrostatic potential in the interaction of sweet proteins with the sweet taste receptor.

PubMed

Esposito, Veronica; Gallucci, Roberta; Picone, Delia; Saviano, Gabriella; Tancredi, Teodorico; Temussi, Piero A

2006-07-07

In addition to many small molecular mass sweeteners there are in nature a few sweet proteins. The molecular volume of sweet proteins is so different from that of common sweeteners that it was difficult to understand how molecules as large as proteins can activate a receptor designed to host small molecules. We have recently shown that sweet proteins can activate the sweet receptor by a mechanism of interaction, called ''wedge model", in which proteins fit a large cavity of the receptor with wedge-shaped surfaces of their structures. In order to substantiate this model we have designed, expressed and characterized seven mutants of MNEI, a single chain monellin. Three uncharged residues of the interaction surface, Met42, Tyr63 and Tyr65, were changed either into acidic or basic residues whereas Asp68, a key acidic residue, was changed into a basic one. As a general trend, we observe that an increase of the negative charge is much more detrimental for sweetness than an increase of positive charge. In addition we show that by a careful choice of a residue at the center of the interface between MNEI and receptor, it is possible even to increase the sweetness of MNEI. These results are fully consistent with the wedge model.

dbSWEET: An Integrated Resource for SWEET Superfamily to Understand, Analyze and Predict the Function of Sugar Transporters in Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes.

PubMed

Gupta, Ankita; Sankararamakrishnan, Ramasubbu

2018-04-14

SWEET (Sweet Will Eventually be Exported Transporter) proteins have been recently discovered and form one of the three major families of sugar transporters. Homologs of SWEET are found in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Bacterial SWEET homologs have three transmembrane segments forming a triple-helical bundle and the functional form is dimers. Eukaryotic SWEETs have seven transmembrane helical segments forming two triple-helical bundles with a linker helix. Members of SWEET homologs have been shown to be involved in several important physiological processes in plants. However, not much is known regarding the biological significance of SWEET homologs in prokaryotes and in mammals. We have collected more than 2000 SWEET homologs from both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. For each homolog, we have modeled three different conformational states representing outward open, inward open and occluded states. We have provided details regarding substrate-interacting residues and residues forming the selectivity filter for each SWEET homolog. Several search and analysis options are available. The users can generate a phylogenetic tree and structure-based sequence alignment for selected set of sequences. With no metazoan SWEETs functionally characterized, the features observed in the selectivity filter residues can be used to predict the potential substrates that are likely to be transported across the metazoan SWEETs. We believe that this database will help the researchers to design mutational experiments and simulation studies that will aid to advance our understanding of the physiological role of SWEET homologs. This database is freely available to the scientific community at http://bioinfo.iitk.ac.in/bioinfo/dbSWEET/Home. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Highly sweet compounds of plant origin.

PubMed

Kim, Nam-Cheol; Kinghorn, A Douglas

2002-12-01

The demand for new alternative "low calorie" sweeteners for dietetic and diabetic purposes has increased worldwide. Although the currently developed and commercially used highly sweet sucrose substitutes are mostly synthetic compounds, the search for such compounds from natural sources is continuing. As of mid-2002, over 100 plant-derived sweet compounds of 20 major structural types had been reported, and were isolated from more than 25 different families of green plants. Several of these highly sweet natural products are marketed as sweeteners or flavoring agents in some countries as pure compounds, compound mixtures, or refined extracts. These highly sweet natural substances are reviewed herein.

Role of protein surface charge in monellin sweetness.

PubMed

Xue, Wei-Feng; Szczepankiewicz, Olga; Thulin, Eva; Linse, Sara; Carey, Jannette

2009-03-01

A small number of proteins have the unusual property of tasting intensely sweet. Despite many studies aimed at identifying their sweet taste determinants, the molecular basis of protein sweetness is not fully understood. Recent mutational studies of monellin have implicated positively charged residues in sweetness. In the present work, the effect of overall net charge was investigated using the complementary approach of negative charge alterations. Multiple substitutions of Asp/Asn and Glu/Gln residues radically altered the surface charge of single-chain monellin by removing six negative charges or adding four negative charges. Biophysical characterization using circular dichroism, fluorescence, and two-dimensional NMR demonstrates that the native fold of monellin is preserved in the variant proteins under physiological solution conditions although their stability toward chemical denaturation is altered. A human taste test was employed to determine the sweetness detection threshold of the variants. Removal of negative charges preserves monellin sweetness, whereas added negative charge has a large negative impact on sweetness. Meta-analysis of published charge variants of monellin and other sweet proteins reveals a general trend toward increasing sweetness with increasing positive net charge. Structural mapping of monellin variants identifies a hydrophobic surface predicted to face the receptor where introduced positive or negative charge reduces sweetness, and a polar surface where charges modulate long-range electrostatic complementarity.

What Are You Looking at? The Complication of the Male Gaze in "Fin de Siècle" Cancan and Bob Fosse's "Sweet Charity"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calvano, Jenn Ariadne

2018-01-01

"Fin de siècle" cancan dancers Jane Avril and Louise Weber ("La Goulue") examined alongside the musical dance and song number "Big Spender" from Sweet Charity serve as examples of how decontextualization of images leads to essentializing the subject of the image that gives precedence to a male gaze focus. In analyzing…

Bitter and sweet tasting molecules: It's complicated.

PubMed

Di Pizio, Antonella; Ben Shoshan-Galeczki, Yaron; Hayes, John E; Niv, Masha Y

2018-04-19

"Bitter" and "sweet" are frequently framed in opposition, both functionally and metaphorically, in regard to affective responses, emotion, and nutrition. This oppositional relationship is complicated by the fact that some molecules are simultaneously bitter and sweet. In some cases, a small chemical modification, or a chirality switch, flips the taste from sweet to bitter. Molecules humans describe as bitter are recognized by a 25-member subfamily of class A G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) known as TAS2Rs. Molecules humans describe as sweet are recognized by a TAS1R2/TAS1R3 heterodimer of class C GPCRs. Here we characterize the chemical space of bitter and sweet molecules: the majority of bitter compounds show higher hydrophobicity compared to sweet compounds, while sweet molecules have a wider range of sizes. Importantly, recent evidence indicates that TAS1Rs and TAS2Rs are not limited to the oral cavity; moreover, some bitterants are pharmacologically promiscuous, with the hERG potassium channel, cytochrome P450 enzymes, and carbonic anhydrases as common off-targets. Further focus on polypharmacology may unravel new physiological roles for tastant molecules. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Microscopic observation drug-susceptibility assay vs. Xpert® MTB/RIF for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in a rural African setting: a cost-utility analysis.

PubMed

Wikman-Jorgensen, Philip E; Llenas-García, Jara; Pérez-Porcuna, Tomàs M; Hobbins, Michael; Ehmer, Jochen; Mussa, Manuel A; Ascaso, Carlos

2017-06-01

To compare the cost-utility of microscopic observation drug-susceptibility assay (MODS) and Xpert ® MTB/RIF implementation for tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in rural northern Mozambique. Stochastic transmission compartmental TB model from the healthcare provider perspective with parameter input from direct measurements, systematic literature reviews and expert opinion. MODS and Xpert ® MTB/RIF were evaluated as replacement test of smear microscopy (SM) or as an add-on test after a negative SM. Costs were calculated in 2013 USD, effects in disability-adjusted life years (DALY). Willingness to pay threshold (WPT) was established at once the per capita Gross National Income of Mozambique. MODS as an add-on test to negative SM produced an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of 5647.89USD/DALY averted. MODS as a substitute for SM yielded an ICER of 5374.58USD/DALY averted. Xpert ® MTB/RIF as an add-on test to negative SM yielded ICER of 345.71USD/DALY averted. Xpert ® MTB/RIF as a substitute for SM obtained an ICER of 122.13USD/DALY averted. TB prevalence and risk of infection were the main factors impacting MODS and Xpert ® MTB/RIF ICER in the one-way sensitivity analysis. In the probabilistic sensitivity analysis, Xpert ® MTB/RIF was most likely to have an ICER below the WPT, whereas MODS was not. Our cost-utility analysis favours the implementation of Xpert ® MTB/RIF as a replacement of SM for all TB suspects in this rural high TB/HIV prevalence African setting. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Bortezomib-induced Sweet's syndrome confirmed by rechallenge.

PubMed

Zobniw, Chrystia M; Saad, Samira A; Kostoff, Diana; Barthel, Bernd G

2014-01-01

Sweet's syndrome, also known as acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis, is characterized predominantly by fever, elevated neutrophil count, and erythematous skin lesions composed of plaques and nodules that appear on upper extremities, face, or neck. The incidence of Sweet's syndrome in the general population is unknown due to the rarity of the condition and potential lack of reporting. Bortezomib, an antineoplastic agent that is the standard of care in patients with multiple myeloma, has been reported to be associated with Sweet's syndrome. We describe a 69-year-old man who developed Sweet's syndrome during his initial course (after cycle 4) of bortezomib for treatment of multiple myeloma; he again experienced Sweet's syndrome 3.5 years later when rechallenged with bortezomib (after cycle 5) for treatment of relapsed multiple myeloma. The patient's signs, symptoms, and biopsy results were identical during both presentations of Sweet's syndrome. In both instances, the syndrome spontaneously resolved without incident and without supportive treatment with corticosteroids or antihistamines. To our knowledge, this is the first case report of a patient who developed Sweet's syndrome during an initial course of treatment with bortezomib and after rechallenge with bortezomib for relapsed disease. As proteasome inhibitors continue to be a mainstay of therapy for both treatment and salvage therapy for multiple myeloma, this case demonstrates that rechallenge with bortezomib is an option for patients who develop Sweet's syndrome. © 2013 American College of Clinical Pharmacy.

Sweetness prediction of natural compounds.

PubMed

Chéron, Jean-Baptiste; Casciuc, Iuri; Golebiowski, Jérôme; Antonczak, Serge; Fiorucci, Sébastien

2017-04-15

Based on the most exhaustive database of sweeteners with known sweetness values, a new quantitative structure-activity relationship model for sweetness prediction has been set up. Analysis of the physico-chemical properties of sweeteners in the database indicates that the structure of most potent sweeteners combines a hydrophobic scaffold functionalized by a limited number of hydrogen bond sites (less than 4 hydrogen bond donors and 10 acceptors), with a moderate molecular weight ranging from 350 to 450g·mol -1 . Prediction of sweetness, bitterness and toxicity properties of the largest database of natural compounds have been performed. In silico screening reveals that the majority of the predicted natural intense sweeteners comprise saponin or stevioside scaffolds. The model highlights that their sweetness potency is comparable to known natural sweeteners. The identified compounds provide a rational basis to initiate the design and chemosensory analysis of new low-calorie sweeteners. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The discovery and mechanism of sweet taste enhancers.

PubMed

Li, Xiaodong; Servant, Guy; Tachdjian, Catherine

2011-08-01

Excess sugar intake posts several health problems. Artificial sweeteners have been used for years to reduce dietary sugar content, but they are not ideal substitutes for sugar owing to their off-taste. A new strategy focused on allosteric modulation of the sweet taste receptor led to identification of sweet taste 'enhancers' for the first time. The enhancer molecules do not taste sweet, but greatly potentiate the sweet taste of sucrose and sucralose selectively. Following a similar mechanism as the natural umami taste enhancers, the sweet enhancer molecules cooperatively bind with the sweeteners to the Venus flytrap domain of the human sweet taste receptor and stabilize the active conformation. Now that the approach has proven successful, enhancers for other sweeteners and details of the molecular mechanism for the enhancement are being actively pursued.

Kernel compositions of glyphosate-tolerant and corn rootworm-protected MON 88017 sweet corn and insect-protected MON 89034 sweet corn are equivalent to that of conventional sweet corn (Zea mays).

PubMed

Curran, Kassie L; Festa, Adam R; Goddard, Scott D; Harrigan, George G; Taylor, Mary L

2015-03-25

Monsanto Co. has developed two sweet corn hybrids, MON 88017 and MON 89034, that contain biotechnology-derived (biotech) traits designed to enhance sustainability and improve agronomic practices. MON 88017 confers benefits of glyphosate tolerance and protection against corn rootworm. MON 89034 provides protection against European corn borer and other lepidopteran insect pests. The purpose of this assessment was to compare the kernel compositions of MON 88017 and MON 89034 sweet corn with that of a conventional control that has a genetic background similar to the biotech sweet corn but does not express the biotechnology-derived traits. The sweet corn samples were grown at five replicated sites in the United States during the 2010 growing season and the conventional hybrid and 17 reference hybrids were grown concurrently to provide an estimate of natural variability for all assessed components. The compositional analysis included proximates, fibers, amino acids, sugars, vitamins, minerals, and selected metabolites. Results highlighted that MON 88017 and MON 89034 sweet corns were compositionally equivalent to the conventional control and that levels of the components essential to the desired properties of sweet corn, such as sugars and vitamins, were more affected by growing environment than the biotech traits. In summary, the benefits of biotech traits can be incorporated into sweet corn with no adverse effects on nutritional quality.

Same genetic components underlie different measures of sweet taste preference.

PubMed

Keskitalo, Kaisu; Tuorila, Hely; Spector, Tim D; Cherkas, Lynn F; Knaapila, Antti; Silventoinen, Karri; Perola, Markus

2007-12-01

Sweet taste preferences are measured by several often correlated measures. We examined the relative proportions of genetic and environmental effects on sweet taste preference indicators and their mutual correlations. A total of 663 female twins (324 complete pairs, 149 monozygous and 175 dizygous pairs) aged 17-80 y rated the liking and intensity of a 20% (wt/vol) sucrose solution, reported the liking and the use-frequency of 6 sweet foods (sweet desserts, sweets, sweet pastry, ice cream, hard candy, and chocolate), and completed a questionnaire on cravings of sweet foods. The estimated contributions of genetic factors, environmental factors shared by a twin pair, and environmental factors unique to each twin individual to the variance and covariance of the traits were obtained with the use of linear structural equation modeling. Approximately half of the variation in liking for sweet solution and liking and use-frequency of sweet foods (49-53%) was explained by genetic factors, whereas the rest of the variation was due to environmental factors unique to each twin individual. Sweet taste preference-related traits were correlated. Tetravariate modeling showed that the correlation between liking for the sweet solution and liking for sweet foods was due to genetic factors (genetic r = 0.27). Correlations between liking, use-frequency, and craving for sweet foods were due to both genetic and unshared environmental factors. Detailed information on the associations between preference measures is an important intermediate goal in the determination of the genetic components affecting sweet taste preferences.

The Bamboo-Eating Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) Has a Sweet Tooth: Behavioral and Molecular Responses to Compounds That Taste Sweet to Humans

PubMed Central

Jiang, Peihua; Li, Xia; Brand, Joseph G.; Margolskee, Robert F.; Reed, Danielle R.; Beauchamp, Gary K.

2014-01-01

A growing body of behavioral and genetic information indicates that taste perception and food sources are highly coordinated across many animal species. For example, sweet taste perception is thought to serve to detect and motivate consumption of simple sugars in plants that provide calories. Supporting this is the observation that most plant-eating mammals examined exhibit functional sweet perception, whereas many obligate carnivores have independently lost function of their sweet taste receptors and exhibit no avidity for simple sugars that humans describe as tasting sweet. As part of a larger effort to compare taste structure/function among species, we examined both the behavioral and the molecular nature of sweet taste in a plant-eating animal that does not consume plants with abundant simple sugars, the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). We evaluated two competing hypotheses: as plant-eating mammals, they should have a well-developed sweet taste system; however, as animals that do not normally consume plants with simple sugars, they may have lost sweet taste function, as has occurred in strict carnivores. In behavioral tests, giant pandas avidly consumed most natural sugars and some but not all artificial sweeteners. Cell-based assays revealed similar patterns of sweet receptor responses toward many of the sweeteners. Using mixed pairs of human and giant panda sweet taste receptor units (hT1R2+gpT1R3 and gpT1R2+hT1R3) we identified regions of the sweet receptor that may account for behavioral differences in giant pandas versus humans toward various sugars and artificial sweeteners. Thus, despite the fact that the giant panda's main food, bamboo, is very low in simple sugars, the species has a marked preference for several compounds that taste sweet to humans. We consider possible explanations for retained sweet perception in this species, including the potential extra-oral functions of sweet taste receptors that may be required for animals that consume

The bamboo-eating giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) has a sweet tooth: behavioral and molecular responses to compounds that taste sweet to humans.

PubMed

Jiang, Peihua; Josue-Almqvist, Jesusa; Jin, Xuelin; Li, Xia; Brand, Joseph G; Margolskee, Robert F; Reed, Danielle R; Beauchamp, Gary K

2014-01-01

A growing body of behavioral and genetic information indicates that taste perception and food sources are highly coordinated across many animal species. For example, sweet taste perception is thought to serve to detect and motivate consumption of simple sugars in plants that provide calories. Supporting this is the observation that most plant-eating mammals examined exhibit functional sweet perception, whereas many obligate carnivores have independently lost function of their sweet taste receptors and exhibit no avidity for simple sugars that humans describe as tasting sweet. As part of a larger effort to compare taste structure/function among species, we examined both the behavioral and the molecular nature of sweet taste in a plant-eating animal that does not consume plants with abundant simple sugars, the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). We evaluated two competing hypotheses: as plant-eating mammals, they should have a well-developed sweet taste system; however, as animals that do not normally consume plants with simple sugars, they may have lost sweet taste function, as has occurred in strict carnivores. In behavioral tests, giant pandas avidly consumed most natural sugars and some but not all artificial sweeteners. Cell-based assays revealed similar patterns of sweet receptor responses toward many of the sweeteners. Using mixed pairs of human and giant panda sweet taste receptor units (hT1R2+gpT1R3 and gpT1R2+hT1R3) we identified regions of the sweet receptor that may account for behavioral differences in giant pandas versus humans toward various sugars and artificial sweeteners. Thus, despite the fact that the giant panda's main food, bamboo, is very low in simple sugars, the species has a marked preference for several compounds that taste sweet to humans. We consider possible explanations for retained sweet perception in this species, including the potential extra-oral functions of sweet taste receptors that may be required for animals that consume

The sweet taste quality is linked to a cluster of taste fibers in primates: lactisole diminishes preference and responses to sweet in S fibers (sweet best) chorda tympani fibers of M. fascicularis monkey.

PubMed

Wang, Yiwen; Danilova, Vicktoria; Cragin, Tiffany; Roberts, Thomas W; Koposov, Alexey; Hellekant, Göran

2009-02-18

Psychophysically, sweet and bitter have long been considered separate taste qualities, evident already to the newborn human. The identification of different receptors for sweet and bitter located on separate cells of the taste buds substantiated this separation. However, this finding leads to the next question: is bitter and sweet also kept separated in the next link from the taste buds, the fibers of the taste nerves? Previous studies in non-human primates, P. troglodytes, C. aethiops, M. mulatta, M. fascicularis and C. jacchus, suggest that the sweet and bitter taste qualities are linked to specific groups of fibers called S and Q fibers. In this study we apply a new sweet taste modifier, lactisole, commercially available as a suppressor of the sweetness of sugars on the human tongue, to test our hypothesis that sweet taste is conveyed in S fibers. We first ascertained that lactisole exerted similar suppression of sweetness in M. fascicularis, as reported in humans, by recording their preference of sweeteners and non- sweeteners with and without lactisole in two-bottle tests. The addition of lactisole significantly diminished the preference for all sweeteners but had no effect on the intake of non-sweet compounds or the intake of water. We then recorded the response to the same taste stimuli in 40 single chorda tympani nerve fibers. Comparison between single fiber nerve responses to stimuli with and without lactisole showed that lactisole only suppressed the responses to sweeteners in S fibers. It had no effect on the responses to any other stimuli in all other taste fibers. In M. fascicularis, lactisole diminishes the attractiveness of compounds, which taste sweet to humans. This behavior is linked to activity of fibers in the S-cluster. Assuming that lactisole blocks the T1R3 monomer of the sweet taste receptor T1R2/R3, these results present further support for the hypothesis that S fibers convey taste from T1R2/R3 receptors, while the impulse activity in non

Innate and learned preferences for sweet taste during childhood.

PubMed

Ventura, Alison K; Mennella, Julie A

2011-07-01

In nature, carbohydrates are a source of energy often equated with sweetness, the detection of which is associated with powerful hedonic appeal. Intakes of processed carbohydrates in the form of added sugars and sugar-sweetened beverages have risen consistently among all age groups over the last two decades. In this review, we describe the biological underpinnings that drive the consumption of sweet-tasting foods among pediatric populations. Scientific literature suggests that children's liking for all that is sweet is not solely a product of modern-day technology and advertising but reflects their basic biology. In fact, heightened preference for sweet-tasting foods and beverages during childhood is universal and evident among infants and children around the world. The liking for sweet tastes during development may have ensured the acceptance of sweet-tasting foods, such as mother's milk and fruits. Moreover, recent research suggests that liking for sweets may be further promoted by the pain-reducing properties of sugars. An examination of the basic biology of sweet taste during childhood provides insight, as well as new perspectives, for how to modify children's preferences for and intakes of sweet foods to improve their diet quality.

The Current Incidence of Viral Disease in Korean Sweet Potatoes and Development of Multiplex RT-PCR Assays for Simultaneous Detection of Eight Sweet Potato Viruses

PubMed Central

Kwak, Hae-Ryun; Kim, Mi-Kyeong; Shin, Jun-Chul; Lee, Ye-Ji; Seo, Jang-Kyun; Lee, Hyeong-Un; Jung, Mi-Nam; Kim, Sun-Hyung; Choi, Hong-Soo

2014-01-01

Sweet potato is grown extensively from tropical to temperate regions and is an important food crop worldwide. In this study, we established detection methods for 17 major sweet potato viruses using single and multiplex RT-PCR assays. To investigate the current incidence of viral diseases, we collected 154 samples of various sweet potato cultivars showing virus-like symptoms from 40 fields in 10 Korean regions, and analyzed them by RT-PCR using specific primers for each of the 17 viruses. Of the 17 possible viruses, we detected eight in our samples. Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) and sweet potato virus C (SPVC) were most commonly detected, infecting approximately 87% and 85% of samples, respectively. Furthermore, Sweet potato symptomless virus 1 (SPSMV-1), Sweet potato virus G (SPVG), Sweet potato leaf curl virus (SPLCV), Sweet potato virus 2 ( SPV2), Sweet potato chlorotic fleck virus (SPCFV), and Sweet potato latent virus (SPLV) were detected in 67%, 58%, 47%, 41%, 31%, and 20% of samples, respectively. This study presents the first documented occurrence of four viruses (SPVC, SPV2, SPCFV, and SPSMV-1) in Korea. Based on the results of our survey, we developed multiplex RT-PCR assays for simple and simultaneous detection of the eight sweet potato viruses we recorded. PMID:25506306

Genome-wide identification of the SWEET gene family in wheat.

PubMed

Gao, Yue; Wang, Zi Yuan; Kumar, Vikranth; Xu, Xiao Feng; Yuan, De Peng; Zhu, Xiao Feng; Li, Tian Ya; Jia, Baolei; Xuan, Yuan Hu

2018-02-05

The SWEET (sugars will eventually be exported transporter) family is a newly characterized group of sugar transporters. In plants, the key roles of SWEETs in phloem transport, nectar secretion, pollen nutrition, stress tolerance, and plant-pathogen interactions have been identified. SWEET family genes have been characterized in many plant species, but a comprehensive analysis of SWEET members has not yet been performed in wheat. Here, 59 wheat SWEETs (hereafter TaSWEETs) were identified through homology searches. Analyses of phylogenetic relationships, numbers of transmembrane helices (TMHs), gene structures, and motifs showed that TaSWEETs carrying 3-7 TMHs could be classified into four clades with 10 different types of motifs. Examination of the expression patterns of 18 SWEET genes revealed that a few are tissue-specific while most are ubiquitously expressed. In addition, the stem rust-mediated expression patterns of SWEET genes were monitored using a stem rust-susceptible cultivar, 'Little Club' (LC). The resulting data showed that the expression of five out of the 18 SWEETs tested was induced following inoculation. In conclusion, we provide the first comprehensive analysis of the wheat SWEET gene family. Information regarding the phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, and expression profiles of SWEET genes in different tissues and following stem rust disease inoculation will be useful in identifying the potential roles of SWEETs in specific developmental and pathogenic processes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Medieval emergence of sweet melons, Cucumis melo (Cucurbitaceae).

PubMed

Paris, Harry S; Amar, Zohar; Lev, Efraim

2012-07-01

Sweet melons, Cucumis melo, are a widely grown and highly prized crop. While melons were familiar in antiquity, they were grown mostly for use of the young fruits, which are similar in appearance and taste to cucumbers, C. sativus. The time and place of emergence of sweet melons is obscure, but they are generally thought to have reached Europe from the east near the end of the 15th century. The objective of the present work was to determine where and when truly sweet melons were first developed. Given their large size and sweetness, melons are often confounded with watermelons, Citrullus lanatus, so a list was prepared of the characteristics distinguishing between them. An extensive search of literature from the Roman and medieval periods was conducted and the findings were considered in their context against this list and particularly in regard to the use of the word 'melon' and of adjectives for sweetness and colour. Medieval lexicographies and an illustrated Arabic translation of Dioscorides' herbal suggest that sweet melons were present in Central Asia in the mid-9th century. A travelogue description indicates the presence of sweet melons in Khorasan and Persia by the mid-10th century. Agricultural literature from Andalusia documents the growing of sweet melons, evidently casabas (Inodorous Group), there by the second half of the 11th century, which probably arrived from Central Asia as a consequence of Islamic conquest, trade and agricultural development. Climate and geopolitical boundaries were the likely causes of the delay in the spread of sweet melons into the rest of Europe.

Molecular Mechanisms for Sweet-suppressing Effect of Gymnemic Acids*

PubMed Central

Sanematsu, Keisuke; Kusakabe, Yuko; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Hirokawa, Takatsugu; Nakamura, Seiji; Imoto, Toshiaki; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2014-01-01

Gymnemic acids are triterpene glycosides that selectively suppress taste responses to various sweet substances in humans but not in mice. This sweet-suppressing effect of gymnemic acids is diminished by rinsing the tongue with γ-cyclodextrin (γ-CD). However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying the sweet-suppressing effect of gymnemic acids and the interaction between gymnemic acids versus sweet taste receptor and/or γ-CD. To investigate whether gymnemic acids directly interact with human (h) sweet receptor hT1R2 + hT1R3, we used the sweet receptor T1R2 + T1R3 assay in transiently transfected HEK293 cells. Similar to previous studies in humans and mice, gymnemic acids (100 μg/ml) inhibited the [Ca2+]i responses to sweet compounds in HEK293 cells heterologously expressing hT1R2 + hT1R3 but not in those expressing the mouse (m) sweet receptor mT1R2 + mT1R3. The effect of gymnemic acids rapidly disappeared after rinsing the HEK293 cells with γ-CD. Using mixed species pairings of human and mouse sweet receptor subunits and chimeras, we determined that the transmembrane domain of hT1R3 was mainly required for the sweet-suppressing effect of gymnemic acids. Directed mutagenesis in the transmembrane domain of hT1R3 revealed that the interaction site for gymnemic acids shared the amino acid residues that determined the sensitivity to another sweet antagonist, lactisole. Glucuronic acid, which is the common structure of gymnemic acids, also reduced sensitivity to sweet compounds. In our models, gymnemic acids were predicted to dock to a binding pocket within the transmembrane domain of hT1R3. PMID:25056955

SweetHART operational analysis : final report

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1994-10-01

Paratransit service, known as SweetHART, has grown steadily in the Housatonic Valley Region since it was regionalized and expanded under public auspices in 1978. Eight municipalities receive SweetHART service as provided by the Housatonic Area Region...

7 CFR 318.13-25 - Sweet potatoes from Hawaii.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Hawaii. 318.13-25 Section 318.13... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-25 Sweet potatoes from Hawaii. (a) Sweet potatoes may be... 5 Sweet potatoes may also be moved interstate from Hawaii with irradiation in accordance with § 305...

Leptin Suppresses Mouse Taste Cell Responses to Sweet Compounds

PubMed Central

Noguchi, Kenshi; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Takahashi, Ichiro; Margolskee, Robert F.

2015-01-01

Leptin is known to selectively suppress neural and behavioral responses to sweet-tasting compounds. However, the molecular basis for the effect of leptin on sweet taste is not known. Here, we report that leptin suppresses sweet taste via leptin receptors (Ob-Rb) and KATP channels expressed selectively in sweet-sensitive taste cells. Ob-Rb was more often expressed in taste cells that expressed T1R3 (a sweet receptor component) than in those that expressed glutamate-aspartate transporter (a marker for Type I taste cells) or GAD67 (a marker for Type III taste cells). Systemically administered leptin suppressed taste cell responses to sweet but not to bitter or sour compounds. This effect was blocked by a leptin antagonist and was absent in leptin receptor–deficient db/db mice and mice with diet-induced obesity. Blocking the KATP channel subunit sulfonylurea receptor 1, which was frequently coexpressed with Ob-Rb in T1R3-expressing taste cells, eliminated the effect of leptin on sweet taste. In contrast, activating the KATP channel with diazoxide mimicked the sweet-suppressing effect of leptin. These results indicate that leptin acts via Ob-Rb and KATP channels that are present in T1R3-expressing taste cells to selectively suppress their responses to sweet compounds. PMID:26116698

Sensory characteristics and relative sweetness of tagatose and other sweeteners.

PubMed

Fujimaru, Tomomi; Park, Jin-Hee; Lim, Juyun

2012-09-01

The present study investigated the sensory characteristics and relative sweetness of tagatose, an emerging natural low-calorie sweetener with various functional properties, compared to other sweeteners (sucrose, sucralose, erythritol, rebaudioside A), over a wide range of sweetness commonly found in foods and beverages (3% to 20% sucrose [w/v]). A total of 34 subjects evaluated aqueous solutions of the 5 sweeteners for the perceived intensities of sweetness, bitterness, astringency, chemical-like sensations, and sweet aftertaste, using the general version of the Labeled Magnitude Scale. The relationship between the physical concentrations of the sweeteners and their perceived sweetness (that is, psychophysical functions) was derived to quantify the relative sweetness and potency of the sweeteners. The results suggest that tagatose elicits a sweet taste without undesirable qualities (bitterness, astringency, chemical-like sensations). Out of the 5 sweeteners tested, rebaudioside A was the only sweetener with notable bitterness and chemical-like sensations, which became progressively intense with increasing concentration (P < 0.001). In terms of perceived sweetness intensity, the bulk sweeteners (tagatose, erythritol, sucrose) had similar sweetness growth rates (slopes > 1), whereas the high-potency sweeteners (sucralose, rebaudioside A) yielded much flatter sweetness functions (slopes < 1). Because the sweetness of tagatose and sucrose grew at near-identical rates (slope = 1.41 and 1.40, respectively), tagatose produced about the same relative sweetness to sucrose across the concentrations tested. However, the relative sweetness of other sweeteners to sucrose was highly concentration dependent. Consequently, sweetness potencies of other sweeteners varied across the concentrations tested, ranging from 0.50 to 0.78 for erythritol, 220 to 1900 for sucralose, and 300 to 440 for rebaudioside A, while tagatose was estimated to be approximately 0.90 times as potent as

Modulation and transmission of sweet taste information for energy homeostasis.

PubMed

Sanematsu, Keisuke; Horio, Nao; Murata, Yoshihiro; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Ohkuri, Tadahiro; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2009-07-01

Perception of sweet taste is important for animals to detect external energy source of calories. In mice, sweet-sensitive cells possess a leptin receptor. Increase of plasma leptin with increasing internal energy storage in the adipose tissue suppresses sweet taste responses via this receptor. Data from our recent studies indicate that leptin may also modulate sweet taste sensation in humans with a diurnal variation in sweet sensitivity. This leptin modulation of sweet taste information to the brain may influence individuals' preference and ingestive behavior, thereby playing important roles in regulation of energy homeostasis.

Medieval emergence of sweet melons, Cucumis melo (Cucurbitaceae)

PubMed Central

Paris, Harry S.; Amar, Zohar; Lev, Efraim

2012-01-01

Background Sweet melons, Cucumis melo, are a widely grown and highly prized crop. While melons were familiar in antiquity, they were grown mostly for use of the young fruits, which are similar in appearance and taste to cucumbers, C. sativus. The time and place of emergence of sweet melons is obscure, but they are generally thought to have reached Europe from the east near the end of the 15th century. The objective of the present work was to determine where and when truly sweet melons were first developed. Methods Given their large size and sweetness, melons are often confounded with watermelons, Citrullus lanatus, so a list was prepared of the characteristics distinguishing between them. An extensive search of literature from the Roman and medieval periods was conducted and the findings were considered in their context against this list and particularly in regard to the use of the word ‘melon’ and of adjectives for sweetness and colour. Findings Medieval lexicographies and an illustrated Arabic translation of Dioscorides' herbal suggest that sweet melons were present in Central Asia in the mid-9th century. A travelogue description indicates the presence of sweet melons in Khorasan and Persia by the mid-10th century. Agricultural literature from Andalusia documents the growing of sweet melons, evidently casabas (Inodorous Group), there by the second half of the 11th century, which probably arrived from Central Asia as a consequence of Islamic conquest, trade and agricultural development. Climate and geopolitical boundaries were the likely causes of the delay in the spread of sweet melons into the rest of Europe. PMID:22648880

7 CFR 956.5 - Walla Walla Sweet Onions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Walla Walla Sweet Onions. 956.5 Section 956.5... AGREEMENTS AND ORDERS; FRUITS, VEGETABLES, NUTS), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SWEET ONIONS GROWN IN THE WALLA WALLA VALLEY OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON Definitions § 956.5 Walla Walla Sweet Onions...

7 CFR 956.5 - Walla Walla Sweet Onions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Walla Walla Sweet Onions. 956.5 Section 956.5... Agreements and Orders; Fruits, Vegetables, Nuts), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SWEET ONIONS GROWN IN THE WALLA WALLA VALLEY OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON Definitions § 956.5 Walla Walla Sweet Onions...

7 CFR 956.5 - Walla Walla Sweet Onions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Walla Walla Sweet Onions. 956.5 Section 956.5... AGREEMENTS AND ORDERS; FRUITS, VEGETABLES, NUTS), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SWEET ONIONS GROWN IN THE WALLA WALLA VALLEY OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON Definitions § 956.5 Walla Walla Sweet Onions...

7 CFR 956.5 - Walla Walla Sweet Onions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Walla Walla Sweet Onions. 956.5 Section 956.5... Agreements and Orders; Fruits, Vegetables, Nuts), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SWEET ONIONS GROWN IN THE WALLA WALLA VALLEY OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON Definitions § 956.5 Walla Walla Sweet Onions...

7 CFR 956.5 - Walla Walla Sweet Onions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Walla Walla Sweet Onions. 956.5 Section 956.5... Agreements and Orders; Fruits, Vegetables, Nuts), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SWEET ONIONS GROWN IN THE WALLA WALLA VALLEY OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON Definitions § 956.5 Walla Walla Sweet Onions...

Why do we like sweet taste: A bitter tale?

PubMed Central

Beauchamp, Gary K.

2016-01-01

Sweet is widely considered to be one of a small number of basic or primary taste qualities. Liking for sweet tasting substances is innate, although postnatal experiences can shape responses. The power of sweet taste to induce consumption and to motivate behavior is profound, suggesting the importance of this sense for many species. Most investigators presume that the ability to identify sweet molecules through the sense of taste evolved to allow organisms to detect sources of readily available glucose from plants. Perhaps the best evidence supporting this presumption are recent discoveries in comparative biology demonstrating that species in the order Carnivora that do not consume plants also do not perceive sweet taste due to the pseudogenization of a component of the primary sweet taste receptor. However, arguing against this idea is the observation that the sweetness of a plant, or the amount of easily metabolizable sugars contained in the plant, provides little quantitative indication of the plant’s energy or broadly conceived food value. Here it is suggested that the perceptual ratio of sweet taste to bitter taste (a signal for toxicity) may be a better gauge of a plant’s broadly conceived food value than sweetness alone and that it is this ratio that helps guide selection or rejection of a potential plant food. PMID:27174610

Effect of levulose containing sweets on blood and salivary glucose levels.

PubMed

Subramaniam, Priya; K L, Girish Babu; Gona, Harsha

2015-06-01

It is common that many diabetic patients crave for sweets which are normally prohibited. To satisfy their desire to have sweets, alternative sweeteners have been introduced to provide sweetness to some items of their diabetic diet. To (1) assess the effect of sweets containing levulose on glucose levels in blood and saliva, and (2) compare it with effect of sweets containing sucrose on blood and saliva levels of glucose. The study consisted of 20 healthy participants, aged 17-20 years. Two sweet preparations of 36 g each were selected for the study. One preparation was sweetened with levulose (diabetic sweet; Group I) and the other with sucrose (regular sweet; Group II). Blood sugar and salivary glucose levels were estimated before and after the consumption of diabetic and regular sweets. The mean increase in salivary glucose level was lower in Group I than in Group II. Similarly, increase in blood glucose levels in Group I was lower and highly significant. In comparison with regular sweets, consumption of levulose containing sweet resulted in significantly lower blood and salivary glucose levels.

Clinicopathologic, Immunohistochemical, and Molecular Features of Histiocytoid Sweet Syndrome.

PubMed

Alegría-Landa, Victoria; Rodríguez-Pinilla, Socorro María; Santos-Briz, Angel; Rodríguez-Peralto, José Luis; Alegre, Victor; Cerroni, Lorenzo; Kutzner, Heinz; Requena, Luis

2017-07-01

Histiocytoid Sweet syndrome is a rare histopathologic variant of Sweet syndrome. The nature of the histiocytoid infiltrate has generated considerable controversy in the literature. The main goal of this study was to conduct a comprehensive overview of the immunohistochemical phenotype of the infiltrate in histiocytoid Sweet syndrome. We also analyze whether this variant of Sweet syndrome is more frequently associated with hematologic malignancies than classic Sweet syndrome. This is a retrospective case series study of the clinicopathologic, immunohistochemical, and molecular features of 33 patients with a clinicopathologic diagnosis of histiocytoid Sweet syndrome was conducted in the dermatology departments of 5 university hospitals and a private laboratory of dermatopathology. The clinical, histopathological, immunohistochemical, and follow-up features of 33 patients with histiocytoid Sweet syndrome were analyzed. In some cases, cytogenetic studies of the dermal infiltrate were also performed. We compare our findings with those of the literature. The dermal infiltrate from the 33 study patients (20 female; median age, 49 years; age range, 5-93 years; and 13 male; median age, 42 years; age range, 4-76 years) was mainly composed of myeloperoxidase-positive immature myelomonocytic cells with histiocytoid morphology. No cytogenetic anomalies were found in the infiltrate except in 1 case in which neoplastic cells of chronic myelogenous leukemia were intermingled with the cells of histiocytoid Sweet syndrome. Authentic histiocytes were also found in most cases, with a mature immunoprofile, but they appeared to be a minor component of the infiltrate. Histiocytoid Sweet syndrome was not more frequently related with hematologic malignancies than classic neutrophilic Sweet syndrome. The dermal infiltrate of cutaneous lesions of histiocytoid Sweet syndrome is composed mostly of immature cells of myeloid lineage. This infiltrate should not be interpreted as leukemia cutis.

Modulation of sweet responses of taste receptor cells.

PubMed

Yoshida, Ryusuke; Niki, Mayu; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2013-03-01

Taste receptor cells play a major role in detection of chemical compounds in the oral cavity. Information derived from taste receptor cells, such as sweet, bitter, salty, sour and umami is important for evaluating the quality of food components. Among five basic taste qualities, sweet taste is very attractive for animals and influences food intake. Recent studies have demonstrated that sweet taste sensitivity in taste receptor cells would be affected by leptin and endocannabinoids. Leptin is an anorexigenic mediator that reduces food intake by acting on leptin receptor Ob-Rb in the hypothalamus. Endocannabinoids such as anandamide [N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA)] and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) are known as orexigenic mediators that act via cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) in the hypothalamus and limbic forebrain to induce appetite and stimulate food intake. At the peripheral gustatory organs, leptin selectively suppresses and endocannabinoids selectively enhance sweet taste sensitivity via Ob-Rb and CB1 expressed in sweet sensitive taste cells. Thus leptin and endocannabinoids not only regulate food intake via central nervous systems but also modulate palatability of foods by altering peripheral sweet taste responses. Such reciprocal modulation of leptin and endocannabinoids on peripheral sweet sensitivity may play an important role in regulating energy homeostasis. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biorefinery of sweet sorghum stem.

PubMed

Yu, Jianliang; Zhang, Tao; Zhong, Jing; Zhang, Xu; Tan, Tianwei

2012-01-01

Sweet sorghum has been considered as a viable energy crop for alcohol fuel production. This review discloses a novel approach for the biorefining of sweet sorghum stem to produce multiple valuable products, such as ethanol, butanol and wood plastic composites. Sweet sorghum stem has a high concentration of soluble sugars in its juice, which can be fermented to produce ethanol by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In order to obtain high ethanol yield and fermentation rates, concentrated juice with an initial total sugar concentration of 300gL(-1) was fermented. The maximum ethanol concentration after 54h reached 140gL(-1) with a yield of 0.49g ethanol per g consumed sugar, which is 97% of the theoretical value. Sweet sorghum bagasse, obtained from juice squeezing, was pretreated by acetic acid to hydrolyze 80-90% of the contained hemicelluloses. Using this hydrolysate as raw material (total sugar 55gL(-1)), 19.21gL(-1) total solvent (butanol 9.34g, ethanol 2.5g, and acetone 7.36g) was produced by Clostridium acetobutylicum. The residual bagasse after pretreatment was extruded with PLA in a twin-screw extruder to produce a final product having a PLA: fiber ratio of 2:1, a tensile strength of 49.5M and a flexible strength of 65MPa. This product has potential use for applications where truly biodegradable materials are required. This strategy for sustainability is crucial for the industrialization of biofuels from sweet sorghum. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Molecular mechanism of the sweet taste enhancers.

PubMed

Zhang, Feng; Klebansky, Boris; Fine, Richard M; Liu, Haitian; Xu, Hong; Servant, Guy; Zoller, Mark; Tachdjian, Catherine; Li, Xiaodong

2010-03-09

Positive allosteric modulators of the human sweet taste receptor have been developed as a new way of reducing dietary sugar intake. Besides their potential health benefit, the sweet taste enhancers are also valuable tool molecules to study the general mechanism of positive allosteric modulations of T1R taste receptors. Using chimeric receptors, mutagenesis, and molecular modeling, we reveal how these sweet enhancers work at the molecular level. Our data argue that the sweet enhancers follow a similar mechanism as the natural umami taste enhancer molecules. Whereas the sweeteners bind to the hinge region and induce the closure of the Venus flytrap domain of T1R2, the enhancers bind close to the opening and further stabilize the closed and active conformation of the receptor.

Associations between schools' guidelines and pupils' smoking and sweet consumption.

PubMed

Kankaanpää, R; Tolvanen, M; Anttila, J; Lahti, S

2014-12-01

The aims were to find out if schools' sweet-selling was associated with pupils' sweet consumption, and whether the school's guideline about leaving the school area was associated with pupils' tobacco and sweet consumption. Two independently collected datasets from all Finnish upper secondary schools (N = 988) were linked together. The first dataset on schools' sweet-selling (yes/no) and guideline about leaving school area (yes/no) was collected via school principals in 2007 using an Internet questionnaire with a response rate of 49%, n = 480. The second dataset on pupils' self-reported: weekly school-time (0, never; 1, less than once; 2, 1-2 times; 3, 3-5 times), overall sweet consumption frequencies (1, never; 2, 1-2 times; 3, 3-5 times; 4, 6-7 times) and smoking and snuff-using frequencies (1, never; 2, every now and then; 3 = every day) was collected in 2006-2007 in the School Health Promotion Study from pupils. An average was calculated for the school-level with a response rate 80%, n = 790. The total response rate of the linked final data was 42%, n = 414. Mean values of self-reported sweet and tobacco consumption frequencies between sweet-selling and non-sweet-selling schools and between schools with different guidelines were compared using Mann-Whitney test. Pupils in sweet-selling schools and in schools without a guideline about leaving the school area, more frequently used sweet products and tobacco products than their peers in other schools. Schools may need help in building permanent guidelines to stop sweet-selling in school and to prevent leaving the school area to decrease pupils' sweet consumption and smoking.

Dissimilar sweet proteins from plants: oddities or normal components?

PubMed

Picone, Delia; Temussi, Piero Andrea

2012-10-01

The fruits of a few tropical plants contain intensely sweet proteins. Their common property points to a protein family. Generally, proteins belonging to the same family share similar folds, similar sequences and, at least in part, similar function but sweet proteins constitute an exception to this rule. Apart from sharing the rather unusual taste function, they show no obvious similarities either in their sequences or in three-dimensional structures. In this review we describe the nature, structure and mechanism of action of the best known sweet tasting proteins, including two taste modifying proteins. Sweet proteins stand out among sweet molecules because their volume is not compatible with an interaction with orthosteric active sites of the sweet taste receptor. The best explanation of their mechanism of action is the interaction with the external surface of the sweet taste receptor, according to a model that has been named "wedge model". It is hypothesized that this mode of action may be related to the ability of other members of their protein families to inhibit different enzymes. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sweet potato in gluten-free pancakes.

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Gluten-free pancakes were prepared using rice flour, and rice flour replaced with various amounts, at 10, 20, and 40% of sweet potato flour. At 40% sweet potato, the apparent viscosity became comparable to that of the traditional wheat pancake batter. Texture properties of the cooked pancakes, such...

Bitter-sweet processing in larval Drosophila.

PubMed

König, Christian; Schleyer, Michael; Leibiger, Judith; El-Keredy, Amira; Gerber, Bertram

2014-07-01

"Sweet-" and "bitter-" tasting substances distinctively support attractive and aversive choice behavior, respectively, and therefore are thought to be processed by distinct pathways. Interestingly, electrophysiological recordings in adult Drosophila suggest that bitter and salty tastants, in addition to activating bitter, salt, or bitter/salt sensory neurons, can also inhibit sweet-sensory neurons. However, the behavioral significance of such a potential for combinatorial coding is little understood. Using larval Drosophila as a study case, we find that the preference towards fructose is inhibited when assayed in the background of the bitter tastant quinine. When testing the influence of quinine on the preference to other, equally preferred sweet tastants, we find that these sweet tastants differ in their susceptibility to be inhibited by quinine. Such stimulus specificity argues that the inhibitory effect of quinine is not due to general effects on locomotion or nausea. In turn, not all bitter tastants have the same potency to inhibit sweet preference; notably, their inhibitory potency is not determined by the strength of the avoidance of them. Likewise, equally avoided concentrations of sodium chloride differ in their potency to inhibit sugar preference. Furthermore, Gr33a-Gal4-positive neurons, while being necessary for bitter avoidance, are dispensable for inhibition of the sweet pathway. Thus, interactions across taste modalities are behaviorally significant and, as we discuss, arguably diverse in mechanism. These results suggest that the coding of tastants and the organization of gustatory behavior may be more combinatorial than is generally acknowledged. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Sweet taste exposure and the subsequent acceptance and preference for sweet taste in the diet: systematic review of the published literature.

PubMed

Appleton, K M; Tuorila, H; Bertenshaw, E J; de Graaf, C; Mela, D J

2018-03-01

There are consistent, evidence-based global public health recommendations to reduce intakes of free sugars. However, the corresponding evidence for recommending reduced exposure to sweetness is less clear. Our aim was to identify and review the published evidence investigating the impact of dietary exposure to sweet-tasting foods or beverages on the subsequent generalized acceptance, preference, or choice of sweet foods and beverages in the diet. Systematic searches were conducted to identify all studies testing relations of variation in exposure to sweetness through foods and beverages with subsequent variation in the generalized acceptance, preference, or choice of sweetened foods or beverages, in humans aged >6 mo. Twenty-one studies met our inclusion criteria, comprising 7 population cohort studies involving 2320 children and 14 controlled trials involving 1113 individuals. These studies were heterogeneous in study design, population, exposure, and outcomes measured, and few were explicitly designed to address our research question. The findings from these were inconsistent. We found equivocal evidence from population cohort studies. The evidence from controlled studies suggests that a higher sweet taste exposure tends to lead to reduced preferences for sweetness in the shorter term, but very limited effects were found in the longer term. A small and heterogeneous body of research currently has considered the impact of varying exposure to sweet taste on subsequent generalized sweet taste preferences, and this evidence is equivocal regarding the presence and possible direction of a relation. Future work should focus on adequately powered studies with well-characterized exposures of sufficient duration. This review was registered with PROSPERO as CRD42016051840, 24 November 2016.

Sweet Potato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam].

PubMed

Song, Guo-qing; Yamaguchi, Ken-ichi

2006-01-01

Among the available transformation methods reported on sweet potato, Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation is more successful and desirable. Stem explants have shown to be ideal for the transformation of sweet potato because of their ready availability as explants, the simple transformation process, and high-frequency-regeneration via somatic embryogenesis. Under the two-step kanamycin-hygromycin selection method and using the appropriate explants type (stem explants), the efficiency of transformation can be considerably improved in cv. Beniazuma. The high efficiency in the transformation of stem explants suggests that the transformation protocol described in this chapter warrants testing for routine stable transformation of diverse varieties of sweet potato.

Survey of predators and sampling method comparison in sweet corn.

PubMed

Musser, Fred R; Nyrop, Jan P; Shelton, Anthony M

2004-02-01

Natural predation is an important component of integrated pest management that is often overlooked because it is difficult to quantify and perceived to be unreliable. To begin incorporating natural predation into sweet corn, Zea mays L., pest management, a predator survey was conducted and then three sampling methods were compared for their ability to accurately monitor the most abundant predators. A predator survey on sweet corn foliage in New York between 1999 and 2001 identified 13 species. Orius insidiosus (Say), Coleomegilla maculata (De Geer), and Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) were the most numerous predators in all years. To determine the best method for sampling adult and immature stages of these predators, comparisons were made among nondestructive field counts, destructive counts, and yellow sticky cards. Field counts were correlated with destructive counts for all populations, but field counts of small insects were biased. Sticky cards underrepresented immature populations. Yellow sticky cards were more attractive to C. maculata adults than H. axyridis adults, especially before pollen shed, making coccinellid population estimates based on sticky cards unreliable. Field counts were the most precise method for monitoring adult and immature stages of the three major predators. Future research on predicting predation of pests in sweet corn should be based on field counts of predators because these counts are accurate, have no associated supply costs, and can be made quickly.

21 CFR 163.153 - Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. 163.153... § 163.153 Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat... requirements for label declaration of ingredients for sweet chocolate in § 163.123, except that one or more...

21 CFR 163.153 - Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. 163.153... § 163.153 Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat... requirements for label declaration of ingredients for sweet chocolate in § 163.123, except that one or more...

Nasal Foreign Bodies: A Sweet Experiment.

PubMed

Leopard, D C; Williams, R G

2015-10-01

It is generally accepted that paediatric intranasal foreign bodies should be removed in the emergency setting. In the case of a difficult to access dissolvable foreign body in an uncooperative child, the question must be raised regarding whether or not a watch and wait strategy is more appropriate. We ask: How long does it take for popular sweets (candy) to dissolve in the human nose? Five popular UK sweets were placed in the right nasal cavity of a 29-year-old male (the author) with no sino-nasal disease. Time taken to dissolve was recorded. All five sweets were completely dissolved in under one hour. A watch and wait strategy in favour of examination under anaesthetic may be a viable option in some cases. Limitations of the study include the age of the participant and size of the sweets. It is also important in practice that the clinician is able to elicit an accurate history regarding the exact nature of the foreign body. It remains prudent to perform an examination under anaesthetic of an uncooperative child with a solid or unknown nasal foreign body. However, if the clinician can be certain the foreign body is a small sugar or chocolate based sweet only, a watch and wait strategy may be a reasonable choice. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

7 CFR 318.13-24 - Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. 318.13-24 Section 318... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-24 Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. Sweet potatoes from... met: (a) The sweet potatoes must be certified by an inspector of Puerto Rico as having been grown...

7 CFR 318.13-24 - Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. 318.13-24 Section 318... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-24 Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. Sweet potatoes from... met: (a) The sweet potatoes must be certified by an inspector of Puerto Rico as having been grown...

7 CFR 318.13-24 - Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. 318.13-24 Section 318... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-24 Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. Sweet potatoes from... met: (a) The sweet potatoes must be certified by an inspector of Puerto Rico as having been grown...

7 CFR 318.13-24 - Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. 318.13-24 Section 318... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-24 Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. Sweet potatoes from... met: (a) The sweet potatoes must be certified by an inspector of Puerto Rico as having been grown...

7 CFR 318.13-24 - Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 5 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. 318.13-24 Section 318... Articles From Hawaii and the Territories § 318.13-24 Sweet potatoes from Puerto Rico. Sweet potatoes from... met: (a) The sweet potatoes must be certified by an inspector of Puerto Rico as having been grown...

Children's understandings and motivations surrounding novelty sweets: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Stewart, Kate F; Fairchild, Ruth M; Jones, Rhiannon J; Hunter, Lindsay; Harris, Carole; Morgan, Maria Z

2013-11-01

Novelty sweets resemble or can be used as toys, are brightly coloured, with striking imagery, and sold at pocket money prices. They encourage regular consumption as packaging can be resealed, leading to prolonged exposure of these high-sugar and low pH products to the oral tissues, risk factors for dental caries and erosion, respectively. To determine how children conceptualise novelty sweets and their motivations for buying and consuming them. Focus groups conducted using a brief schedule of open-ended questions, supported by novelty sweets used as prompts in the latter stages. Participants were school children (aged 9-10) from purposively selected state primary schools in Cardiff, UK. Key findings related to the routine nature of sweet eating; familiarity with and availability of novelty sweets; parental awareness and control; lack of awareness of health consequences; and the overall appeal of novelty sweets. Parents reported vagueness regarding consumption habits and permissiveness about any limits they set may have diluted the concept of treats. Flexible permissiveness to sweet buying applied to sweets of all kinds. Parents' reported lack of familiarity with novelty sweets combined with their low cost, easy availability, high sugar content, and acidity give cause for concern. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd, BSPD and IAPD.

Genetic diversity of Sweet potato begomoviruses in the United States and identification of a natural recombinant between Sweet potato leaf curl virus and Sweet potato leaf curl Georgia virus

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In the United States, two sweetpotato begomoviruses, Sweet potato leaf curl virus (SPLCV) and Sweet potato leaf curl Georgia virus (SPLCGV) were previously identified in Louisiana. In recent years, at least seven additional sweetpotato begomoviruses have been identified in other parts of the world....

The Role of Sweet Taste in Satiation and Satiety

PubMed Central

Low, Yu Qing; Lacy, Kathleen; Keast, Russell

2014-01-01

Increased energy consumption, especially increased consumption of sweet energy-dense food, is thought to be one of the main contributors to the escalating rates in overweight individuals and obesity globally. The individual’s ability to detect or sense sweetness in the oral cavity is thought to be one of many factors influencing food acceptance, and therefore, taste may play an essential role in modulating food acceptance and/or energy intake. Emerging evidence now suggests that the sweet taste signaling mechanisms identified in the oral cavity also operate in the gastrointestinal system and may influence the development of satiety. Understanding the individual differences in detecting sweetness in both the oral and gastrointestinal system towards both caloric sugar and high intensity sweetener and the functional role of the sweet taste system may be important in understanding the reasons for excess energy intake. This review will summarize evidence of possible associations between the sweet taste mechanisms within the oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract and the brain systems towards both caloric sugar and high intensity sweetener and sweet taste function, which may influence satiation, satiety and, perhaps, predisposition to being overweight and obesity. PMID:25184369

Innovative Methodology for Detection of Fracture-Controlled Sweet Spots in the Northern Appalachian Basin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jacobi, Rober

2007-03-31

This Topical Report (#6 of 9) consists of the figures 3.6-13 to (and including) 3.6-18 (and appropriate figure captions) that accompany the Final Technical Progress Report entitled: "Fracture-Controlled Sweet Spots in the Northern Appalachian Basin” for DOE/NETL Award DE-AC26-00NT40698.

Functional and evolution characterization of SWEET sugar transporters in Ananas comosus.

PubMed

Guo, Chengying; Li, Huayang; Xia, Xinyao; Liu, Xiuyuan; Yang, Long

2018-02-05

Sugars will eventually be exported transporters (SWEETs) are a group of recently identified sugar transporters in plants that play important roles in diverse physiological processes. However, currently, limited information about this gene family is available in pineapple (Ananas comosus). The availability of the recently released pineapple genome sequence provides the opportunity to identify SWEET genes in a Bromeliaceae family member at the genome level. In this study, 39 pineapple SWEET genes were identified in two pineapple cultivars (18 AnfSWEET and 21 AnmSWEET) and further phylogenetically classified into five clades. A phylogenetic analysis revealed distinct evolutionary paths for the SWEET genes of the two pineapple cultivars. The MD2 cultivar might have experienced a different expansion than the F153 cultivar because two additional duplications exist, which separately gave rise to clades III and IV. A gene exon/intron structure analysis showed that the pineapple SWEET genes contained highly conserved exon/intron numbers. An analysis of public RNA-seq data and expression profiling showed that SWEET genes may be involved in fruit development and ripening processes. AnmSWEET5 and AnmSWEET11 were highly expressed in the early stages of pineapple fruit development and then decreased. The study increases the understanding of the roles of SWEET genes in pineapple. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improving the sweet aftertaste of green tea infusion with tannase.

PubMed

Zhang, Ying-Na; Yin, Jun-Feng; Chen, Jian-Xin; Wang, Fang; Du, Qi-Zhen; Jiang, Yong-Wen; Xu, Yong-Quan

2016-02-01

The present study aims to improve the sweet aftertaste and overall acceptability of green tea infusion by hydrolyzing (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and (-)-epicatechin gallate (ECG) with tannase. The results showed that the intensity of the sweet aftertaste and the score of overall acceptability of the green tea infusion significantly increased with the extension of the hydrolyzing treatment. (-)-Epigallocatechin (EGC) and (-)-epicatechin (EC) were found to be the main contributors for the sweet aftertaste, based on a trial compatibility with EGCG, ECG, EGC, and EC monomers, and a synergistic action between EGC and EC to sweet aftertaste was observed. A 2.5:1 (EGC/EC) ratio with a total concentration of 3.5 mmol/L gave the most satisfying sweet aftertaste, and the astringency significantly inhibited the development of the sweet aftertaste. These results can help us to produce a tea beverage with excellent sweet aftertaste by hydrolyzing the green tea infusion with tannase. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Structural basis for the facilitative diffusion mechanism by SemiSWEET transporter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Yongchan; Nishizawa, Tomohiro; Yamashita, Keitaro; Ishitani, Ryuichiro; Nureki, Osamu

2015-01-01

SWEET family proteins mediate sugar transport across biological membranes and play crucial roles in plants and animals. The SWEETs and their bacterial homologues, the SemiSWEETs, are related to the PQ-loop family, which is characterized by highly conserved proline and glutamine residues (PQ-loop motif). Although the structures of the bacterial SemiSWEETs were recently reported, the conformational transition and the significance of the conserved motif in the transport cycle have remained elusive. Here we report crystal structures of SemiSWEET from Escherichia coli, in the both inward-open and outward-open states. A structural comparison revealed that SemiSWEET undergoes an intramolecular conformational change in each protomer. The conserved PQ-loop motif serves as a molecular hinge that enables the ‘binder clip-like’ motion of SemiSWEET. The present work provides the framework for understanding the overall transport cycles of SWEET and PQ-loop family proteins.

ADD and Physicians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hewick, Walter; And Others

In the United States today Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is recognized by professionals as a distinct disorder, a neurobiological disability marked by inattentiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. About 2-10% of school-age children suffer from ADD, making it an issue of rising concern to families and school leaders. It is necessary that…

Temperature Affects Human Sweet Taste via At Least Two Mechanisms

PubMed Central

Nachtigal, Danielle

2015-01-01

The reported effects of temperature on sweet taste in humans have generally been small and inconsistent. Here, we describe 3 experiments that follow up a recent finding that cooling from 37 to 21 °C does not reduce the initial sweetness of sucrose but increases sweet taste adaptation. In experiment 1, subjects rated the sweetness of sucrose, glucose, and fructose solutions at 5–41 °C by dipping the tongue tip into the solutions after 0-, 3-, or 10-s pre-exposures to the same solutions or to H2O; experiment 2 compared the effects of temperature on the sweetness of 3 artificial sweeteners (sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin); and experiment 3 employed a flow-controlled gustometer to rule out the possibility the effects of temperature in the preceding experiments were unique to dipping the tongue into a still taste solution. The results (i) confirmed that mild cooling does not attenuate sweetness but can increase sweet taste adaptation; (ii) demonstrated that cooling to 5–12 °C can directly reduce sweetness intensity; and (iii) showed that both effects vary across stimuli. These findings have implications for the TRPM5 hypothesis of thermal effects on sweet taste and raise the possibility that temperature also affects an earlier step in the T1R2–T1R3 transduction cascade. PMID:25963040

Human sweet taste receptor mediates acid-induced sweetness of miraculin

PubMed Central

Koizumi, Ayako; Tsuchiya, Asami; Nakajima, Ken-ichiro; Ito, Keisuke; Terada, Tohru; Shimizu-Ibuka, Akiko; Briand, Loïc; Asakura, Tomiko; Misaka, Takumi; Abe, Keiko

2011-01-01

Miraculin (MCL) is a homodimeric protein isolated from the red berries of Richadella dulcifica. MCL, although flat in taste at neutral pH, has taste-modifying activity to convert sour stimuli to sweetness. Once MCL is held on the tongue, strong sweetness is sensed over 1 h each time we taste a sour solution. Nevertheless, no molecular mechanism underlying the taste-modifying activity has been clarified. In this study, we succeeded in quantitatively evaluating the acid-induced sweetness of MCL using a cell-based assay system and found that MCL activated hT1R2-hT1R3 pH-dependently as the pH decreased from 6.5 to 4.8, and that the receptor activation occurred every time an acid solution was applied. Although MCL per se is sensory-inactive at pH 6.7 or higher, it suppressed the response of hT1R2-hT1R3 to other sweeteners at neutral pH and enhanced the response at weakly acidic pH. Using human/mouse chimeric receptors and molecular modeling, we revealed that the amino-terminal domain of hT1R2 is required for the response to MCL. Our data suggest that MCL binds hT1R2-hT1R3 as an antagonist at neutral pH and functionally changes into an agonist at acidic pH, and we conclude this may cause its taste-modifying activity. PMID:21949380

7 CFR 457.129 - Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 6 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions. 457... sweet corn crop insurance provisions. The fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions for the 2008... Reinsured Policies Fresh Market Sweet Corn Crop Provisions 1. Definitions Allowable cost. The dollar amount...

7 CFR 457.129 - Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 6 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions. 457... sweet corn crop insurance provisions. The fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions for the 2008... Reinsured Policies Fresh Market Sweet Corn Crop Provisions 1. Definitions Allowable cost. The dollar amount...

7 CFR 457.129 - Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 6 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions. 457... sweet corn crop insurance provisions. The fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions for the 2008... Reinsured Policies Fresh Market Sweet Corn Crop Provisions 1. Definitions Allowable cost. The dollar amount...

The availability of novelty sweets within high school localities.

PubMed

Aljawad, A; Morgan, M Z; Rees, J S; Fairchild, R

2016-06-10

Background Reducing sugar consumption is a primary focus of current global public health policy. Achieving 5% of total energy from free sugars will be difficult acknowledging the concentration of free sugars in sugar sweetened beverages, confectionery and as hidden sugars in many savoury items. The expansion of the novelty sweet market in the UK has significant implications for children and young adults as they contribute to dental caries, dental erosion and obesity.Objective To identify the most available types of novelty sweets within the high school fringe in Cardiff, UK and to assess their price range and where and how they were displayed in shops.Subjects and methods Shops within a ten minute walking distance around five purposively selected high schools in the Cardiff aea representing different levels of deprivation were visited. Shops in Cardiff city centre and three supermarkets were also visited to identify the most commonly available novelty sweets.Results The ten most popular novelty sweets identified in these scoping visits were (in descending order): Brain Licker, Push Pop, Juicy Drop, Lickedy Lips, Big Baby Pop, Vimto candy spray, Toxic Waste, Tango candy spray, Brain Blasterz Bitz and Mega Mouth candy spray. Novelty sweets were located on low shelves which were accessible to all age-groups in 73% (14 out of 19) of the shops. Novelty sweets were displayed in the checkout area in 37% (seven out of 19) shops. The price of the top ten novelty sweets ranged from 39p to £1.Conclusion A wide range of acidic and sugary novelty sweets were easily accessible and priced within pocket money range. Those personnel involved in delivering dental and wider health education or health promotion need to be aware of recent developments in children's confectionery. The potential effects of these novelty sweets on both general and dental health require further investigation.

Scanning of Transposable Elements and Analyzing Expression of Transposase Genes of Sweet Potato [Ipomoea batatas

PubMed Central

Tao, Xiang; Lai, Xian-Jun; Zhang, Yi-Zheng; Tan, Xue-Mei; Wang, Haiyan

2014-01-01

Background Transposable elements (TEs) are the most abundant genomic components in eukaryotes and affect the genome by their replications and movements to generate genetic plasticity. Sweet potato performs asexual reproduction generally and the TEs may be an important genetic factor for genome reorganization. Complete identification of TEs is essential for the study of genome evolution. However, the TEs of sweet potato are still poorly understood because of its complex hexaploid genome and difficulty in genome sequencing. The recent availability of the sweet potato transcriptome databases provides an opportunity for discovering and characterizing the expressed TEs. Methodology/Principal Findings We first established the integrated-transcriptome database by de novo assembling four published sweet potato transcriptome databases from three cultivars in China. Using sequence-similarity search and analysis, a total of 1,405 TEs including 883 retrotransposons and 522 DNA transposons were predicted and categorized. Depending on mapping sets of RNA-Seq raw short reads to the predicted TEs, we compared the quantities, classifications and expression activities of TEs inter- and intra-cultivars. Moreover, the differential expressions of TEs in seven tissues of Xushu 18 cultivar were analyzed by using Illumina digital gene expression (DGE) tag profiling. It was found that 417 TEs were expressed in one or more tissues and 107 in all seven tissues. Furthermore, the copy number of 11 transposase genes was determined to be 1–3 copies in the genome of sweet potato by Real-time PCR-based absolute quantification. Conclusions/Significance Our result provides a new method for TE searching on species with transcriptome sequences while lacking genome information. The searching, identification and expression analysis of TEs will provide useful TE information in sweet potato, which are valuable for the further studies of TE-mediated gene mutation and optimization in asexual reproduction

Bypassing Intestinal Sugar Enhancement of Sweet Appetite.

PubMed

Sclafani, Anthony

2016-01-12

Intestinal sugar sensing has an appetite-stimulating action that enhances preferences for sweets. Han et al. (2016) report that duodenal-jejunal bypass surgery reduces sweet appetite by reducing sugar-induced dopamine release in the dorsal striatum. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Structure of a eukaryotic SWEET transporter in a homotrimeric complex

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tao, Yuyong; Cheung, Lily S.; Li, Shuo

Eukaryotes rely on efficient distribution of energy and carbon skeletons between organs in the form of sugars. Glucose in animals and sucrose in plants serve as the dominant distribution forms. Cellular sugar uptake and release require vesicular and/or plasma membrane transport proteins. Humans and plants use proteins from three superfamilies for sugar translocation: the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), the sodium solute symporter family (SSF; only in the animal kingdom), and SWEETs. SWEETs carry mono- and disaccharides across vacuolar or plasma membranes. Plant SWEETs play key roles in sugar translocation between compartments, cells, and organs, notably in nectar secretion, phloem loadingmore » for long distance translocation, pollen nutrition, and seed filling. Plant SWEETs cause pathogen susceptibility possibly by sugar leakage from infected cells. The vacuolar Arabidopsis thaliana AtSWEET2 sequesters sugars in root vacuoles; loss-of-function mutants show increased susceptibility to Pythium infection. In this paper, we show that its orthologue, the vacuolar glucose transporter OsSWEET2b from rice (Oryza sativa), consists of an asymmetrical pair of triple-helix bundles, connected by an inversion linker transmembrane helix (TM4) to create the translocation pathway. Structural and biochemical analyses show OsSWEET2b in an apparent inward (cytosolic) open state forming homomeric trimers. TM4 tightly interacts with the first triple-helix bundle within a protomer and mediates key contacts among protomers. Structure-guided mutagenesis of the close paralogue SWEET1 from Arabidopsis identified key residues in substrate translocation and protomer crosstalk. Finally, insights into the structure–function relationship of SWEETs are valuable for understanding the transport mechanism of eukaryotic SWEETs and may be useful for engineering sugar flux.« less

Structure of a eukaryotic SWEET transporter in a homotrimeric complex

DOE PAGES

Tao, Yuyong; Cheung, Lily S.; Li, Shuo; ...

2015-10-19

Eukaryotes rely on efficient distribution of energy and carbon skeletons between organs in the form of sugars. Glucose in animals and sucrose in plants serve as the dominant distribution forms. Cellular sugar uptake and release require vesicular and/or plasma membrane transport proteins. Humans and plants use proteins from three superfamilies for sugar translocation: the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), the sodium solute symporter family (SSF; only in the animal kingdom), and SWEETs. SWEETs carry mono- and disaccharides across vacuolar or plasma membranes. Plant SWEETs play key roles in sugar translocation between compartments, cells, and organs, notably in nectar secretion, phloem loadingmore » for long distance translocation, pollen nutrition, and seed filling. Plant SWEETs cause pathogen susceptibility possibly by sugar leakage from infected cells. The vacuolar Arabidopsis thaliana AtSWEET2 sequesters sugars in root vacuoles; loss-of-function mutants show increased susceptibility to Pythium infection. In this paper, we show that its orthologue, the vacuolar glucose transporter OsSWEET2b from rice (Oryza sativa), consists of an asymmetrical pair of triple-helix bundles, connected by an inversion linker transmembrane helix (TM4) to create the translocation pathway. Structural and biochemical analyses show OsSWEET2b in an apparent inward (cytosolic) open state forming homomeric trimers. TM4 tightly interacts with the first triple-helix bundle within a protomer and mediates key contacts among protomers. Structure-guided mutagenesis of the close paralogue SWEET1 from Arabidopsis identified key residues in substrate translocation and protomer crosstalk. Finally, insights into the structure–function relationship of SWEETs are valuable for understanding the transport mechanism of eukaryotic SWEETs and may be useful for engineering sugar flux.« less

Structure of a eukaryotic SWEET transporter in a homotrimeric complex.

PubMed

Tao, Yuyong; Cheung, Lily S; Li, Shuo; Eom, Joon-Seob; Chen, Li-Qing; Xu, Yan; Perry, Kay; Frommer, Wolf B; Feng, Liang

2015-11-12

Eukaryotes rely on efficient distribution of energy and carbon skeletons between organs in the form of sugars. Glucose in animals and sucrose in plants serve as the dominant distribution forms. Cellular sugar uptake and release require vesicular and/or plasma membrane transport proteins. Humans and plants use proteins from three superfamilies for sugar translocation: the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), the sodium solute symporter family (SSF; only in the animal kingdom), and SWEETs. SWEETs carry mono- and disaccharides across vacuolar or plasma membranes. Plant SWEETs play key roles in sugar translocation between compartments, cells, and organs, notably in nectar secretion, phloem loading for long distance translocation, pollen nutrition, and seed filling. Plant SWEETs cause pathogen susceptibility possibly by sugar leakage from infected cells. The vacuolar Arabidopsis thaliana AtSWEET2 sequesters sugars in root vacuoles; loss-of-function mutants show increased susceptibility to Pythium infection. Here we show that its orthologue, the vacuolar glucose transporter OsSWEET2b from rice (Oryza sativa), consists of an asymmetrical pair of triple-helix bundles, connected by an inversion linker transmembrane helix (TM4) to create the translocation pathway. Structural and biochemical analyses show OsSWEET2b in an apparent inward (cytosolic) open state forming homomeric trimers. TM4 tightly interacts with the first triple-helix bundle within a protomer and mediates key contacts among protomers. Structure-guided mutagenesis of the close paralogue SWEET1 from Arabidopsis identified key residues in substrate translocation and protomer crosstalk. Insights into the structure-function relationship of SWEETs are valuable for understanding the transport mechanism of eukaryotic SWEETs and may be useful for engineering sugar flux.

Molecular Mechanism of Species-dependent Sweet Taste toward Artificial Sweeteners

PubMed Central

Liu, Bo; Ha, Matthew; Meng, Xuan-Yu; Kaur, Tanno; Khaleduzzaman, Mohammed; Zhang, Zhe; Jiang, Peihua; Li, Xia; Cui, Meng

2011-01-01

The heterodimer of Tas1R2 and Tas1R3 is a broadly acting sweet taste receptor, which mediates mammalian sweet taste toward natural and artificial sweeteners and sweet-tasting proteins. Perception of sweet taste is a species selective physiological process. For instance, artificial sweeteners aspartame and neotame taste sweet to humans, apes and Old World monkeys but not to New World monkeys and rodents. Although specific regions determining the activation of the receptors by these sweeteners have been identified, the molecular mechanism of species-dependent sweet taste remains elusive. Using human/squirrel monkey chimeras, mutagenesis and molecular modeling, we reveal that the different responses of mammalian species towards the artificial sweeteners aspartame and neotame are determined by the steric effect of a combination of a few residues in the ligand binding pocket. Residues S40 and D142 in the human Tas1R2, which correspond to residues T40 and E142 in the squirrel monkey Tas1R2, were found to be the critical residues for the species dependent difference in sweet taste. In addition, human Tas1R2 residue I67, which corresponds to S67 in squirrel monkey receptor, modulates the higher affinity of neotame than that of aspartame. Our studies not only shed light on the molecular mechanism of species dependent sweet taste toward artificial sweeteners, but also provide guidance for designing novel effective artificial sweet compounds. PMID:21795555

Molecular mechanism of species-dependent sweet taste toward artificial sweeteners.

PubMed

Liu, Bo; Ha, Matthew; Meng, Xuan-Yu; Kaur, Tanno; Khaleduzzaman, Mohammed; Zhang, Zhe; Jiang, Peihua; Li, Xia; Cui, Meng

2011-07-27

The heterodimer of Tas1R2 and Tas1R3 is a broadly acting sweet taste receptor, which mediates mammalian sweet taste toward natural and artificial sweeteners and sweet-tasting proteins. Perception of sweet taste is a species-selective physiological process. For instance, artificial sweeteners aspartame and neotame taste sweet to humans, apes, and Old World monkeys but not to New World monkeys and rodents. Although specific regions determining the activation of the receptors by these sweeteners have been identified, the molecular mechanism of species-dependent sweet taste remains elusive. Using human/squirrel monkey chimeras, mutagenesis, and molecular modeling, we reveal that the different responses of mammalian species toward the artificial sweeteners aspartame and neotame are determined by the steric effect of a combination of a few residues in the ligand binding pocket. Residues S40 and D142 in the human Tas1R2, which correspond to residues T40 and E142 in the squirrel monkey Tas1R2, were found to be the critical residues for the species-dependent difference in sweet taste. In addition, human Tas1R2 residue I67, which corresponds to S67 in squirrel monkey receptor, modulates the higher affinity of neotame than of aspartame. Our studies not only shed light on the molecular mechanism of species-dependent sweet taste toward artificial sweeteners, but also provide guidance for designing novel effective artificial sweet compounds.

7 CFR 457.129 - Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 6 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions. 457... sweet corn crop insurance provisions. The fresh market sweet corn crop insurance provisions for the 2008... Reinsured Policies Fresh Market Sweet Corn Crop Provisions 1. Definitions Allowable cost.—The dollar amount...

Functional role of oligomerization for bacterial and plant SWEET sugar transporter family.

PubMed

Xuan, Yuan Hu; Hu, Yi Bing; Chen, Li-Qing; Sosso, Davide; Ducat, Daniel C; Hou, Bi-Huei; Frommer, Wolf B

2013-09-24

Eukaryotic sugar transporters of the MFS and SWEET superfamilies consist of 12 and 7 α-helical transmembrane domains (TMs), respectively. Structural analyses indicate that MFS transporters evolved from a series of tandem duplications of an ancestral 3-TM unit. SWEETs are heptahelical proteins carrying a tandem repeat of 3-TM separated by a single TM. Here, we show that prokaryotes have ancestral SWEET homologs with only 3-TM and that the Bradyrhizobium japonicum SemiSWEET1, like Arabidopsis SWEET11, mediates sucrose transport. Eukaryotic SWEETs most likely evolved by internal duplication of the 3-TM, suggesting that SemiSWEETs form oligomers to create a functional pore. However, it remains elusive whether the 7-TM SWEETs are the functional unit or require oligomerization to form a pore sufficiently large to allow for sucrose passage. Split ubiquitin yeast two-hybrid and split GFP assays indicate that Arabidopsis SWEETs homo- and heterooligomerize. We examined mutant SWEET variants for negative dominance to test if oligomerization is necessary for function. Mutation of the conserved Y57 or G58 in SWEET1 led to loss of activity. Coexpression of the defective mutants with functional A. thaliana SWEET1 inhibited glucose transport, indicating that homooligomerization is necessary for function. Collectively, these data imply that the basic unit of SWEETs, similar to MFS sugar transporters, is a 3-TM unit and that a functional transporter contains at least four such domains. We hypothesize that the functional unit of the SWEET family of transporters possesses a structure resembling the 12-TM MFS structure, however, with a parallel orientation of the 3-TM unit.

Functional role of oligomerization for bacterial and plant SWEET sugar transporter family

PubMed Central

Xuan, Yuan Hu; Hu, Yi Bing; Chen, Li-Qing; Sosso, Davide; Ducat, Daniel C.; Hou, Bi-Huei; Frommer, Wolf B.

2013-01-01

Eukaryotic sugar transporters of the MFS and SWEET superfamilies consist of 12 and 7 α-helical transmembrane domains (TMs), respectively. Structural analyses indicate that MFS transporters evolved from a series of tandem duplications of an ancestral 3-TM unit. SWEETs are heptahelical proteins carrying a tandem repeat of 3-TM separated by a single TM. Here, we show that prokaryotes have ancestral SWEET homologs with only 3-TM and that the Bradyrhizobium japonicum SemiSWEET1, like Arabidopsis SWEET11, mediates sucrose transport. Eukaryotic SWEETs most likely evolved by internal duplication of the 3-TM, suggesting that SemiSWEETs form oligomers to create a functional pore. However, it remains elusive whether the 7-TM SWEETs are the functional unit or require oligomerization to form a pore sufficiently large to allow for sucrose passage. Split ubiquitin yeast two-hybrid and split GFP assays indicate that Arabidopsis SWEETs homo- and heterooligomerize. We examined mutant SWEET variants for negative dominance to test if oligomerization is necessary for function. Mutation of the conserved Y57 or G58 in SWEET1 led to loss of activity. Coexpression of the defective mutants with functional A. thaliana SWEET1 inhibited glucose transport, indicating that homooligomerization is necessary for function. Collectively, these data imply that the basic unit of SWEETs, similar to MFS sugar transporters, is a 3-TM unit and that a functional transporter contains at least four such domains. We hypothesize that the functional unit of the SWEET family of transporters possesses a structure resembling the 12-TM MFS structure, however, with a parallel orientation of the 3-TM unit. PMID:24027245

The anatomy of mammalian sweet taste receptors.

PubMed

Chéron, Jean-Baptiste; Golebiowski, Jérôme; Antonczak, Serge; Fiorucci, Sébastien

2017-02-01

All sweet-tasting compounds are detected by a single G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR), the heterodimer T1R2-T1R3, for which no experimental structure is available. The sweet taste receptor is a class C GPCR, and the recently published crystallographic structures of metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) 1 and 5 provide a significant step forward for understanding structure-function relationships within this family. In this article, we recapitulate more than 600 single point site-directed mutations and available structural data to obtain a critical alignment of the sweet taste receptor sequences with respect to other class C GPCRs. Using this alignment, a homology 3D-model of the human sweet taste receptor is built and analyzed to dissect out the role of key residues involved in ligand binding and those responsible for receptor activation. Proteins 2017; 85:332-341. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Leptin suppresses sweet taste responses of enteroendocrine STC-1 cells.

PubMed

Jyotaki, Masafumi; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2016-09-22

Leptin is an important hormone that regulates food intake and energy homeostasis by acting on central and peripheral targets. In the gustatory system, leptin is known to selectively suppress sweet responses by inhibiting the activation of sweet sensitive taste cells. Sweet taste receptor (T1R2+T1R3) is also expressed in gut enteroendocrine cells and contributes to nutrient sensing, hormone release and glucose absorption. Because of the similarities in expression patterns between enteroendocrine and taste receptor cells, we hypothesized that they may also share similar mechanisms used to modify/regulate the sweet responsiveness of these cells by leptin. Here, we used mouse enteroendocrine cell line STC-1 and examined potential effect of leptin on Ca(2+) responses of STC-1 cells to various taste compounds. Ca(2+) responses to sweet compounds in STC-1 cells were suppressed by a rodent T1R3 inhibitor gurmarin, suggesting the involvement of T1R3-dependent receptors in detection of sweet compounds. Responses to sweet substances were suppressed by ⩾1ng/ml leptin without affecting responses to bitter, umami and salty compounds. This effect was inhibited by a leptin antagonist (mutant L39A/D40A/F41A) and by ATP gated K(+) (KATP) channel closer glibenclamide, suggesting that leptin affects sweet taste responses of enteroendocrine cells via activation of leptin receptor and KATP channel expressed in these cells. Moreover, leptin selectively inhibited sweet-induced but not bitter-induced glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) secretion from STC-1 cells. These results suggest that leptin modulates sweet taste responses of enteroendocrine cells to regulate nutrient sensing, hormone release and glucose absorption in the gut. Copyright © 2016 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Stability and use of sweet sorghum bagasse

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

With sweet sorghum production and subsequent accumulation of bagasse on the rise, it is important to look for novel uses for its by-products. Bagasse, the solid fibrous product left after sweet sorghum stalks are crushed to remove juice, is partially reapplied to the field to enhance subsequent cro...

Innovative Methodology For Detection of Fracture-Controlled Sweet Spots in the Northern Appalachian Basin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jacobi, Rober

2007-03-28

This Topical Report (#6 of 9) consists of the figures 3.6-13 to (and including) 3.6-18 (and appropriate figure captions) that accompany the Final Technical Progress Report entitled: “Innovative Methodology for Detection of Fracture-Controlled Sweet Spots in the Northern Appalachian Basin” for DOE/NETL Award DE-AC26-00NT40698.

Neuro-Sweet disease: report of the first autopsy case.

PubMed

Kokubo, Yasumasa; Kuzuhara, Shigeki; Isoda, Kenichi; Sato, Kenji; Kawada, Norikazu; Narita, Yugo

2007-09-01

Neuro-Sweet disease is a rare condition of central nervous involvement accompanied by cutaneous Sweet lesions. Neuropathological changes in neuro-Sweet disease are unknown. To describe post-mortem findings of the first case of neuro-Sweet disease. A 44-year-old Japanese man developed recurrent episodes of cerebral and brainstem encephalitis with cutaneous Sweet lesions from the age of 34 years. His HLA typing was B54 and Cw1, and the symptoms and MRI abnormalities markedly subsided following corticosteroid therapy. Histologically, there were multiple lesions of perivascular cuffing of small venules by macrophages without vasculitis in the thalamus, temporal lobe, basal ganglia, pons, leptomeninges or ventricular ependym. The core neuropathological findings were: perivascular cuffing around particularly small veins; absence of granulomatous or necrotic angitis; mainly macrophage infiltration; and the thalamus being most affected. In the present case, the diagnosis of neuro-Sweet disease was made by skin biopsy 5 years after the onset of the central neuron system symptoms. We should pay more attention to skin lesions in steroid responsive recurrent encephalitis in patients who are HLA-B54 or Cw1 positive.

Neuro‐Sweet disease: report of the first autopsy case

PubMed Central

Kokubo, Yasumasa; Kuzuhara, Shigeki; Isoda, Kenichi; Sato, Kenji; Kawada, Norikazu; Narita, Yugo

2007-01-01

Background Neuro‐Sweet disease is a rare condition of central nervous involvement accompanied by cutaneous Sweet lesions. Neuropathological changes in neuro‐Sweet disease are unknown. Objective To describe post‐mortem findings of the first case of neuro‐Sweet disease. Results A 44‐year‐old Japanese man developed recurrent episodes of cerebral and brainstem encephalitis with cutaneous Sweet lesions from the age of 34 years. His HLA typing was B54 and Cw1, and the symptoms and MRI abnormalities markedly subsided following corticosteroid therapy. Histologically, there were multiple lesions of perivascular cuffing of small venules by macrophages without vasculitis in the thalamus, temporal lobe, basal ganglia, pons, leptomeninges or ventricular ependym. Conclusions The core neuropathological findings were: perivascular cuffing around particularly small veins; absence of granulomatous or necrotic angitis; mainly macrophage infiltration; and the thalamus being most affected. In the present case, the diagnosis of neuro‐Sweet disease was made by skin biopsy 5 years after the onset of the central neuron system symptoms. We should pay more attention to skin lesions in steroid responsive recurrent encephalitis in patients who are HLA‐B54 or Cw1 positive. PMID:17702783

Diabetes Nutrition: Including Sweets in Your Meal Plan

MedlinePlus

Diabetes nutrition: Including sweets in your meal plan Diabetes nutrition focuses on healthy foods, but sweets aren't necessarily ... your meal plan. By Mayo Clinic Staff Diabetes nutrition focuses on healthy foods. But you can eat ...

A Preference Test for Sweet Taste That Uses Edible Strips

PubMed Central

Smutzer, Gregory; Patel, Janki Y.; Stull, Judith C.; Abarintos, Ray A.; Khan, Neiladri K.; Park, Kevin C.

2014-01-01

A novel delivery method is described for the rapid determination of taste preferences for sweet taste in humans. This forced-choice paired comparison approach incorporates the non-caloric sweetener sucralose into a set of one-inch square edible strips for the rapid determination of sweet taste preferences. When compared to aqueous sucrose solutions, significantly lower amounts of sucralose were required to identify the preference for sweet taste. The validity of this approach was determined by comparing sweet taste preferences obtained with five different sucralose-containing edible strips to a set of five intensity-matched sucrose solutions. When compared to the solution test, edible strips required approximately the same number of steps to identify the preferred amount of sweet taste stimulus. Both approaches yielded similar distribution patterns for the preferred amount of sweet taste stimulus. In addition, taste intensity values for the preferred amount of sucralose in strips were similar to that of sucrose in solution. The hedonic values for the preferred amount of sucralose were lower than for sucrose, but the taste quality of the preferred sucralose strip was described as sweet. When taste intensity values between sucralose strips and sucralose solutions containing identical amounts of taste stimulus were compared, sucralose strips produced a greater taste intensity and more positive hedonic response. A preference test that uses edible strips for stimulus delivery should be useful for identifying preferences for sweet taste in young children, and in clinical populations. This test should also be useful for identifying sweet taste preferences outside of the lab or clinic. Finally, edible strips should be useful for developing preference tests for other primary taste stimuli and for taste mixtures. PMID:24225255

The sweet spots in human communication.

PubMed

Salem, Philip

2011-07-01

In baseball, the sweet spot is a special place on a bat where the batter can hit the ball with the most power. It is the place where the performances of the batter and pitcher collide with maximum effect. It is the place where the dynamic tension between opponents leads to transformation. The dynamic tension in all living systems is between similarity and difference. Chaos and complexity scholars recognized this tension as amounts of information. When the amounts of information were high, but not too high, the system moved to the edge of chaos, to the complexity regime, to strange attractors, or to chaos, depending on the model. The sweet spot is that range of relative variety, just the proper mix of similarity and difference, leading to transformation. This essay contains a model of human communication as an emergent social process with its own sweet spots. The essay also includes a description of current literature highlighting tensions between similarity and difference, and there is an exploration of the potential to move from one basin of attraction to another. The primary constraints on finding communication sweet spots are paradigmatic - adopting a process orientation, discovering the proper parameters, bracketing sequences to define initial conditions, and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of various modeling techniques.

Discovery of Highly Sweet Compounds from Natural Sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kinghorn, A. Douglas; Kennelly, Edward J.

1995-08-01

Sucrose, the most widely used sweetener globally, is of plant origin. In addition, a number of other plant constituents are employed as dietary sucrose substitutes in one or more countries, including the diterpenoid, stevioside, the triterpenoid, glycyrrhizin, and the protein, thaumatin. Accordingly, there has been much interest in discovering further examples of potently sweet compounds of natural origin, for potential use in foods, beverages, and medicines. Approximately 75 plant-derived compounds are presently known, mainly representative of the flavonoid, proanthocyandin, protein, steroidal saponin, and terpenoid chemotypes. In our program directed towards the elucidation of further highly sweet molecules from plants, candidate sweet-tasting plants for laboratory investigation are obtained from ethnobotanical observations in the field or in the existing literature. Examples of novel sweet-tasting compounds obtained so far are the sesquiterpenoids, hernandulcin and 4beta-hydroxyhemandulcin; the triterpenoids, abrusosides A-D; a semi-synthetic dihydroflavonol based on the naturally occurring substance, dihydroquercetin 3-acetate; and the proanthocyanidin, selligueain A. Natural product sweeteners may be of potential commercial use per se, and can be used for synthetic modification to produce improved sweeteners, and can also be of value scientifically to aid in the better understanding of structure-sweetness relationships.

Structures of bacterial homologues of SWEET transporters in two distinct conformations.

PubMed

Xu, Yan; Tao, Yuyong; Cheung, Lily S; Fan, Chao; Chen, Li-Qing; Xu, Sophia; Perry, Kay; Frommer, Wolf B; Feng, Liang

2014-11-20

SWEETs and their prokaryotic homologues are monosaccharide and disaccharide transporters that are present from Archaea to plants and humans. SWEETs play crucial roles in cellular sugar efflux processes: that is, in phloem loading, pollen nutrition and nectar secretion. Their bacterial homologues, which are called SemiSWEETs, are among the smallest known transporters. Here we show that SemiSWEET molecules, which consist of a triple-helix bundle, form symmetrical, parallel dimers, thereby generating the translocation pathway. Two SemiSWEET isoforms were crystallized, one in an apparently open state and one in an occluded state, indicating that SemiSWEETs and SWEETs are transporters that undergo rocking-type movements during the transport cycle. The topology of the triple-helix bundle is similar yet distinct to that of the basic building block of animal and plant major facilitator superfamily (MFS) transporters (for example, GLUTs and SUTs). This finding indicates two possibilities: that SWEETs and MFS transporters evolved from an ancestral triple-helix bundle or that the triple-helix bundle represents convergent evolution. In SemiSWEETs and SWEETs, two triple-helix bundles are arranged in a parallel configuration to produce the 6- and 6 + 1-transmembrane-helix pores, respectively. In the 12-transmembrane-helix MFS transporters, four triple-helix bundles are arranged into an alternating antiparallel configuration, resulting in a much larger 2 × 2 triple-helix bundle forming the pore. Given the similarity of SemiSWEETs and SWEETs to PQ-loop amino acid transporters and to mitochondrial pyruvate carriers (MPCs), the structures characterized here may also be relevant to other transporters in the MtN3 clan. The insight gained from the structures of these transporters and from the analysis of mutations of conserved residues will improve the understanding of the transport mechanism, as well as allow comparative studies of the different superfamilies involved in sugar

Taste bud leptin: sweet dampened at initiation site.

PubMed

Travers, Susan P; Frank, Marion E

2015-05-01

The intriguing observation that leptin decreases sweet-evoked peripheral gustatory responses has aroused much interest (Kawai K, Sugimoto K, Nakashima K, Miura H, Ninomiya Y. 2000. Leptin as a modulator of sweet taste sensitivities in mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 97(20):11044-11049.) due to its implied importance in controlling appetite. The effects of this anorexic hormone, however, appear more conditional than originally believed. In this issue of Chemical Senses, a careful study by Glendinning and colleagues, find no effects of leptin on sweet-evoked chorda tympani responses, whereas an equally careful study by Meredith and colleagues, find decreased release of ATP and increased release of 5-HT from taste buds in response to sweet stimuli. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

21 CFR 163.153 - Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. 163.153... § 163.153 Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat... specified dairy ingredient. (b) Optional ingredients. (1) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils...

21 CFR 163.153 - Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. 163.153... § 163.153 Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat... specified dairy ingredient. (b) Optional ingredients. (1) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils...

21 CFR 163.153 - Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. 163.153... § 163.153 Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet chocolate and vegetable fat... specified dairy ingredient. (b) Optional ingredients. (1) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils...

The Association between Sweet Taste Function, Anthropometry, and Dietary Intake in Adults.

PubMed

Low, Julia Y Q; Lacy, Kathleen E; McBride, Robert; Keast, Russell S J

2016-04-23

Variation in ability to detect, recognize, and perceive sweetness may influence food consumption, and eventually chronic nutrition-related conditions such as overweight and obesity. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between sweet taste function, anthropometry, and dietary intake in adults. Participants' (n = 60; mean age in years = 26, SD = ±7.8) sweet taste function for a range of sweeteners (glucose, fructose, sucrose, sucralose, erythritol, and Rebaudioside A) was assessed by measuring detection and recognition thresholds and sweetness intensity. Height, weight, and waist circumference were also measured, and participants also completed a Food Frequency Questionnaire. There was large inter-individual variation in detection, recognition and sweetness intensity measures. Pearson's correlation coefficient revealed no robust correlations between measures of sweet taste function, anthropometry, and dietary intake, with the exception of suprathreshold intensity, which was moderately correlated with total energy intake (r = 0.23-0.40). One-way analysis of variance revealed no significant differences between the most and least sensitive participants in terms of BMI, waist circumference, and dietary intake for all measures of sweet taste function and sweeteners (all p > 0.01). When stratified into BMI categories, there were no significant differences in any measure of sweet taste function between the normal weight and overweight/obese participants (all p > 0.01). Results show that that sweet taste function is not associated with anthropometry and sweetness intensity measures are the most appropriate measure when assessing links between sweet taste and food consumption.

Sugars, Sweet Taste Receptors, and Brain Responses

PubMed Central

Lee, Allen A.; Owyang, Chung

2017-01-01

Sweet taste receptors are composed of a heterodimer of taste 1 receptor member 2 (T1R2) and taste 1 receptor member 3 (T1R3). Accumulating evidence shows that sweet taste receptors are ubiquitous throughout the body, including in the gastrointestinal tract as well as the hypothalamus. These sweet taste receptors are heavily involved in nutrient sensing, monitoring changes in energy stores, and triggering metabolic and behavioral responses to maintain energy balance. Not surprisingly, these pathways are heavily regulated by external and internal factors. Dysfunction in one or more of these pathways may be important in the pathogenesis of common diseases, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. PMID:28672790

Sugars, Sweet Taste Receptors, and Brain Responses.

PubMed

Lee, Allen A; Owyang, Chung

2017-06-24

Sweet taste receptors are composed of a heterodimer of taste 1 receptor member 2 (T1R2) and taste 1 receptor member 3 (T1R3). Accumulating evidence shows that sweet taste receptors are ubiquitous throughout the body, including in the gastrointestinal tract as well as the hypothalamus. These sweet taste receptors are heavily involved in nutrient sensing, monitoring changes in energy stores, and triggering metabolic and behavioral responses to maintain energy balance. Not surprisingly, these pathways are heavily regulated by external and internal factors. Dysfunction in one or more of these pathways may be important in the pathogenesis of common diseases, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Analyses of sweet receptor gene (Tas1r2) and preference for sweet stimuli in species of Carnivora.

PubMed

Li, Xia; Glaser, Dieter; Li, Weihua; Johnson, Warren E; O'Brien, Stephen J; Beauchamp, Gary K; Brand, Joseph G

2009-01-01

The extent to which taste receptor specificity correlates with, or even predicts, diet choice is not known. We recently reported that the insensitivity to sweeteners shown by species of Felidae can be explained by their lacking of a functional Tas1r2 gene. To broaden our understanding of the relationship between the structure of the sweet receptors and preference for sugars and artificial sweeteners, we measured responses to 12 sweeteners in 6 species of Carnivora and sequenced the coding regions of Tas1r2 in these same or closely related species. The lion showed no preference for any of the 12 sweet compounds tested, and it possesses the pseudogenized Tas1r2. All other species preferred some of the natural sugars, and their Tas1r2 sequences, having complete open reading frames, predict functional sweet receptors. In addition to preferring natural sugars, the lesser panda also preferred 3 (neotame, sucralose, and aspartame) of the 6 artificial sweeteners. Heretofore, it had been reported that among vertebrates, only Old World simians could taste aspartame. The observation that the lesser panda highly preferred aspartame could be an example of evolutionary convergence in the identification of sweet stimuli.

Structure of a eukaryotic SWEET transporter in a homo-trimeric complex

PubMed Central

Li, Shuo; Eom, Joon-Seob; Chen, Li-Qing; Xu, Yan; Perry, Kay; Frommer, Wolf B.; Feng, Liang

2016-01-01

Eukaryotes rely on efficient distribution of energy and carbon skeletons between organs in the form of sugars. Glucose in animals and sucrose in plants serve as dominant distribution forms. Cellular sugar uptake and release require vesicular and/or plasma membrane transport proteins. Humans and plants use related proteins from three superfamilies for sugar translocation: the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), the sodium solute symporter Family (SSF; only animal kingdom), and SWEETs1-5. SWEETs carry mono- and disaccharides6 across vacuolar or plasma membranes. Plant SWEETs play key roles in sugar translocation between compartments, cells, and organs, notably in nectar secretion7, phloem loading for long distance translocation8, pollen nutrition9, and seed filling10. Plant SWEETs cause pathogen susceptibility by sugar leakage from infected cells3,11,12. The vacuolar AtSWEET2 sequesters sugars in root vacuoles; loss-of-function increases susceptibility to Pythium infection13. Here we show that its orthologue, the vacuolar glucose transporter OsSWEET2b from rice, consists of an asymmetrical pair of triple-helix-bundles (THBs), connected by an inversion linker helix (TM4) to create the translocation pathway. Structural and biochemical analyses show OsSWEET2b in an apparent inward (cytosolic) open state forming homomeric trimers. TM4 tightly interacts with the first THB within a protomer and mediates key contacts among protomers. Structure-guided mutagenesis of the close paralogue SWEET1 from Arabidopsis identified key residues in substrate translocation and protomer crosstalk. Insights into the structure-function relationship of SWEETs is valuable for understanding the transport mechanism of eukaryotic SWEETs and may be useful for engineering sugar flux. PMID:26479032

A preference test for sweet taste that uses edible strips.

PubMed

Smutzer, Gregory; Patel, Janki Y; Stull, Judith C; Abarintos, Ray A; Khan, Neiladri K; Park, Kevin C

2014-02-01

A novel delivery method is described for the rapid determination of taste preferences for sweet taste in humans. This forced-choice paired comparison approach incorporates the non-caloric sweetener sucralose into a set of one-inch square edible strips for the rapid determination of sweet taste preferences. When compared to aqueous sucrose solutions, significantly lower amounts of sucralose were required to identify the preference for sweet taste. The validity of this approach was determined by comparing sweet taste preferences obtained with five different sucralose-containing edible strips to a set of five intensity-matched sucrose solutions. When compared to the solution test, edible strips required approximately the same number of steps to identify the preferred amount of sweet taste stimulus. Both approaches yielded similar distribution patterns for the preferred amount of sweet taste stimulus. In addition, taste intensity values for the preferred amount of sucralose in strips were similar to that of sucrose in solution. The hedonic values for the preferred amount of sucralose were lower than for sucrose, but the taste quality of the preferred sucralose strip was described as sweet. When taste intensity values between sucralose strips and sucralose solutions containing identical amounts of taste stimulus were compared, sucralose strips produced a greater taste intensity and more positive hedonic response. A preference test that uses edible strips for stimulus delivery should be useful for identifying preferences for sweet taste in young children, and in clinical populations. This test should also be useful for identifying sweet taste preferences outside of the lab or clinic. Finally, edible strips should be useful for developing preference tests for other primary taste stimuli and for taste mixtures. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Characterization of a Torulaspora delbrueckii diploid strain with optimized performance in sweet and frozen sweet dough.

PubMed

Hernández-López, Maria José; Pallotti, Claudia; Andreu, Pasqual; Aguilera, Jaime; Prieto, José Antonio; Randez-Gil, Francisca

2007-05-01

Torulaspora delbrueckii is a baker's yeast that is highly tolerant to freeze-thaw stress, making it suitable for frozen dough technology. The T. delbrueckii strain PYCC5321, isolated from traditional bread dough, combines this tolerance with a high degree of ionic and osmotic stress resistance. However, the industrial use of this strain for frozen and sweet frozen baking is hampered by its small cell size, which causes clogging problems at the filtering stage. Here, we report the construction of a stable diploid strain of T. delbrueckii PYCC5321, which we named Td21-2n. The new strain was more than 2.7-fold bigger than their haploid counterpart, whereas biomass yield, stress resistance and sweet dough leavening ability were found to be similar in both strains. Moreover, the gassing power of the diploid after dough freezing also remained unaltered. Thus, Td21-2n meets the requirements necessary for industrial production and is suitable for application in frozen sweet baking products.

MtSWEET11, a Nodule-Specific Sucrose Transporter of Medicago truncatula

DOE PAGES

Kryvoruchko, Igor S.; Sinharoy, Senjuti; Torres-Jerez, Ivone; ...

2016-03-28

Optimization of nitrogen fixation by rhizobia in legumes is a key area of research for sustainable agriculture. Symbiotic nitrogen fixation (SNF) occurs in specialized organs called nodules and depends on a steady supply of carbon to both plant and bacterial cells. Here we report the functional characterization of a nodule-specific Suc transporter, MtSWEET11 from Medicago truncatula. MtSWEET11 belongs to a clade of plant SWEET proteins that are capable of transporting Suc and play critical roles in pathogen susceptibility. When expressed in mammalian cells, MtSWEET11 transported sucrose (Suc) but not glucose (Glc). The MtSWEET11 gene was found to be expressed inmore » infected root hair cells, and in the meristem, invasion zone, and vasculature of nodules. Expression of an MtSWEET11-GFP fusion protein in nodules resulted in green fluorescence associated with the plasma membrane of uninfected cells and infection thread and symbiosome membranes of infected cells. Two independent Tnt1-insertion sweet11 mutants were uncompromised in SNF. Furthermore, although MtSWEET11 appears to be involved in Suc distribution within nodules, it is not crucial for SNF, probably because other Suc transporters can fulfill its role(s).« less

Patterns of sweetness preference in red wine according to consumer characterisation.

PubMed

Sena-Esteves, Maria Madalena; Mota, Mariana; Malfeito-Ferreira, Manuel

2018-04-01

The preference for sweet taste in red wine was examined according to consumer categories of age, gender, drinking experience and personality type (Big-5 personality-test). A total of 114 subjects revealed their preferences for sweetness after tasting dry red wine spiked with equal concentrations of glucose and fructose at 2g/L, 4g/L, 8g/L, 16g/L and 32g/L, following an ascending forced choice paired comparison method (2-AFC). The overall preference for sweetness was shown within the range of 4.8 to 21.9g/L, with maximal liking at 8g/L. Three patterns of response to sweetness were observed (sweet dislikers, sweet likers and indifferent to sweet) according to the different categories of consumers. Differences (p>0.05) were not found in sweetness preference among the categories up to 16g/L sugar except for the trait extraversion at 8g/L, where low extraverts showed a higher proportion of responses preferring the sweeter sample. Most significant differences were found only under the highest tasted concentration (32g/L). Females and novices preferred sweeter samples (p<0.05) when compared with the response of males and experienced consumers, respectively. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

21 CFR 163.150 - Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. 163.150... § 163.150 Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating...) Chocolate liquor; (3) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils, and stearins other than cacao fat. The...

21 CFR 163.150 - Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. 163.150... § 163.150 Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating...) Chocolate liquor; (3) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils, and stearins other than cacao fat. The...

21 CFR 163.150 - Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. 163.150... § 163.150 Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating. (a) Description. Sweet cocoa and vegetable fat coating...) Chocolate liquor; (3) Safe and suitable vegetable derived fats, oils, and stearins other than cacao fat. The...

Non-caloric sweeteners, sweetness modulators, and sweetener enhancers.

PubMed

DuBois, Grant E; Prakash, Indra

2012-01-01

For a new sweetness technology to realize strong commercial success, it must be safe, exhibit good taste quality, be sufficiently soluble and stable in food and beverage systems, and be cost effective and patentable. Assessments of the commercial promise of eight synthetic and eight natural non-caloric sweeteners are made relevant to these metrics. High-potency (HP) non-caloric sweeteners, both synthetic and natural, are generally limited in taste quality by (a) low maximal sweetness response, (b) "off" tastes, (c) slow-onset sweet tastes that linger, and (d) sweet tastes that adapt or desensitize the gustatory system. Formulation approaches to address these limitations are discussed. Enhancement of the normal sucrose sensory response by action of a sweetener receptor positive allosteric modulator (PAM) has been achieved with very significant calorie reduction and with retention of the taste quality of sucrose. Research on PAM discovery over the past decade is summarized.

The Association between Sweet Taste Function, Anthropometry, and Dietary Intake in Adults

PubMed Central

Low, Julia Y. Q.; Lacy, Kathleen E.; McBride, Robert; Keast, Russell S. J.

2016-01-01

Variation in ability to detect, recognize, and perceive sweetness may influence food consumption, and eventually chronic nutrition-related conditions such as overweight and obesity. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between sweet taste function, anthropometry, and dietary intake in adults. Participants’ (n = 60; mean age in years = 26, SD = ±7.8) sweet taste function for a range of sweeteners (glucose, fructose, sucrose, sucralose, erythritol, and Rebaudioside A) was assessed by measuring detection and recognition thresholds and sweetness intensity. Height, weight, and waist circumference were also measured, and participants also completed a Food Frequency Questionnaire. There was large inter-individual variation in detection, recognition and sweetness intensity measures. Pearson’s correlation coefficient revealed no robust correlations between measures of sweet taste function, anthropometry, and dietary intake, with the exception of suprathreshold intensity, which was moderately correlated with total energy intake (r = 0.23–0.40). One-way analysis of variance revealed no significant differences between the most and least sensitive participants in terms of BMI, waist circumference, and dietary intake for all measures of sweet taste function and sweeteners (all p > 0.01). When stratified into BMI categories, there were no significant differences in any measure of sweet taste function between the normal weight and overweight/obese participants (all p > 0.01). Results show that that sweet taste function is not associated with anthropometry and sweetness intensity measures are the most appropriate measure when assessing links between sweet taste and food consumption. PMID:27120614

Atomic structure of recombinant thaumatin II reveals flexible conformations in two residues critical for sweetness and three consecutive glycine residues.

PubMed

Masuda, Tetsuya; Mikami, Bunzo; Tani, Fumito

2014-11-01

Thaumatin, an intensely sweet-tasting protein used as a sweetener, elicits a sweet taste at 50 nM. Although two major variants designated thaumatin I and thaumatin II exist in plants, there have been few dedicated thaumatin II structural studies and, to date, data beyond atomic resolution had not been obtained. To identify the detailed structural properties explaining why thaumatin elicits a sweet taste, the structure of recombinant thaumatin II was determined at the resolution of 0.99 Å. Atomic resolution structural analysis with riding hydrogen atoms illustrated the differences in the direction of the side-chains more precisely and the electron density maps of the C-terminal regions were markedly improved. Though it had been suggested that the three consecutive glycine residues (G142-G143-G144) have highly flexible conformations, G143, the central glycine residue was successfully modelled in two conformations for the first time. Furthermore, the side chain r.m.s.d. values for two residues (R67 and R82) critical for sweetness exhibited substantially higher values, suggesting that these residues are highly disordered. These results demonstrated that the flexible conformations in two critical residues favoring their interaction with sweet taste receptors are prominent features of the intensely sweet taste of thaumatin. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. and Société française de biochimie et biologie Moléculaire (SFBBM). All rights reserved.

Lipid-Lowering Pharmaceutical Clofibrate Inhibits Human Sweet Taste

PubMed Central

Kochem, Matthew

2017-01-01

T1R2-T1R3 is a heteromeric receptor that binds sugars, high potency sweeteners, and sweet taste blockers. In rodents, T1R2-T1R3 is largely responsible for transducing sweet taste perception. T1R2-T1R3 is also expressed in non-taste tissues, and a growing body of evidence suggests that it helps regulate glucose and lipid metabolism. It was previously shown that clofibric acid, a blood lipid-lowering drug, binds T1R2-T1R3 and inhibits its activity in vitro. The purpose of this study was to determine whether clofibric acid inhibits sweetness perception in humans and is, therefore, a T1R2-T1R3 antagonist in vivo. Fourteen participants rated the sweetness intensity of 4 sweeteners (sucrose, sucralose, Na cyclamate, acesulfame K) across a broad range of concentrations. Each sweetener was prepared in solution neat and in mixture with either clofibric acid or lactisole. Clofibric acid inhibited sweetness of every sweetener. Consistent with competitive binding, inhibition by clofibric acid was diminished with increasing sweetener concentration. This study provides in vivo evidence that the lipid-lowering drug clofibric acid inhibits sweetness perception and is, therefore, a T1R carbohydrate receptor inhibitor. Our results are consistent with previous in vitro findings. Given that T1R2-T1R3 may in part regulate glucose and lipid metabolism, future studies should investigate the metabolic effects of T1R inhibition. PMID:27742692

Investigation of the erosive potential of sour novelty sweets.

PubMed

Aljawad, A; Morgan, M Z; Fairchild, R; Rees, J S

2017-04-21

Background The expansion of the novelty sweets market in the UK has major potential public health implications in children and young adults as they may cause dental erosion.Objective To investigate the erosive potential of the novelty sweets in term of their physiochemical properties and amount of enamel loss.Subjects and methods The pH of a variety of novelty sweets was tested in vitro using a pH meter and the neutralisable acidity was assessed by titrating the sweets against 0.1M NaOH. The viscosity of the novelty sweets was measured using a rotational viscometer. The wettability of enamel by each sweet was measured using dynamic contact angle analyser. Enamel loss was assessed using contact profilometry.Results The pH ranged from 1.8-3.2, the neutralisable acidity ranged from 9-201 ml of 0.1 NaOH. The viscosity of the novelty sweets that come in liquid form ranged from 2-594 mPa s. The surface enamel erosion ranged from 1.95-15.77 μm and from 2.5-17.6 μm with and without immersing in saliva for 1 hour before immersing in acidic solution respectively. The amount of subsurface enamel loss was ranged from 0.75 to 2.3 μm following ultrasonication at 0 min of acidic attack and from 0.23 to 0.85 μm at 60 minutes of acidic attack while immersed in saliva. The contact angle between enamel surface and four sweet was less than the angle formed between the orange juice and the enamel which caused more wettability of enamel.Conclusion The pH is lower than the critical value for enamel erosion (5.5), high neutralisable acidity and high sugar content strongly suggest that these sweets may cause significant amount of dental erosion clinically. In addition, the degree of wettability of enamel by solution is an important factor to consider in determining the enamel loss caused by acidic solution. Immediate tooth brushing would cause further enamel loss as a result of the mechanical removal of softened enamel. However, it has been suggested that postponing brushing after

Sweet taste liking is associated with impulsive behaviors in humans

PubMed Central

Weafer, Jessica; Burkhardt, Anne; de Wit, Harriet

2014-01-01

Evidence from both human and animal studies suggests that sensitivity to rewarding stimuli is positively associated with impulsive behaviors, including both impulsive decision making and inhibitory control. The current study examined associations between the hedonic value of a sweet taste and two forms of impulsivity (impulsive choice and impulsive action) in healthy young adults (N = 100). Participants completed a sweet taste test in which they rated their liking of various sweetness concentrations. Subjects also completed measures of impulsive choice (delay discounting), and impulsive action (go/no-go task). Subjects who discounted more steeply (i.e., greater impulsive choice) liked the high sweetness concentration solutions more. By contrast, sweet liking was not related to impulsive action. These findings indicate that impulsive choice may be associated with heightened sensitivity to the hedonic value of a rewarding stimulus, and that these constructs might share common underlying neurobiological mechanisms. PMID:24987343

Laboratory studies of sweets re-formulated to improve their dental properties.

PubMed

Grenby, T H; Mistry, M

1996-03-01

To evaluate the potential dental effects of ten new types of sugar-free sweets formulated with Lycasin or isomalt as bulk sweeteners instead of sugars. Examination of the sweets for their acidity, fermentability by oral microorganisms, influence on the demineralisation of dental enamel, and their influence on human interdental plaque pH, compared with conventional sugar-containing sweets. The importance of reducing the levels of flavouring acids in the sweets was demonstrated. It was not straightforward to evaluate chocolate products in this system, but the potential benefits of re-formulating fruit gums, lollipops, chew-bars, toffee and fudge with Lycasin or isomalt in place of sugars were shown by determining their reduced acidogenicity and fermentability compared with conventional confectionery. The extent of demineralisation of dental enamel was related to both the acidity and the fermentability of the sweets. Re-formulating sweets with reduced acidity levels and bulk sweeteners not fermentable by dental plaque microorganisms can provide a basis for improving their potential dental effects.

Analyses of Sweet Receptor Gene (Tas1r2) and Preference for Sweet Stimuli in Species of Carnivora

PubMed Central

Glaser, Dieter; Li, Weihua; Johnson, Warren E.; O'Brien, Stephen J.; Beauchamp, Gary K.; Brand, Joseph G.

2009-01-01

The extent to which taste receptor specificity correlates with, or even predicts, diet choice is not known. We recently reported that the insensitivity to sweeteners shown by species of Felidae can be explained by their lacking of a functional Tas1r2 gene. To broaden our understanding of the relationship between the structure of the sweet receptors and preference for sugars and artificial sweeteners, we measured responses to 12 sweeteners in 6 species of Carnivora and sequenced the coding regions of Tas1r2 in these same or closely related species. The lion showed no preference for any of the 12 sweet compounds tested, and it possesses the pseudogenized Tas1r2. All other species preferred some of the natural sugars, and their Tas1r2 sequences, having complete open reading frames, predict functional sweet receptors. In addition to preferring natural sugars, the lesser panda also preferred 3 (neotame, sucralose, and aspartame) of the 6 artificial sweeteners. Heretofore, it had been reported that among vertebrates, only Old World simians could taste aspartame. The observation that the lesser panda highly preferred aspartame could be an example of evolutionary convergence in the identification of sweet stimuli. PMID:19366814

Regulatory role of glycogen synthase kinase 3 for transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c.

PubMed

Kim, Kang Ho; Song, Min Jeong; Yoo, Eung Jae; Choe, Sung Sik; Park, Sang Dai; Kim, Jae Bum

2004-12-10

Adipocyte determination- and differentiation-dependent factor 1 (ADD1) plays important roles in lipid metabolism and insulin-dependent gene expression. Because insulin stimulates carbohydrate and lipid synthesis, it would be important to decipher how the transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c is regulated in the insulin signaling pathway. In this study, we demonstrated that glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3 negatively regulates the transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c. GSK3 inhibitors enhanced a transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c and expression of ADD1/SREBP1c target genes including fatty acid synthase (FAS), acetyl-CoA carboxylase 1 (ACC1), and steroyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1) in adipocytes and hepatocytes. In contrast, overexpression of GSK3beta down-regulated the transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c. GSK3 inhibitor-mediated ADD1/SREBP1c target gene activation did not require de novo protein synthesis, implying that GSK3 might affect transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c at the level of post-translational modification. Additionally, we demonstrated that GSK3 efficiently phosphorylated ADD1/SREBP1c in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, these data suggest that GSK3 inactivation is crucial to confer stimulated transcriptional activity of ADD1/SREBP1c for insulin-dependent gene expression, which would coordinate lipid and glucose metabolism.

Sweet Preference Associated with the Risk of Hypercholesterolemia Among Middle-Aged Women in Korea.

PubMed

Shin, Yoonjin; Lee, Soojin; Kim, Yangha

2018-04-05

Sweet preference has been reported to be associated with various health problems. This study examined the influence of sweet taste preference on the risk of dyslipidemia in Korean middle-aged women. The study selected 3,609 middle-aged women from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES) and classified them into two groups on the basis of whether or not they preferred sweet taste. Dietary intake was analyzed using a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Serum lipid profiles and anthropometric variables were measured. Subjects who preferred the sweet taste had significantly higher intakes of sugar products and sweet drink than those who did not prefer the sweet taste. Subjects who preferred the sweet taste showed higher carbohydrate and fat intake and less fiber intake than those who did not prefer the sweet taste. The serum concentrations of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were significantly higher in subjects who preferred the sweet taste than those who did not prefer. Furthermore, subjects who preferred the sweet taste showed a significantly higher odds ratio (OR) for hypercholesterolemia (OR 1.22; 95% CI (1.01-1.45)) and hyper-LDL cholesterolemia (OR 1.33; 95% CI (1.11-1.60)) than those who did not prefer the sweet taste. Our results suggested that preference for sweet taste may increase the consumption of sugar products and sweet drinks, which is partially linked to the risk of hypercholesterolemia and hyper-LDL cholesterolemia in Korean middle-aged women.

Histiocytoid Sweet's syndrome presenting with annular erythematous plaques*

PubMed Central

Marcarini, Renata; de Araujo, Raquel Nardelli; Nóbrega, Monisa Martins; Medeiros, Karina Bittencourt; Gripp, Alexandre Carlos; Maceira, Juan Manuel Piñeiro

2016-01-01

Histiocytoid Sweet's Syndrome is a rare inflammatory disease described in 2005 as a variant of the classical Sweet's Syndrome (SS). Histopathologically, the dermal inflammatory infiltrate is composed mainly of mononuclear cells that have a histiocytic appearance and represent immature myeloid cells. We describe a case of Histiocytoid Sweet's Syndrome in an 18-year-old man. Although this patient had clinical manifestations compatible with SS, the cutaneous lesions consisted of erythematous annular plaques, which are not typical for this entity and have not been described in histiocytic form so far. The histiocytic subtype was confirmed by histopathological analysis that showed positivity for myeloperoxidase in multiple cells with histiocytic appearance. PMID:28300927

Mechanosensory neurons control sweet sensing in Drosophila

PubMed Central

Jeong, Yong Taek; Oh, Soo Min; Shim, Jaewon; Seo, Jeong Taeg; Kwon, Jae Young; Moon, Seok Jun

2016-01-01

Animals discriminate nutritious food from toxic substances using their sense of taste. Since taste perception requires taste receptor cells to come into contact with water-soluble chemicals, it is a form of contact chemosensation. Concurrent with that contact, mechanosensitive cells detect the texture of food and also contribute to the regulation of feeding. Little is known, however, about the extent to which chemosensitive and mechanosensitive circuits interact. Here, we show Drosophila prefers soft food at the expense of sweetness and that this preference requires labellar mechanosensory neurons (MNs) and the mechanosensory channel Nanchung. Activation of these labellar MNs causes GABAergic inhibition of sweet-sensing gustatory receptor neurons, reducing the perceived intensity of a sweet stimulus. These findings expand our understanding of the ways different sensory modalities cooperate to shape animal behaviour. PMID:27641708

The heterodimeric sweet taste receptor has multiple potential ligand binding sites.

PubMed

Cui, Meng; Jiang, Peihua; Maillet, Emeline; Max, Marianna; Margolskee, Robert F; Osman, Roman

2006-01-01

The sweet taste receptor is a heterodimer of two G protein coupled receptors, T1R2 and T1R3. This discovery has increased our understanding at the molecular level of the mechanisms underlying sweet taste. Previous experimental studies using sweet receptor chimeras and mutants show that there are at least three potential binding sites in this heterodimeric receptor. Receptor activity toward the artificial sweeteners aspartame and neotame depends on residues in the amino terminal domain of human T1R2. In contrast, receptor activity toward the sweetener cyclamate and the sweet taste inhibitor lactisole depends on residues within the transmembrane domain of human T1R3. Furthermore, receptor activity toward the sweet protein brazzein depends on the cysteine rich domain of human T1R3. Although crystal structures are not available for the sweet taste receptor, useful homology models can be developed based on appropriate templates. The amino terminal domain, cysteine rich domain and transmembrane helix domain of T1R2 and T1R3 have been modeled based on the crystal structures of metabotropic glutamate receptor type 1, tumor necrosis factor receptor, and bovine rhodopsin, respectively. We have used homology models of the sweet taste receptors, molecular docking of sweet ligands to the receptors, and site-directed mutagenesis of the receptors to identify potential ligand binding sites of the sweet taste receptor. These studies have led to a better understanding of the structure and function of this heterodimeric receptor, and can act as a guide for rational structure-based design of novel non-caloric sweeteners, which can be used in the fighting against obesity and diabetes.

Impacts of aircraft deicer and anti-icer runoff on receiving waters from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Texas, U.S.A.

PubMed

Corsi, Steven R; Harwell, Glenn R; Geis, Steven W; Bergman, Daniel

2006-11-01

From October 2002 to April 2004, data were collected from Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport (TX, U.S.A.) outfalls and receiving waters (Trigg Lake and Big Bear Creek) to document the magnitude and potential effects of aircraft deicer and anti-icer fluid (ADAF) runoff on water quality. Glycol concentrations at outfalls ranged from less than 18 to 23,800 mg/L, whereas concentrations in Big Bear Creek were less because of dilution, dispersion, and degradation, ranging from less than 18 to 230 mg/L. Annual loading results indicate that 10 and 35% of what was applied to aircraft was discharged to Big Bear Creek in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Glycol that entered Trigg Lake was diluted and degraded before reaching the lake outlet. Dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations at airport outfalls sometimes were low (<2.0 mg/L) but typical of what was measured in an urban reference stream. In comparison, the DO concentration at Trigg Lake monitoring sites was consistently greater than 5.5 mg/L during the monitoring period, probably because of the installation of aerators in the lake by DFW personnel. The DO concentration in Big Bear Creek was very similar at sites upstream and downstream of airport influence (>5.0 mg/L). Results of toxicity tests indicate that effects on Ceriodaphnia dubia, Pimephales promelas, and Selanastrum capricornutum are influenced by type IV ADAF (anti-icer), not just type I ADAF (deicer) as is more commonly assumed.

Triggered tremor sweet spots in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomberg, Joan; Prejean, Stephanie

2013-12-01

To better understand what controls fault slip along plate boundaries, we have exploited the abundance of seismic and geodetic data available from the richly varied tectonic environments composing Alaska. A search for tremor triggered by 11 large earthquakes throughout all of seismically monitored Alaska reveals two tremor "sweet spots"—regions where large-amplitude seismic waves repeatedly triggered tremor between 2006 and 2012. The two sweet spots locate in very different tectonic environments—one just trenchward and between the Aleutian islands of Unalaska and Akutan and the other in central mainland Alaska. The Unalaska/Akutan spot corroborates previous evidence that the region is ripe for tremor, perhaps because it is located where plate-interface frictional properties transition between stick-slip and stably sliding in both the dip direction and laterally. The mainland sweet spot coincides with a region of complex and uncertain plate interactions, and where no slow slip events or major crustal faults have been noted previously. Analyses showed that larger triggering wave amplitudes, and perhaps lower frequencies (< 0.03 Hz), may enhance the probability of triggering tremor. However, neither the maximum amplitude in the time domain or in a particular frequency band, nor the geometric relationship of the wavefield to the tremor source faults alone ensures a high probability of triggering. Triggered tremor at the two sweet spots also does not occur during slow slip events visually detectable in GPS data, although slow slip below the detection threshold may have facilitated tremor triggering.

Triggered tremor sweet spots in Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gomberg, Joan; Prejean, Stephanie

2013-01-01

To better understand what controls fault slip along plate boundaries, we have exploited the abundance of seismic and geodetic data available from the richly varied tectonic environments composing Alaska. A search for tremor triggered by 11 large earthquakes throughout all of seismically monitored Alaska reveals two tremor “sweet spots”—regions where large-amplitude seismic waves repeatedly triggered tremor between 2006 and 2012. The two sweet spots locate in very different tectonic environments—one just trenchward and between the Aleutian islands of Unalaska and Akutan and the other in central mainland Alaska. The Unalaska/Akutan spot corroborates previous evidence that the region is ripe for tremor, perhaps because it is located where plate-interface frictional properties transition between stick-slip and stably sliding in both the dip direction and laterally. The mainland sweet spot coincides with a region of complex and uncertain plate interactions, and where no slow slip events or major crustal faults have been noted previously. Analyses showed that larger triggering wave amplitudes, and perhaps lower frequencies (<~0.03 Hz), may enhance the probability of triggering tremor. However, neither the maximum amplitude in the time domain or in a particular frequency band, nor the geometric relationship of the wavefield to the tremor source faults alone ensures a high probability of triggering. Triggered tremor at the two sweet spots also does not occur during slow slip events visually detectable in GPS data, although slow slip below the detection threshold may have facilitated tremor triggering.

[Super sweet corn hybrid sh2 adaptability for industrial canning process].

PubMed

Ortiz de Bertorelli, Ligia; De Venanzi, Frank; Alfonzo, Braunnier; Camacho, Candelario

2002-12-01

The super sweet corns Krispy king, Victor and 324 (sh2 hybrids) were evaluated to determine their adaptabilities to the industrial canning process as whole kernels. All these hybrids and Bonanza (control) were sown in San Joaquín (Carabobo, Venezuela), harvested and canned. After 110 days storage at room temperature they were analyzed to be compared physically, chemically and sensorially with Bonanza hybrid. Results did not show significant differences among most of the physical characteristics, except for percentage of broken kernels which was higher in 324 hybrid. Chemical parameters showed significant differences (P < 0.05) comparing each super sweet hybrid with Bonanza. The super sweet hybrids presented a higher sugar content and soluble solid of the brine than Bonanza, also a lower pH. The super sweet whole kernel presented a lower soluble solids content than Bonanza but they were not significant (Krispy king and 324). Appearance, odor and overall quality were the same for super sweet hybrids and Bonanza (su). Color, flavor and sweetness were better for 324 than all the other hybrids. Super sweet hybrids presented a very good adaptation to the canning process, having as an advantage that doesn't require sugar addition in the brine and a very good texture (firm and crispy).

Investigation of the effects of color on judgments of sweetness using a taste adaptation method.

PubMed

Hidaka, Souta; Shimoda, Kazumasa

2014-01-01

It has been reported that color can affect the judgment of taste. For example, a dark red color enhances the subjective intensity of sweetness. However, the underlying mechanisms of the effect of color on taste have not been fully investigated; in particular, it remains unclear whether the effect is based on cognitive/decisional or perceptual processes. Here, we investigated the effect of color on sweetness judgments using a taste adaptation method. A sweet solution whose color was subjectively congruent with sweetness was judged as sweeter than an uncolored sweet solution both before and after adaptation to an uncolored sweet solution. In contrast, subjective judgment of sweetness for uncolored sweet solutions did not differ between the conditions following adaptation to a colored sweet solution and following adaptation to an uncolored one. Color affected sweetness judgment when the target solution was colored, but the colored sweet solution did not modulate the magnitude of taste adaptation. Therefore, it is concluded that the effect of color on the judgment of taste would occur mainly in cognitive/decisional domains.

Sweets consumption of preschool children--extent, context, and consumption patterns.

PubMed

Schneider, Sven; Jerusalem, Moran; Mente, Johannes; De Bock, Freia

2013-06-01

Sweets consumption is one of the risk factors of caries, especially among children. The aim of our study was to explore the extent and context of preschoolers' sweets consumption and to identify high-risk groups. The baseline cross-sectional data used originated from a nutritional intervention study encompassing 879 parental surveys, which were obtained in 52 kindergartens in Baden-Württemberg-the third largest federal state in Germany-between September and March 2009. Our outcome variable "sweets consumption" was operationalized using food-frequency items and analyzed by testing the influence of sociodemographic, educational, cultural, and family context covariates. Most preschoolers consumed sweets every day-on average 9.7 ± 6.2 times per week. Most popular were cookies, gummy bears, and chocolate. Sweets consumption did not correlate significantly with sociodemographic factors like age and sex but rather was associated with cultural and contextual factors such as immigrant background, parental education, specific nutritional knowledge levels, and access arrangements in the home. The consumption patterns identified are a result of high availability and parental influence (factors such as parents' knowledge levels, interest in, and habits regarding their child's nutrition). Dental practitioners should place more emphasis on gathering information from young patients regarding excessive and frequent consumption of sweets and consequently on trying to educate the children and their parents on oral health risks associated with such consumption. Particular attention is to be paid to children of Turkish and Arabic decent, as they have been shown to consume above-average amounts of sweets.

Ultrastructural changes in sweet orange with symptoms of huanglongbing

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Citrus greening (Huanglongbing [HLB]) is one of the most destructive citrus diseases worldwide. To better understand the ultrastructural changes of sweet orange seedlings in response to infection, anatomical analyses of HLB-infected sweet orange were carried out by light and electron microscopy. A...

Australian print news media coverage of sweet, non-alcoholic drinks sends mixed health messages.

PubMed

Bonfiglioli, Catriona; Hattersley, Libby; King, Lesley

2011-08-01

This study aimed to analyse the contribution of Australian print news coverage to the public profile of sweet, non-alcoholic beverages. News media portrayal of health contributes to individuals' decision-making. The focus on sugar-sweetened beverages reflects their contribution to excessive energy intake. One year's coverage of sweet, non-alcoholic beverages by major Australian newspapers was analysed using content and frame analysis. Research questions addressed which sweet drinks are most prominently covered, what makes sweet drinks newsworthy and how are the health aspects of sweet drinks framed? Fruit juice was the most widely covered sweet drink, closely followed by carbonated, sugar-sweetened soft drinks. Overall coverage was positively oriented towards sweet drinks, with fruit juice primarily portrayed as having health benefits. Some coverage mentioned risks of sweet drinks, such as obesity, tooth decay, metabolic syndrome and heart attack. Sweet drinks often enjoy positive coverage, with their health benefits and harms central to their ability to attract journalists' attention. However, the mix of coverage may be contributing to consumer confusion about whether it is safe and/or healthy to consume sweet non-alcoholic drinks. Framing of sweet drinks as healthy may undermine efforts to encourage individuals to avoid excess consumption of energy-dense drinks which offer few or minimal health benefits. © 2011 The Authors. ANZJPH © 2011 Public Health Association of Australia.

Sweet taste liking is associated with subjective response to amphetamine in women but not men.

PubMed

Weafer, Jessica; Lyon, Nicholas; Hedeker, Donald; de Wit, Harriet

2017-11-01

Preference for sweet taste rewards has been linked to the propensity for drug use in both animals and humans. Here, we tested the association between sweet taste liking and sensitivity to amphetamine reward in healthy adults. We hypothesized that sweet likers would report greater euphoria and stimulation following D-amphetamine (20 mg) compared to sweet dislikers. Men (n = 36) and women (n = 34) completed a sweet taste test in which they rated their liking of various concentrations of sucrose and filtered water (0.05, 0.10, 0.21, 0.42, and 0.83 M). Participants who preferred the highest concentration were classified as "sweet likers." All others were classified as "sweet dislikers." They then completed four sessions in which they received D-amphetamine (20 mg) and placebo in alternating order, providing self-report measures of euphoria and stimulation on the Addiction Research Center Inventory (ARCI) at regular intervals. We conducted linear mixed effects models to examine relationships between sweet liking and drug-induced euphoria and stimulation. Sweet likers reported significantly greater amphetamine-induced euphoria than did sweet dislikers among women. By contrast, sweet liking was not associated with amphetamine response in men. No associations with stimulation were observed. The association between sweet preference and amphetamine response in women is consistent with animal studies linking sweet taste preference and drug reward and also fits with observations that individuals who use drugs show a preference for sweet tastes. Whether the sex difference is related to circulating hormones, or other variables, remains to be determined.

Functional characterization of the heterodimeric sweet taste receptor T1R2 and T1R3 from a New World monkey species (squirrel monkey) and its response to sweet-tasting proteins

PubMed Central

Liu, Bo; Ha, Matthew; Meng, Xuan-Yu; Khaleduzzaman, Mohammed; Zhang, Zhe; Li, Xia; Cui, Meng

2012-01-01

The family C G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) T1R2 and T1R3 heterodimer functions as a broadly acting sweet taste receptor. Perception of sweet taste is a species-dependent physiological process. It has been widely reported that New World monkeys and rodents can not perceive some of the artificial sweeteners and sweet-tasting proteins that can be perceived by humans, apes, and Old World monkeys. Until now, only the sweet receptors of humans, mice and rats have been functionally characterized. Here we report characterization of the sweet taste receptor (T1R2/T1R3) from a species of New World squirrel monkey. Our results show that the heterodimeric receptor of squirrel monkey does not respond to artificial sweeteners aspartame, neotame, cyclamate, saccharin and sweet-tasting protein monellin, but surprisingly, it does respond to thaumatin at high concentrations (>18 μM). This is the first report that New World monkey species can perceive some specific sweet-tasting proteins. Furthermore, the receptor responses to the sweeteners cannot be inhibited by the sweet inhibitor lactisole. We compared the response differences of the squirrel monkey and human receptors and found that the residues in T1R2 determine species-dependent sweet taste toward saccharin, while the residues in either T1R2 or T1R3 are responsible for the sweet taste difference between humans and squirrel monkeys toward monellin. Molecular models indicated that electrostatic properties of the receptors probably mediate the species-dependent response to sweet-tasting proteins. PMID:23000410

Mouse strain differences in Gurmarin-sensitivity of sweet taste responses are not associated with polymorphisms of the sweet receptor gene, Tas1r3.

PubMed

Sanematsu, Keisuke; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2005-07-01

Gurmarin (Gur) is a peptide that selectively inhibits responses of the chorda tympani (CT) nerve to sweet compounds in rodents. In mice, the sweet-suppressing effect of Gur differs among strains. The inhibitory effect of Gur is clearly observed in C57BL/6 mice, but only slightly, if at all, in BALB/c mice. These two mouse strains possess different alleles of the sweet receptor gene, Sac (Tas1r3) (taster genotype for C57BL/6 and non-taster genotype for BALB/c mice), suggesting that polymorphisms in the gene may account for differential sensitivity to Gur. To investigate this possibility, we examined the effect of Gur in another Tas1r3 non-taster strain, 129 X 1/Sv mice. The results indicated that unlike non-taster BALB/c mice but similar to taster C57BL/6 mice, 129 X 1/Sv mice exhibited significant inhibition of CT responses to various sweet compounds by Gur. This suggests that the mouse strain difference in the Gur inhibition of sweet responses of the CT nerve may not be associated with polymorphisms of Tas1r3.

Impact of added nutrients in sweet sorghum syrup fermentation to produce ethanol

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This work demonstrated that sweet sorghum syrup was efficiently converted to ethanol by yeast. Fermentation broth with sweet sorghum syrup performed better (at least faster) than with only pure sugars due to the pH-buffering effect of sweet sorghum syrup solutions. Sugar solutions containing up to 2...

Taste perception and implicit attitude toward sweet related to body mass index and soft drink supplementation.

PubMed

Sartor, Francesco; Donaldson, Lucy F; Markland, David A; Loveday, Helina; Jackson, Matthew J; Kubis, Hans-Peter

2011-08-01

These studies examined the differences in sweet taste perception and implicit attitude toward sweet between normal-weight and overweight/obese adults; and tested the effects of soft drink consumption on sweet taste, explicit preference and implicit attitude toward sweet in normal-weight subjects. In study 1, normal-weight (n = 22) and overweight/obese (n = 11) adults were assessed for sweet taste intensity and pleasantness. Implicit attitude toward sweet was assessed by implicit association test (IAT). In study 2, normal-weight, lightly active adults (n = 12) underwent one month soft drink supplementation (≈760 ml/day). This increased their daily carbohydrate intake by 2.1 ± 0.2g/kg body weight. Sweet taste perception, explicit preference and implicit attitudes to sweet were assessed. In both studies salty taste was also assessed as a contrasting perception. Overweight/obese subjects perceived sweet and salty tastes as less intense (-23% and -19%, respectively) and reported higher IAT scores for sweet than normal-weight controls (2.1-fold). The supplementation changed sweet intensity/pleasantness ratings and it increased explicit preference (2.3-fold) for sweet in a subgroup of initial sucrose-dislikers. In conclusion, overweight/obese individuals are more implicitly attracted to sweet. One month of soft drink supplementation changed sweet taste perception of normal-weight subjects. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Starch saccharification and fermentation of uncooked sweet potato roots for fuel ethanol production.

PubMed

Zhang, Peng; Chen, Caifa; Shen, Yanhu; Ding, Tielin; Ma, Daifu; Hua, Zichun; Sun, Dongxu

2013-01-01

An energy-saving ethanol fermentation technology was developed using uncooked fresh sweet potato as raw material. A mutant strain of Aspergillus niger isolated from mildewed sweet potato was used to produce abundant raw starch saccharification enzymes for treating uncooked sweet potato storage roots. The viscosity of the fermentation paste of uncooked sweet potato roots was lower than that of the cooked roots. The ethanol fermentation was carried out by Zymomonas mobilis, and 14.4 g of ethanol (87.2% of the theoretical yield) was produced from 100g of fresh sweet potato storage roots. Based on this method, an energy-saving, high efficient and environment-friendly technology can be developed for large-scale production of fuel ethanol from sweet potato roots. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Perceptual and neural responses to sweet taste in humans and rodents.

PubMed

Lemon, Christian H

2015-08-01

This mini-review discusses some of the parallels between rodent neurophysiological and human psychophysical data concerning temperature effects on sweet taste. "Sweet" is an innately rewarding taste sensation that is associated in part with foods that contain calories in the form of sugars. Humans and other mammals can show unconditioned preference for select sweet stimuli. Such preference is poised to influence diet selection and, in turn, nutritional status, which underscores the importance of delineating the physiological mechanisms for sweet taste with respect to their influence on human health. Advances in our knowledge of the biology of sweet taste in humans have arisen in part through studies on mechanisms of gustatory processing in rodent models. Along this line, recent work has revealed there are operational parallels in neural systems for sweet taste between mice and humans, as indexed by similarities in the effects of temperature on central neurophysiological and psychophysical responses to sucrose in these species. Such association strengthens the postulate that rodents can serve as effective models of particular mechanisms of appetitive taste processing. Data supporting this link are discussed here, as are rodent and human data that shed light on relationships between mechanisms for sweet taste and ingestive disorders, such as alcohol abuse. Rodent models have utility for understanding mechanisms of taste processing that may pertain to human flavor perception. Importantly, there are limitations to generalizing data from rodents, albeit parallels across species do exist.

Consumer acceptance of vegetarian sweet potato products intended for space missions.

PubMed

Wilson, C D; Pace, R D; Bromfield, E; Jones, G; Lu, J Y

1998-01-01

Sweet potato is one of the crops selected for NASA's Advanced Life Support Program for potential long-duration lunar/Mars missions. This article presents recipes of products made from sweet potato and determines the consumer acceptability of products containing from 6% to 20% sweet potato on a dry weight basis. These products were developed for use in nutritious and palatable meals for future space explorers. Sensory evaluation (appearance/color, aroma, texture, flavor/taste, and overall acceptability) studies were conducted to determine the consumer acceptability of vegetarian products made with sweet potato using panelists at NASA/Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. None of these products including the controls, contained any ingredient of animal origin with the exception of sweet potato pie. A 9-point hedonic scale (9 being like extremely and 1 being dislike extremely) was used to evaluate 10 products and compare them to similar commercially available products used as controls. The products tested were pancakes, waffles, tortillas, bread, pie, pound cake, pasta, vegetable patties, doughnuts, and pretzels. All of the products were either liked moderately or liked slightly with the exception of the sweet potato vegetable patties, which were neither liked nor disliked. Mean comparisons of sensory scores of sweet potato recipes and their controls were accomplished by using the Student t-test. Because of their nutritional adequacy and consumer acceptability, these products are being recommended to NASA's Advanced Life Support Program for inclusion in a vegetarian menu plan designed for lunar/Mars space missions.

Development of a pilot system for converting sweet potato starch into glucose syrup

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Silayo, Valerian C K.; Lu, John Y.; Aglan, Heshmat A.; Bovell-Benjamin, A. C. (Principal Investigator)

2003-01-01

Sweet potato has been chosen as one of NASA's crops to support human beings in future space missions. One of the possible uses is to make syrup that can be used as a general sweetener. In this work a simple engineering system for converting sweet potato starch into glucose syrup was studied on a laboratory scale. The system comprises the following main units: a blender, continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), centrifugal and vacuum filters, deionization column and vacuum evaporator. The system was tested by carrying out conversion processes from fresh sweet potato roots. The roots were pealed, sliced, homogenized, heated and hydrolyzed by diastase of malt and Dextrozyme C (Novo Nordisk BioChem, North America, Inc.) enzymes in the CSTR. After hydrolysis the slurry was filtered, de-ionized and concentrated to get glucose syrup. The performance of the system was evaluated based on the quality of the conversion. The main factor was the level of reducing sugars except for the deionization where ash content and color were the main factors. Through careful control of the system units, good heating performance in the CSTR was obtained and the hydrolysis process attained sufficient conversion. The filtration process that incorporated the centrifuge was faster than when it was by-passed to the vacuum filter but losses in sugars were higher. Deionization removed more than 90% of the ash and reduced pigmentation, with probable insignificant losses in sugars during the deionization process. Recovery levels when the centrifuge was used and when it was by-passed could reach about 65% and 78%, respectively. These correspond to reducing sugar concentration of 259 and 310 mg/ml in 150-ml syrups from 300 g of sweet potatoes in each process. However, from concentration trials, syrups with volumes of 100 and 70 ml with the respective dextrose equivalence of 281 and 213 mg/ml were obtained. The syrups obtained were brownish in color and the process that employed centrifugal filtration

Psychophysical Evaluation of Sweetness Functions Across Multiple Sweeteners

PubMed Central

Low, Julia Y.Q.; McBride, Robert L.; Lacy, Kathleen E.

2017-01-01

Sweetness is one of the 5 prototypical tastes and is activated by sugars and non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS). The aim of this study was to investigate measures of sweet taste function [detection threshold (DT), recognition threshold (RT), and suprathreshold intensity ratings] across multiple sweeteners. Sixty participants, 18–52 years of age (mean age in years = 26, SD = ±7.8), were recruited to participate in the study. DT and RT were collected for caloric sweeteners (glucose, fructose, sucrose, erythritol) and NNS (sucralose, rebaudioside A). Sweetness intensity for all sweeteners was measured using a general Labeled Magnitude Scale. There were strong correlations between DT and RT of all 4 caloric sweeteners across people (r = 0.62–0.90, P < 0.001), and moderate correlations between DT and RT for both of the NNS (r = 0.39–0.48, P < 0.05); however, weaker correlations were observed between the DT or RT of the caloric sweeteners and NNS (r = 0.26–0.48, P < 0.05). The DT and RT of glucose and fructose were not correlated with DT or RT of sucralose (P > 0.05). In contrast, there were strong correlations between the sweetness intensity ratings of all sweeteners (r = 0.70–0.96, P < 0.001). This suggests those caloric sweeteners and NNS access at least partially independent mechanisms with respect to DT and RT measures. At suprathreshold level, however, the strong correlation between caloric sweeteners and NNS through weak, moderate, and strong intensity indicates a commonality in sweet taste mechanism for the perceived intensity range. PMID:27765786

Effects of incorporating nonmodified sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) flour on wheat pasta functional characteristics.

PubMed

Saleh, Mohammed; Lee, Youngseung; Obeidat, Hayat

2017-12-28

The effects of substituting wheat flour using fractions of blanched or nonblanched sweet potato flour on produced pasta functional characteristics were investigated. The use of sweet potato flour to replace fractions of wheat flour, regardless of blanching treatment, resulted in significant (p < .05) increase in water holding capacity (WHC), cooked pasta water uptake and solid leaching out and freeze-thaw stability of produced pasta. For instance, treatment containing 40% of nonblanched sweet potato flour and held at 55C resulted in 27% point increase in WHC compared to the control. Sweet potato flour was also contributed to the decrease in treatments pasting viscosities and in cooked pasta hardness. Cooked pasta hardness was significantly (p < .05) decreased from 255.6 N to 187.5, and 152.6 N when using 15% blanched and 40% nonblanched sweet potato flour replacements, respectively. Flow behavior index of wheat flour treatments containing fractions of sweet potato flour were fitted in a shear thinning model. Quality indices of pasta made using fractions of sweet potato were equivalent to or sometimes superior to that of the control sample. Results indicated the possible enhancement of pasta nutritional quality including firmness, cooking loss, and water uptake without impairing consumer acceptability. The use of sweet potato flour in pasta would enhance the nutritional and physicochemical properties of developed pasta and pasta products. Furthermore, since sweet potato is not cultivated most of the year; sweet potato flour pasta would be better utilized in food processing and is expected to enhance sweet potato consumption year around. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Savoring Sweet: Sugars in Infant and Toddler Feeding.

PubMed

Murray, Robert D

2017-01-01

During the first years of life, the sweetness of sugars has a capacity to hinder or to help in laying a strong nutritional foundation for food preferences that often extend over a lifetime. Aside from supplying 4 g/kcal of energy, sugars are non-nutritive. However, sugars have a powerful attribute, sweetness, which strongly influences human food preference. A child's first relationship with sweet taste begins even before birth and continues to evolve throughout complementary feeding. The sweetness of breastmilk encourages consumption and soothes the neonate. Conversely, inappropriate introduction of non-milk solids and beverages that are sweet at 0-4 months of age raises the newborn's risk for later obesity and may discourage the acceptance of other bitter or sour foods. Although cereals, fruits, 100% fruit juices, and some grains have naturally occurring sugars that impart sweet flavor notes, there is no clear role for added sugars between 6 and 12 months of age. Yet, 60% of infants are introduced to foods and beverages containing added sugars, threatening diet quality. Pairing foods with naturally occurring sugars, such as fruits, with foods that tend to be resisted initially, such as vegetables, can mask bitterness and promote acceptance. Utilizing the infants' extraordinary capacity for sensory-motor exploration is another strategy to expose them repeatedly to challenging tastes and flavors. The transitional year, as breast milk and infant formula are withdrawn, is a time when nutritional needs are high and diet quality often precarious. Rapid growth, along with brain and cognitive development, demand high-quality nutrition. Snacks are necessary both for energy and valuable nutrients. However, the selection of snack foods often exposes toddlers to items that offer concentrated energy with low nutrient value. Recent trends suggest a rapid fall in added sugars among infants and toddlers. Parenting practices that use small amounts of sugars to promote nutrient

Autonomic nervous system responses to sweet taste: evidence for habituation rather than pleasure.

PubMed

Leterme, A; Brun, L; Dittmar, A; Robin, O

2008-03-18

Previous recordings of the variations of autonomic nervous system (ANS) parameters associated with each primary taste (sweet, salty, sour and bitter) showed that sweet taste induced very weak ANS responses, in the same range or weaker than responses evoked by mineral water. The purpose of this study was then to determine whether this weak ANS activation reflects the pleasant hedonic valence of sweet or the habituation of the organism to this innate-accepted taste. Twenty healthy volunteer subjects (8 males and 12 females, mean age=22.85 years) participated in the experiment. Taste stimuli were a solution of 0.3 M sucrose and three sweet flavours (orange juice, coke, lemonade) as "pleasant" sweet stimuli, and a solution of 0.15 M NaCl as an "unpleasant" stimulus. "Evian" mineral water served as the diluent and as a neutral stimulus. Throughout the test, five ANS parameters (skin potential and skin resistance, skin blood flow and skin temperature, instantaneous heart rate) were simultaneously and continuously recorded. After they had tasted each solution, subjects filled out a questionnaire in which they had to evaluate the hedonic dimension and the sweet intensity of each gustative stimulus. The lack of correlation between the mean hedonic scores associated with the four sweet stimuli and the mean values of the autonomic parameter variations tends to indicate that the weak ANS responses induced by the sweet gustative stimuli rather reflect the habituation of the organism to sweet taste than a gradation in sensory pleasure.

Sweet taste preferences are partly genetically determined: identification of a trait locus on chromosome 16.

PubMed

Keskitalo, Kaisu; Knaapila, Antti; Kallela, Mikko; Palotie, Aarno; Wessman, Maija; Sammalisto, Sampo; Peltonen, Leena; Tuorila, Hely; Perola, Markus

2007-07-01

Humans have an innate preference for sweet taste, but the degree of liking for sweet foods varies individually. The proportion of inherited sweet taste preference was studied. A genome-wide linkage analysis was performed to locate the underlying genetic elements in the genome. A total of 146 subjects (32% men, 68% women) aged 18-78 y from 26 Finnish families evaluated the intensity and pleasantness of 3 suprathreshold solutions of sucrose (3.0%, 7.5%, and 18.75%) and plain water and the intensity of filter paper impregnated with 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP). The subjects also reported the pleasantness and the use frequency of 5 sweet foods (chocolate, candy, ice cream, sweet desserts, and sweet pastry) and completed a food-behavior questionnaire that measured their craving for sweet foods. Of the chemosensory functions, the pleasantness rating of the strongest (18.75%) sucrose solution and the intensity rating of PROP yielded the highest heritability estimates (41% and 66%, respectively). The pleasantness and the use frequency of sweet foods (both variables calculated as a mean of ratings for 5 food items) and the craving for sweet foods showed significant heritability (40%, 50%, and 31%, respectively). A logarithm of odds score of 3.5 (P=0.00003) was detected for use frequency of sweet foods on chromosome 16p11.2 (marker D16S753). Sweet taste preferences are partly inherited. Chromosome 16p11.2 may harbor genetic variations that affect the consumption of sweet foods.

SWEET sugar transporters for phloem transport and pathogen nutrition.

PubMed

Chen, Li-Qing

2014-03-01

Many intercellular solute transport processes require an apoplasmic step, that is, efflux from one cell and subsequent uptake by an adjacent cell. Cellular uptake transporters have been identified for many solutes, including sucrose; however, efflux transporters have remained elusive for a long time. Cellular efflux of sugars plays essential roles in many processes, such as sugar efflux as the first step in phloem loading, sugar efflux for nectar secretion, and sugar efflux for supplying symbionts such as mycorrhiza, and maternal efflux for filial tissue development. Furthermore, sugar efflux systems can be hijacked by pathogens for access to nutrition from hosts. Mutations that block recruitment of the efflux mechanism by the pathogen thus cause pathogen resistance. Until recently, little was known regarding the underlying mechanism of sugar efflux. The identification of sugar efflux carriers, SWEETs (Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporters), has shed light on cellular sugar efflux. SWEETs appear to function as uniporters, facilitating diffusion of sugars across cell membranes. Indeed, SWEETs probably mediate sucrose efflux from putative phloem parenchyma into the phloem apoplasm, a key step proceeding phloem loading. Engineering of SWEET mutants using transcriptional activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN)-based genomic editing allowed the engineering of pathogen resistance. The widespread expression of the SWEET family promises to provide insights into many other cellular efflux mechanisms.

Modulation of sweet preference by the actual and anticipated consequences of eating.

PubMed

Martin, Ashley A; Ferriday, Danielle; Rogers, Peter J; Brunstrom, Jeffrey M

2016-12-01

Previous research has shown that non-human animals exhibit an inverted-U pattern of sweet preference, with consumption increasing across moderate levels of sweetness and then declining for high levels of sweetness. In rodents, this pattern reflects an avoidance of the postingestive effects of consuming energy-dense sugar solutions (conditioned satiation). Here, we examined whether humans also adjust their preferences to compensate for the anticipated energy content/satiating outcomes of consuming sweetened foods. In two experiments (each N = 40), participants were asked to taste and imagine eating small (15 g) and large (250 g) portions of five novel desserts that varied in sweetness. Participants evaluated the desserts' expected satiety, expected satiation, and expected sickliness. A measure of estimated energy content was also derived using a computerized energy compensation test. This procedure was completed before and after consuming a standard lunch. Across both experiments, results confirmed that participants preferred a less sweet dessert when asked to imagine eating a large versus a small portion, and when rating the dessert in a fed versus fasted state. We also obtained evidence that participants anticipated more energy from the sweeter desserts (even in Experiment 2 when half of the participants were informed that the desserts were equated for energy content). However we found only partial evidence for anticipated satiation-expected sickliness was related systematically to increases in sweetness, but expected satiation and expected satiety were only weakly influenced. These findings raise questions about the role of sweetness in the control of food intake (in humans) and the degree to which 'sweet-calorie learning' occurs in complex dietary environments where sweetness may actually be a poor predictor of the energy content of foods. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identification of putative candidate genes involved in cuticle formation in Prunus avium (sweet cherry) fruit

PubMed Central

Alkio, Merianne; Jonas, Uwe; Sprink, Thorben; van Nocker, Steven; Knoche, Moritz

2012-01-01

Background and Aims The cuticular membrane (CM) of Prunus avium (sweet cherry) and other fleshy fruit is under stress. Previous research indicates that the resultant strain promotes microscopic cuticular cracking. Microcracks impair the function of the CM as a barrier against pathogens and uncontrolled water loss/uptake. Stress and strain result from a cessation of CM deposition during early development, while the fruit surface continues to expand. The cessation of CM deposition, in turn, may be related to an early downregulation of CM-related genes. The aims of this study were to identify genes potentially involved in CM formation in sweet cherry fruit and to quantify their expression levels. Methods Fruit growth and CM deposition were quantified weekly from anthesis to maturity and rates of CM deposition were calculated. Sequences of genes expressed in the sweet cherry fruit skin (exocarp) were generated using high-throughput sequencing of cDNA and de novo assembly and analysed using bioinformatics tools. Relative mRNA levels of selected genes were quantified in the exocarp and fruit flesh (mesocarp) weekly using reverse transcriptase-quantitative real-time PCR and compared with the calculated CM deposition rate over time. Key Results The rate of CM deposition peaked at 93 (±5) μg per fruit d−1 about 19 d after anthesis. Based on sequence analyses, 18 genes were selected as potentially involved in CM formation. Selected sweet cherry genes shared up to 100 and 98 % similarity with the respective Prunus persica (peach) and Arabidopsis thaliana genes. Expression of 13 putative CM-related genes was restricted to the exocarp and correlated positively with the CM deposition rate. Conclusions The results support the view that the cessation of CM deposition during early sweet cherry fruit development is accounted for by a downregulation of genes involved in CM deposition. Genes that merit further investigation include PaWINA, PaWINB, PaLipase, PaLTPG1, PaATT1, Pa

Firefox add-ons for medical reference.

PubMed

Hoy, Matthew B

2010-07-01

Firefox is a Web browser created by the Mozilla project, an open-source software group. Features of the browser include automated updates, advanced security and standards compliance, and the ability to add functionality through add-ons and extensions. First introduced in 2004, Firefox now accounts for roughly 30% of the browser market. This article will focus primarily on add-ons and extensions available for the browser that are useful to medical researchers.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 is specifically involved in sweet taste transmission

PubMed Central

Takai, Shingo; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Inoue, Mayuko; Iwata, Shusuke; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Yanagawa, Yuchio; Drucker, Daniel J.; Margolskee, Robert F.; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2015-01-01

Five fundamental taste qualities (sweet, bitter, salty, sour, umami) are sensed by dedicated taste cells (TCs) that relay quality information to gustatory nerve fibers. In peripheral taste signaling pathways, ATP has been identified as a functional neurotransmitter, but it remains to be determined how specificity of different taste qualities is maintained across synapses. Recent studies demonstrated that some gut peptides are released from taste buds by prolonged application of particular taste stimuli, suggesting their potential involvement in taste information coding. In this study, we focused on the function of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) in initial responses to taste stimulation. GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) null mice had reduced neural and behavioral responses specifically to sweet compounds compared to wild-type (WT) mice. Some sweet responsive TCs expressed GLP-1 and its receptors were expressed in gustatory neurons. GLP-1 was released immediately from taste bud cells in response to sweet compounds but not to other taste stimuli. Intravenous administration of GLP-1 elicited transient responses in a subset of sweet-sensitive gustatory nerve fibers but did not affect other types of fibers, and this response was suppressed by pre-administration of the GLP-1R antagonist Exendin-4(3-39). Thus GLP-1 may be involved in normal sweet taste signal transmission in mice.—Takai, S., Yasumatsu, K., Inoue, M., Iwata, S., Yoshida, R., Shigemura, N., Yanagawa, Y., Drucker, D. J., Margolskee, R. F., Ninomiya, Y. Glucagon-like peptide-1 is specifically involved in sweet taste transmission. PMID:25678625

Modulation of sweet taste sensitivities by endogenous leptin and endocannabinoids in mice

PubMed Central

Niki, Mayu; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Shigemura, Noriatsu; DiPatrizio, Nicholas V; Piomelli, Daniele; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2015-01-01

Leptin is an anorexigenic mediator that reduces food intake by acting on hypothalamic receptor Ob-Rb. In contrast, endocannabinoids are orexigenic mediators that act via cannabinoid CB1 receptors in hypothalamus, limbic forebrain, and brainstem. In the peripheral taste system, leptin administration selectively inhibits behavioural, taste nerve and taste cell responses to sweet compounds. Opposing the action of leptin, endocannabinoids enhance sweet taste responses. However, potential roles of endogenous leptin and endocannabinoids in sweet taste remain unclear. Here, we used pharmacological antagonists (Ob-Rb: L39A/D40A/F41A (LA), CB1: AM251) and examined the effects of their blocking activation of endogenous leptin and endocannabinoid signalling on taste responses in lean control, leptin receptor deficient db/db, and diet-induced obese (DIO) mice. Lean mice exhibited significant increases in chorda tympani (CT) nerve responses to sweet compounds after LA administration, while they showed no significant changes in CT responses after AM251. In contrast, db/db mice showed clear suppression of CT responses to sweet compounds after AM251, increased endocannabinoid (2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycerol (2-AG)) levels in the taste organ, and enhanced expression of a biosynthesizing enzyme (diacylglycerol lipase α (DAGLα)) of 2-AG in taste cells. In DIO mice, the LA effect was gradually decreased and the AM251 effect was increased during the course of obesity. Taken together, our results suggest that circulating leptin, but not local endocannabinoids, may be a dominant modulator for sweet taste in lean mice; however, endocannabinoids may become more effective modulators of sweet taste under conditions of deficient leptin signalling, possibly due to increased production of endocannabinoids in taste tissue. Key points Potential roles of endogenous leptin and endocannabinoids in sweet taste were examined by using pharmacological antagonists and mouse models including leptin receptor

Functional roles of the sweet taste receptor in oral and extraoral tissues

PubMed Central

Laffitte, Anni; Neiers, Fabrice; Briand, Loïc

2014-01-01

Purpose of review This review summarizes and discusses the current knowledge about the physiological roles of the sweet taste receptor in oral and extraoral tissues. Recent findings The expression of a functional sweet taste receptor has been reported in numerous extragustatory tissues, including the gut, pancreas, bladder, brain and, more recently, bone and adipose tissues. In the gut, this receptor has been suggested to be involved in luminal glucose sensing, the release of some satiety hormones, the expression of glucose transporters, and the maintenance of glucose homeostasis. More recently, the sweet taste receptor was proposed to regulate adipogenesis and bone biology. Summary The perception of sweet taste is mediated by the T1R2/T1R3 receptor, which is expressed in the oral cavity, wherein it provides input on the caloric and macronutrient contents of ingested food. This receptor recognizes all the chemically diverse compounds perceived as sweet by human beings, including natural sugars and sweeteners. Importantly, the expression of a functional sweet taste receptor has been reported in numerous extragustatory tissues, wherein it has been proposed to regulate metabolic processes. This newly recognized role of the sweet taste receptor makes this receptor a potential novel therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity and related metabolic dysfunctions, such as diabetes and hyperlipidemia. PMID:24763065

Detection of sweet potato viruses in Yunnan and genetic diversity analysis of the common viruses

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Two hundred seventy-nine samples with virus-like symptoms collected from 16 regions in Yunnan Province were tested by RT-PCR/PCR using virus-specific primers for 8 sweet potato viruses. Six viruses, Sweet potato chlorotic fleck virus (SPCFV), Sweet Potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV), Sweet potato ...

Tapping the US sweet sorghum collection to identify biofuel germplasm

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The narrow genetic base in sweet sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] breeding programs is limiting the development of new varieties for biofuel production. Therefore, the identification of genetically diverse sweet sorghum germplasm in the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) collection is...

Reproducibility of the measurement of sweet taste preferences.

PubMed

Asao, Keiko; Luo, Wendy; Herman, William H

2012-12-01

Developing interventions to prevent and treat obesity are medical and public health imperatives. Taste is a major determinant of food intake and reliable methods to measure taste preferences need to be established. This study aimed to establish the short-term reproducibility of sweet taste preference measurements using 5-level sucrose concentrations in healthy adult volunteers. We defined sweet taste preference as the geometric mean of the preferred sucrose concentration determined from two series of two-alternative, forced-choice staircase procedures administered 10min apart on a single day. We repeated the same procedures at a second visit 3-7days later. Twenty-six adults (13 men and 13 women, age 33.2±12.2years) completed the measurements. The median number of pairs presented for each series was three (25th and 75th percentiles: 3, 4). The intraclass correlation coefficients between the measurements was 0.82 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.63-0.92) within a few days. This study showed high short-term reproducibility of a simple, 5-level procedure for measuring sweet taste preferences. This method may be useful for assessing sweet taste preferences and the risks resulting from those preferences. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sweet and Sour Preferences During Childhood: Role of Early Experiences

PubMed Central

Liem, Djin Gie; Mennella, Julie A.

2009-01-01

We investigated the effects of early experience on sweet and sour preferences in children. Eighty-three children were divided into four groups based on the type of formula fed during infancy and age. By using a forced-choice, sip-and-swallow procedure, we determined the level of sweetness and sourness preferred in juice. Children who were fed protein hydrolysate formulas, which have a distinctive sour and bitter taste and unpleasant odor, preferred higher levels of citric acid in juice when compared to older children who were fed similar formulas. No such difference was observed between the groups for sweet preference. However, the level of sweetness preferred in juice was related to the sugar content of the child's favorite cereal and whether the mother routinely added sugar to their foods. These data illustrate the wide variety of experiential factors that can influence flavor preferences during childhood. PMID:12430162

Sweet taste in apple: the role of sorbitol, individual sugars, organic acids and volatile compounds.

PubMed

Aprea, Eugenio; Charles, Mathilde; Endrizzi, Isabella; Laura Corollaro, Maria; Betta, Emanuela; Biasioli, Franco; Gasperi, Flavia

2017-03-21

Sweetness is one of the main drivers of consumer preference, and thus is given high priority in apple breeding programmes. Due to the complexity of sweetness evaluation, soluble solid content (SSC) is commonly used as an estimation of this trait. Nevertheless, it has been demonstrated that SSC and sweet taste are poorly correlated. Though individual sugar content may vary greatly between and within apple cultivars, no previous study has tried to investigate the relationship between the amount of individual sugars, or ratios of these, and apple sweetness. In this work, we quantified the major sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose, xylose) and sorbitol and explored their influence on perceived sweetness in apple; we also related this to malic acid content, SSC and volatile compounds. Our data confirmed that the correlation between sweetness and SSC is weak. We found that sorbitol content correlates (similarly to SSC) with perceived sweetness better than any other single sugar or total sugar content. The single sugars show no differentiable importance in determining apple sweetness. Our predictive model based on partial least squares regression shows that after sorbitol and SSC, the most important contribution to apple sweetness is provided by several volatile compounds, mainly esters and farnesene.

Sweet taste in apple: the role of sorbitol, individual sugars, organic acids and volatile compounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aprea, Eugenio; Charles, Mathilde; Endrizzi, Isabella; Laura Corollaro, Maria; Betta, Emanuela; Biasioli, Franco; Gasperi, Flavia

2017-03-01

Sweetness is one of the main drivers of consumer preference, and thus is given high priority in apple breeding programmes. Due to the complexity of sweetness evaluation, soluble solid content (SSC) is commonly used as an estimation of this trait. Nevertheless, it has been demonstrated that SSC and sweet taste are poorly correlated. Though individual sugar content may vary greatly between and within apple cultivars, no previous study has tried to investigate the relationship between the amount of individual sugars, or ratios of these, and apple sweetness. In this work, we quantified the major sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose, xylose) and sorbitol and explored their influence on perceived sweetness in apple; we also related this to malic acid content, SSC and volatile compounds. Our data confirmed that the correlation between sweetness and SSC is weak. We found that sorbitol content correlates (similarly to SSC) with perceived sweetness better than any other single sugar or total sugar content. The single sugars show no differentiable importance in determining apple sweetness. Our predictive model based on partial least squares regression shows that after sorbitol and SSC, the most important contribution to apple sweetness is provided by several volatile compounds, mainly esters and farnesene.

Fermentation of sweet sorghum syrup to butanol in the presence of natural nutrients and inhibitors

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum syrups represent a renewable raw material that can be available year-round for production of biofuels and biochemicals. Sweet sorghum sugars have been used as sources for butanol production in the past but most often the studies focused on sweet sorghum juice and not on sweet sorghum s...

Glucagon-like peptide-1 is specifically involved in sweet taste transmission.

PubMed

Takai, Shingo; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Inoue, Mayuko; Iwata, Shusuke; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Yanagawa, Yuchio; Drucker, Daniel J; Margolskee, Robert F; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2015-06-01

Five fundamental taste qualities (sweet, bitter, salty, sour, umami) are sensed by dedicated taste cells (TCs) that relay quality information to gustatory nerve fibers. In peripheral taste signaling pathways, ATP has been identified as a functional neurotransmitter, but it remains to be determined how specificity of different taste qualities is maintained across synapses. Recent studies demonstrated that some gut peptides are released from taste buds by prolonged application of particular taste stimuli, suggesting their potential involvement in taste information coding. In this study, we focused on the function of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) in initial responses to taste stimulation. GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) null mice had reduced neural and behavioral responses specifically to sweet compounds compared to wild-type (WT) mice. Some sweet responsive TCs expressed GLP-1 and its receptors were expressed in gustatory neurons. GLP-1 was released immediately from taste bud cells in response to sweet compounds but not to other taste stimuli. Intravenous administration of GLP-1 elicited transient responses in a subset of sweet-sensitive gustatory nerve fibers but did not affect other types of fibers, and this response was suppressed by pre-administration of the GLP-1R antagonist Exendin-4(3-39). Thus GLP-1 may be involved in normal sweet taste signal transmission in mice. © FASEB.

Sweet/Dessert Foods Are More Appealing to Adolescents after Sleep Restriction

PubMed Central

Simon, Stacey L.; Field, Julie; Miller, Lauren E.; DiFrancesco, Mark; Beebe, Dean W.

2015-01-01

Study Objective Examine the effect of experimental sleep restriction (SR) on adolescents’ subjective hunger and perceived appeal of sweet/dessert foods versus other foods. A secondary goal was to replicate previous findings on the effects of SR on dietary intake. Design Randomized cross-over sleep restriction-extension paradigm. Setting Sleep was obtained and monitored at home. Outcome measures were gathered during office visits. Participants 31 typically-developing adolescents aged 14–17 years. Interventions The three-week protocol consisted of a baseline week, followed randomly by five consecutive nights of SR (6.5 hours in bed) versus healthy sleep duration (HS; 10 hours in bed), a 2-night wash-out period, and a 5-night cross-over. Measurements Sleep was monitored via actigraphy. The morning after each experimental condition, teens rated their hunger, underwent a 24-hour diet recall interview, and rated the appeal of a series of pictures of sweet/dessert foods (e.g., ice cream, candy) and non-sweets (meat, eggs, fruits, vegetables). Results Teens rated pictures of sweet/dessert foods to be more appealing after SR than after HS (Cohen’s d = .41, t = 2.07, p = .045). The sleep manipulation did not affect self-reported hunger or the appeal of non-sweet foods (p >.10). Consistent with our prior work, intake of overall calories was 11% higher and consumption of sweet/dessert servings was 52% greater during SR than HS. Conclusions Adolescent SR appears to increase the subjective appeal of sweet/dessert foods, indicating a potential mechanism by which SR might contribute to weight gain and the risk for obesity and chronic illness. PMID:25706861

Biogas utilization for drying sweet potato chips by using infrared dryer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sriharti, Rahayuningtyas, Ari; Susanti, Novita Dwi; Sitompul, Rislima Febriani

2017-11-01

This study aims to utilize biogas, that produced from organic waste, as fuel for infrared dryers. The digester was dome type, which made from fiberglass, 5.5 m3 capacities, gas container made from soft PVC, 5.6 m3 capacities. The infrared dryer was household scale which have dimension 2000 mm x 2000 mm x 2000 mm, it is consist of 2 racks, which have size 1500 mm x 500 mm x 1400 mm, and consist of 44 baking pans (600 mm X 400 mm x 30 mm), the dryer has 36 kg of capacity. The parameters observed include ambient temperature, temperature inside the digester, pH value, biogas production, drying room temperature, moisture content of sweet potato and biogas consumption for drying. Infrared dryer is used to dry the sweet potato slices thickness of 2 mm with total amount 12 kg, at room temperature dryer ± 60 °C. The results showed that the average biogas production was 1.335 m3 per day, at a temperature of 26 - 35 °C and the neutral pH value was 6.99 - 7.7. 12 kg of sweet potato sliced dried for 4 hours, the initial moisture content of 79.68 % decreased to 8.98 %, the consumption of biogas used 4,952 m3. The final result of drying process of sweet potato slices of 3.5 kg, there was a shrinkage of 70.83 %. Characterization of sweet potato slices is 3 % protein, 0,6 % fat, 94 % carbohydrate and 2 % ash. These sweet potato can be used as flour for cookies and cake raw materials, the use of sweet potato flour can reach 50 - 100 %.

Sweet Spot Supersymmetry and Composite Messengers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ibe, Masahiro; Kitano, Ryuichiro

2007-10-30

Sweet spot supersymmetry is a phenomenologically and cosmologically perfect framework to realize a supersymmetric world at short distance. We discuss a class of dynamical models of supersymmetry breaking and its mediation whose low-energy effective description falls into this framework. Hadron fields in the dynamical models play a role of the messengers of the supersymmetry breaking. As is always true in the models of the sweet spot supersymmetry, the messenger scale is predicted to be 10{sup 5} GeV {approx}< M{sub mess} {approx}< 10{sup 10} GeV. Various values of the effective number of messenger fields N{sub mess} are possible depending on themore » choice of the gauge group.« less

The new large-scale sweet sorghum industry in the USA

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) has been widely recognized as a promising sugar feedstock crop for the large-scale manufacture of food-grade and non food-grade bioproducts in the USA. Heckemeyer Mill, located in Sikeston, Missouri, has built and equipped the largest, commercial-scale sweet sorghum ...

Sweet Taste Receptor Signaling Network: Possible Implication for Cognitive Functioning

PubMed Central

Welcome, Menizibeya O.; Mastorakis, Nikos E.; Pereverzev, Vladimir A.

2015-01-01

Sweet taste receptors are transmembrane protein network specialized in the transmission of information from special “sweet” molecules into the intracellular domain. These receptors can sense the taste of a range of molecules and transmit the information downstream to several acceptors, modulate cell specific functions and metabolism, and mediate cell-to-cell coupling through paracrine mechanism. Recent reports indicate that sweet taste receptors are widely distributed in the body and serves specific function relative to their localization. Due to their pleiotropic signaling properties and multisubstrate ligand affinity, sweet taste receptors are able to cooperatively bind multiple substances and mediate signaling by other receptors. Based on increasing evidence about the role of these receptors in the initiation and control of absorption and metabolism, and the pivotal role of metabolic (glucose) regulation in the central nervous system functioning, we propose a possible implication of sweet taste receptor signaling in modulating cognitive functioning. PMID:25653876

Sweet taste preferences before and after an intensive medical weight loss intervention.

PubMed

Asao, K; Rothberg, A E; Arcori, L; Kaur, M; Fowler, C E; Herman, W H

2016-06-01

Medical weight loss could change sweet taste threshold and preferences. The decrease in sweet taste preferences may, in turn, help in the maintenance of weight loss. This study examined the association between sweet taste preferences at baseline and weight change during a medical weight management programme and the impact of diet-induced weight loss on sweet taste preferences. Adult patients with body mass index ≥32 kg m -2 were recruited from a medical weight management clinic. Sweet taste preference was assessed using a forced-choice, paired-comparison tracking method before and after a very-low-calorie diet (VLCD). Twenty participants were included in the analysis: mean age was 53.1 (standard deviation [SD]: 11.4) years, and 14 were female. The mean body mass index was 41.4 (SD: 7.5) kg m -2 . The median preferred sucrose concentration before VLCD was 0.45 M. Following VLCD, mean change in weight was -13.3 (SD: 6.6) kg, and percentage weight change was -11.3% (SD: 5.9%). Based on mixed models with and without adjustment for demographic factors, diabetes status and smoking history, preferred sucrose concentration at baseline did not predict change in longer-term body weight. The change of preferred sucrose concentration following 12 weeks of VLCD was not significant ( P -value 0.95). Change in weight during and after VLCD was not associated with sweet taste preferences at baseline. After diet-induced weight loss, sweet taste preferences did not change.

Glucagon signaling modulates sweet taste responsiveness.

PubMed

Elson, Amanda E T; Dotson, Cedrick D; Egan, Josephine M; Munger, Steven D

2010-10-01

The gustatory system provides critical information about the quality and nutritional value of food before it is ingested. Thus, physiological mechanisms that modulate taste function in the context of nutritional needs or metabolic status could optimize ingestive decisions. We report that glucagon, which plays important roles in the maintenance of glucose homeostasis, enhances sweet taste responsiveness through local actions in the mouse gustatory epithelium. Using immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy, we found that glucagon and its receptor (GlucR) are coexpressed in a subset of mouse taste receptor cells. Most of these cells also express the T1R3 taste receptor implicated in sweet and/or umami taste. Genetic or pharmacological disruption of glucagon signaling in behaving mice indicated a critical role for glucagon in the modulation of taste responsiveness. Scg5(-/-) mice, which lack mature glucagon, had significantly reduced responsiveness to sucrose as compared to wild-type littermates in brief-access taste tests. No significant differences were seen in responses to prototypical salty, sour, or bitter stimuli. Taste responsiveness to sucrose was similarly reduced upon acute and local disruption of glucagon signaling by the GlucR antagonist L-168,049. Together, these data indicate a role for local glucagon signaling in the peripheral modulation of sweet taste responsiveness.

New Insight Into the Diversity of SemiSWEET Sugar Transporters and the Homologs in Prokaryotes

PubMed Central

Jia, Baolei; Hao, Lujiang; Xuan, Yuan Hu; Jeon, Che Ok

2018-01-01

Sugars will eventually be exported transporters (SWEETs) and SemiSWEETs represent a family of sugar transporters in eukaryotes and prokaryotes, respectively. SWEETs contain seven transmembrane helices (TMHs), while SemiSWEETs contain three. The functions of SemiSWEETs are less studied. In this perspective article, we analyzed the diversity and conservation of SemiSWEETs and further proposed the possible functions. 1,922 SemiSWEET homologs were retrieved from the UniProt database, which is not proportional to the sequenced prokaryotic genomes. However, these proteins are very diverse in sequences and can be classified into 19 clusters when >50% sequence identity is required. Moreover, a gene context analysis indicated that several SemiSWEETs are located in the operons that are related to diverse carbohydrate metabolism. Several proteins with seven TMHs can be found in bacteria, and sequence alignment suggested that these proteins in bacteria may be formed by the duplication and fusion. Multiple sequence alignments showed that the amino acids for sugar translocation are still conserved and coevolved, although the sequences show diversity. Among them, the functions of a few amino acids are still not clear. These findings highlight the challenges that exist in SemiSWEETs and provide future researchers the foundation to explore these uncharted areas. PMID:29872447

New Insight Into the Diversity of SemiSWEET Sugar Transporters and the Homologs in Prokaryotes.

PubMed

Jia, Baolei; Hao, Lujiang; Xuan, Yuan Hu; Jeon, Che Ok

2018-01-01

Sugars will eventually be exported transporters (SWEETs) and SemiSWEETs represent a family of sugar transporters in eukaryotes and prokaryotes, respectively. SWEETs contain seven transmembrane helices (TMHs), while SemiSWEETs contain three. The functions of SemiSWEETs are less studied. In this perspective article, we analyzed the diversity and conservation of SemiSWEETs and further proposed the possible functions. 1,922 SemiSWEET homologs were retrieved from the UniProt database, which is not proportional to the sequenced prokaryotic genomes. However, these proteins are very diverse in sequences and can be classified into 19 clusters when >50% sequence identity is required. Moreover, a gene context analysis indicated that several SemiSWEETs are located in the operons that are related to diverse carbohydrate metabolism. Several proteins with seven TMHs can be found in bacteria, and sequence alignment suggested that these proteins in bacteria may be formed by the duplication and fusion. Multiple sequence alignments showed that the amino acids for sugar translocation are still conserved and coevolved, although the sequences show diversity. Among them, the functions of a few amino acids are still not clear. These findings highlight the challenges that exist in SemiSWEETs and provide future researchers the foundation to explore these uncharted areas.

Sweet taste in apple: the role of sorbitol, individual sugars, organic acids and volatile compounds

PubMed Central

Aprea, Eugenio; Charles, Mathilde; Endrizzi, Isabella; Laura Corollaro, Maria; Betta, Emanuela; Biasioli, Franco; Gasperi, Flavia

2017-01-01

Sweetness is one of the main drivers of consumer preference, and thus is given high priority in apple breeding programmes. Due to the complexity of sweetness evaluation, soluble solid content (SSC) is commonly used as an estimation of this trait. Nevertheless, it has been demonstrated that SSC and sweet taste are poorly correlated. Though individual sugar content may vary greatly between and within apple cultivars, no previous study has tried to investigate the relationship between the amount of individual sugars, or ratios of these, and apple sweetness. In this work, we quantified the major sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose, xylose) and sorbitol and explored their influence on perceived sweetness in apple; we also related this to malic acid content, SSC and volatile compounds. Our data confirmed that the correlation between sweetness and SSC is weak. We found that sorbitol content correlates (similarly to SSC) with perceived sweetness better than any other single sugar or total sugar content. The single sugars show no differentiable importance in determining apple sweetness. Our predictive model based on partial least squares regression shows that after sorbitol and SSC, the most important contribution to apple sweetness is provided by several volatile compounds, mainly esters and farnesene. PMID:28322320

Citrus sinensis annotation project (CAP): a comprehensive database for sweet orange genome.

PubMed

Wang, Jia; Chen, Dijun; Lei, Yang; Chang, Ji-Wei; Hao, Bao-Hai; Xing, Feng; Li, Sen; Xu, Qiang; Deng, Xiu-Xin; Chen, Ling-Ling

2014-01-01

Citrus is one of the most important and widely grown fruit crop with global production ranking firstly among all the fruit crops in the world. Sweet orange accounts for more than half of the Citrus production both in fresh fruit and processed juice. We have sequenced the draft genome of a double-haploid sweet orange (C. sinensis cv. Valencia), and constructed the Citrus sinensis annotation project (CAP) to store and visualize the sequenced genomic and transcriptome data. CAP provides GBrowse-based organization of sweet orange genomic data, which integrates ab initio gene prediction, EST, RNA-seq and RNA-paired end tag (RNA-PET) evidence-based gene annotation. Furthermore, we provide a user-friendly web interface to show the predicted protein-protein interactions (PPIs) and metabolic pathways in sweet orange. CAP provides comprehensive information beneficial to the researchers of sweet orange and other woody plants, which is freely available at http://citrus.hzau.edu.cn/.

Sweet taste preference in binge-eating disorder: A preliminary investigation.

PubMed

Goodman, Erica L; Breithaupt, Lauren; Watson, Hunna J; Peat, Christine M; Baker, Jessica H; Bulik, Cynthia M; Brownley, Kimberly A

2018-01-01

Research suggests that individuals with high liking for sweets are at increased risk for binge eating, which has been minimally investigated in individuals with binge-eating disorder (BED). Forty-one adults (85% female, 83% white) with binge eating concerns completed a sweet taste test and measures of eating disorder behaviors and food cravings. A subset of participants with BED completed an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT; N=21) and a 24-hour dietary recall (N=26). Regression models were used to compare highest sweet preferers (HSP [N=18]) to other sweet preferers (OSP [N=23]) and were used to assess associations between sweet taste preference and outcome variables. Effect sizes (ηp 2 ) for differences between HSP and OSP ranged from small (≤0.01) to large (≥0.24); group differences were statistically nonsignificant except for 24-hour caloric intake (ηp 2 =0.16, p=0.04), protein intake (ηp 2 =0.16, p=0.04), and insulin sensitivity index (ηp 2 =0.24, p=0.04), which were higher in HSP, and postprandial insulin, which was smaller in HSP (ηp 2 =0.27, p=0.03). Continuous analyses replicated postprandial insulin response. Compared with OSP, HSP reported numerically higher binge-eating frequency (ηp 2 =0.04), over-eating frequency (ηp 2 =0.06), and carbohydrate intake (ηp 2 =0.14), and they exhibited numerically smaller postprandial glucose AUC (ηp 2 =0.16). Sweet taste preference may have implications for glucose regulation, binge-eating frequency, and nutrient intake in BED. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Development of Sweet Taste: From Biology to Hedonics

PubMed Central

Mennella, Julie A.; Bobowski, Nuala K.; Reed, Danielle R.

2016-01-01

From the age of two years, an American child is more likely to consume a sugar-sweetened product than a fruit or vegetable on any given day—a troubling statistic, given that food preferences are established early in childhood, as well as the strong association between this dietary pattern and increased risk of developing a number of chronic diseases. Here, we review the ontogeny and biopsychology of sweet taste, highlighting how a biological drive to prefer sweetness at high concentrations during childhood, which would have conferred an advantage in environments of scarcity, now predisposes children to overconsume all that is sweet in a modern food system replete with added sugars. We review the power of sweet taste to blunt expressions of pain and mask bad tastes in foods as well as factors that predispose some to consume high-sugar diets, including experiential learning and taste preferences driven in part by genetics. Understanding children’s unique vulnerability to our current food environment, rich in both nutritive and nonnutritive sweeteners, is highlighted as a priority for future research to develop evidence-based strategies to help establish healthy dietary behaviors early in life. PMID:27193110

Hydrogen-bonding and the sweet taste mechanism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathlouthi, M.; Portmann, M. O.

1990-09-01

The tripartite glucophores (AH-B,γ) of some natural (sugars) and artificial (Aspartame, Acesulfame, Saccharin, NHDHC and Trichlorogalactosucrose) sweeteners are proposed. These propositions are based on the molecular structure and infrared spectra of the studied molecules. The role of water in the sweet taste mechanism of small carbohydrates and artificial sweeteners was derived from the Raman spectra of their aqueous solutions. Comparison of the intensities and frequencies of the calculated components of the experimental Raman band of water on the one hand and of aqueous solutions of sweeteners on the other permitted interpretation of the role of water in the sweetness mechanism.

Molecular mechanism of substrate recognition and transport by the AtSWEET13 sugar transporter.

PubMed

Han, Lei; Zhu, Yongping; Liu, Min; Zhou, Ye; Lu, Guangyuan; Lan, Lan; Wang, Xianping; Zhao, Yongfang; Zhang, Xuejun C

2017-09-19

Sugar Will Eventually be Exported Transporters (SWEETs) are recently identified sugar transporters that can discriminate and transport di- or monosaccharides across a membrane following the concentration gradient. SWEETs play key roles in plant biological processes, such as pollen nutrition, nectar secretion, seed filling, and phloem loading. SWEET13 from Arabidopsis thaliana (AtSWEET13) is an important sucrose transporter in pollen development. Here, we report the 2.8-Å resolution crystal structure of AtSWEET13 in the inward-facing conformation with a substrate analog, 2'-deoxycytidine 5'-monophosphate, bound in the central cavity. In addition, based on the results of an in-cell transport activity assay and single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer analysis, we suggest a mechanism for substrate selectivity based on the size of the substrate-binding pocket. Furthermore, AtSWEET13 appears to form a higher order structure presumably related to its function.

Sweet Sorghum Alternative Fuel and Feed Pilot Project

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Slack, Donald C.; Kaltenbach, C. Colin

The University of Arizona undertook a “pilot” project to grow sweet sorghum on a field scale (rather than a plot scale), produce juice from the sweet sorghum, deliver the juice to a bio-refinery and process it to fuel-grade ethanol. We also evaluated the bagasse for suitability as a livestock feed and as a fuel. In addition to these objectives we evaluated methods of juice preservation, ligno-cellulosic conversion of the bagasse to fermentable sugars and alternative methods of juice extraction.

Expecting yoghurt drinks to taste sweet or pleasant increases liking.

PubMed

Kuenzel, Johanna; Zandstra, Elizabeth H; El Deredy, Wael; Blanchette, Isabelle; Thomas, Anna

2011-02-01

This experiment studied the effect of cues on liking of yoghurt drinks. We examined how hedonic (degrees of like/dislike) and sensory (level of sweetness/saltiness) cues affected liking ratings. In the learning phase, thirty-nine participants learned to associate cues with yoghurt drinks. Cues were learned for mildly and highly salty and sweet yoghurts. Sweet yoghurts were used as liked, salty yoghurts as disliked stimuli. Half the participants associated the cues with yoghurt liking (i.e. hedonic cues), the other half with the sweetness or saltiness of the yoghurt drink (i.e. sensory cues). In the test phase a cue was presented to participants subliminally (20 ms) or supraliminally (500 ms) before they tasted and rated liking of one of three yoghurt drinks in each category. The three yoghurt drinks consisted of the trained samples and a new third drink situated approximately half-way in between. The cue-drink combination was either congruent (the cued drink was given) or incongruent (two degrees of incongruence). For sweet yoghurt drinks cue-following assimilation effects were found for the supraliminal but not the subliminal cue presentations. For salty yoghurts, no effects of cue were found. This indicates that the nature of the drinks itself plays a critical role in modulating assimilation. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Role of the sweet taste receptor in glucose metabolism: no sweets for diabetes?].

PubMed

Nomura, Masatoshi; Kawahara, Yuta

2015-01-01

Type 2 diabetes is closely associated with our daily diets and has become a global health problem with increasing number of patients. Maintaining energy homeostasis is essentially required for the treatment of diabetes. Energy metabolism starts with taking in a meal. Nutrients including amino acids, fatty acids and glucose in the digest have been shown to act on the neuroendocrine cells in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, and thereby play important roles in energy homeostasis. Therefore, the GI tract is now recognized as a sensor system for nutrient signals. Taste receptor type 1 member 2 (T1R2) is known to function as a co-receptor with T1R3 to detect sweet chemicals in the taste buds. It has been proposed that the T1R2/T1R3 receptor complex acts as sweet sensor in the intestine, and plays a pivotal role in sensing sugars and maintaining glucose homeostasis through incretin secretion. To clarify the physiological roles of T1R2 in glucose homeostasis, T1r2-lacZ knock-in/knock-out mice were generated. We found lacZ gene expression in the GI tract where T1r3 expression has been reported. Interestingly, the T1r2-lacZ knock-in mice showed impaired glucose tolerance on oral glucose challenge but not on intraperitoneal injection. However, the fasting glucose level in T1r2-lacZ knock-in mice was comparable to that in wild type mice. These results suggest an important role of the sweet taste receptor system in the intestine when stimulated by glucose. Therefore, the roles of T1R2 will be presented and the mechanism for metabolic homeostasis will be discussed.

The effect of sucralose on flavor sweetness in electronic cigarettes varies between delivery devices.

PubMed

Rosbrook, Kathryn; Erythropel, Hanno C; DeWinter, Tamara M; Falinski, Mark; O'Malley, Stephanie; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra; Anastas, Paul T; Zimmerman, Julie B; Green, Barry G

2017-01-01

The appeal of sweet electronic cigarette flavors makes it important to identify the chemical compounds that contribute to their sweetness. While volatile chemicals that produce sweet aromas have been identified in e-liquids, there are no published reports of sugars or artificial sweeteners in commercial e-liquids. However, the sweetener sucralose is marketed as an e-liquid additive to commercial flavors. The primary aims of the study were to determine if sucralose is delivered in sufficient concentration in the inhaled aerosol to enhance flavor sweetness, and whether the amount delivered depends on the e-liquid delivery system. Thirty-two adult smokers rated flavor intensity, sweetness, harshness and liking/disliking for 4 commercial flavors with and without sucralose (1%) using 2 e-cigarette delivery systems (cartridge and tank). Participants alternately vaped normally or with the nose pinched closed to block perception of volatile flavor components via olfaction. LC/MS was used to measure the concentration of sucralose in the e-liquid aerosols using a device that mimicked vaping. Sweetness and flavor intensity were perceived much more strongly when olfaction was permitted. The contribution of sucralose to sweetness was significant only for the cartridge system, and the chemical analysis showed that the concentration of sucralose in the aerosol was higher when the cartridge was used. Together these findings indicate that future regulation of sweet flavor additives should focus first on the volatile constituents of e-liquids with the recognition that artificial sweeteners may also contribute to flavor sweetness depending upon e-cigarette design.

The effect of sucralose on flavor sweetness in electronic cigarettes varies between delivery devices

PubMed Central

Rosbrook, Kathryn; Erythropel, Hanno C.; DeWinter, Tamara M.; Falinski, Mark; O’Malley, Stephanie; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra; Anastas, Paul T.; Zimmerman, Julie B.

2017-01-01

The appeal of sweet electronic cigarette flavors makes it important to identify the chemical compounds that contribute to their sweetness. While volatile chemicals that produce sweet aromas have been identified in e-liquids, there are no published reports of sugars or artificial sweeteners in commercial e-liquids. However, the sweetener sucralose is marketed as an e-liquid additive to commercial flavors. The primary aims of the study were to determine if sucralose is delivered in sufficient concentration in the inhaled aerosol to enhance flavor sweetness, and whether the amount delivered depends on the e-liquid delivery system. Thirty-two adult smokers rated flavor intensity, sweetness, harshness and liking/disliking for 4 commercial flavors with and without sucralose (1%) using 2 e-cigarette delivery systems (cartridge and tank). Participants alternately vaped normally or with the nose pinched closed to block perception of volatile flavor components via olfaction. LC/MS was used to measure the concentration of sucralose in the e-liquid aerosols using a device that mimicked vaping. Sweetness and flavor intensity were perceived much more strongly when olfaction was permitted. The contribution of sucralose to sweetness was significant only for the cartridge system, and the chemical analysis showed that the concentration of sucralose in the aerosol was higher when the cartridge was used. Together these findings indicate that future regulation of sweet flavor additives should focus first on the volatile constituents of e-liquids with the recognition that artificial sweeteners may also contribute to flavor sweetness depending upon e-cigarette design. PMID:28968411

Two species of myxomycetes causing slime mold of sweet potato.

PubMed

Kim, Wan Gyu; Lee, Sang Yeob; Cho, Weon Dae

2007-06-01

Specimens collected from sweet potato plants with slime mold symptoms in fields in Daejeon, Korea were examined. Two species of Myxomycetes, Fuligo septica and Stemonitis herbatica were identified based on their morphological characteristics. This is the first report that the two species of Myxomycetes cause slime mold of sweet potato in Korea.

Chemical optimization of protein extraction from sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) peel

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Proteins isolated from sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) have been shown to possess antidiabetic, antioxidant, and antiproliferative properties. The objective of this study was to chemically optimize a process for extracting proteins from sweet potato peel. The extraction procedure involved mixing pe...

Prediction of carboxylic and polyphenolic chemical feedstock quantities in sweet sorghum

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Quantitative chemical phenotyping is on increasing demand to develop sweet sorghum genotypes targeted to accumulate carboxylate and polyphenolic secondary products as the plant-derived feedstocks for renewable biobased products including plastics. Of 24 sweet sorghum genotypes investigated, No.5 Ga...

Cancer-preventive Properties of an Anthocyanin-enriched Sweet Potato in the APCMIN Mouse Model

PubMed Central

Asadi, Khalid; Ferguson, Lynnette R.; Philpott, Martin; Karunasinghe, Nishi

2017-01-01

Background Anthocyanin-rich foods and preparations have been reported to reduce the risk of life-style related diseases, including cancer. The SL222 sweet potato, a purple-fleshed cultivar developed in New Zealand, accumulates high levels of anthocyanins in its storage root. Methods We examined the chemopreventative properties of the SL222 sweet potato in the C57BL/6J-APCMIN/+ (APCMIN) mouse, a genetic model of colorectal cancer. APCMIN and C57BL/6J wild-type mice (n=160) were divided into four feeding groups consuming diets containing 10% SL222 sweet potato flesh, 10% SL222 sweet potato skin, or 0.12% ARE (Anthocyanin rich-extract prepared from SL222 sweet potato at a concentration equivalent to the flesh-supplemented diet) or a control diet (AIN-76A) for 18 weeks. At 120 days of age, the mice were anaesthetised, and blood samples were collected before the mice were sacrificed. The intestines were used for adenoma enumeration. Results The SL222 sweet potato-supplemented diets reduced the adenoma number in the APCMIN mice. Conclusions These data have significant implications for the use of this sweet potato variant in protection against colorectal cancer. PMID:29018778

Development and Identification of SSR Markers Associated with Starch Properties and β-Carotene Content in the Storage Root of Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas L.)

PubMed Central

Zhang, Kai; Wu, Zhengdan; Tang, Daobin; Lv, Changwen; Luo, Kai; Zhao, Yong; Liu, Xun; Huang, Yuanxin; Wang, Jichun

2016-01-01

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is a nutritious food crop and, based on the high starch content of its storage root, a potential bioethanol feedstock. Enhancing the nutritional value and starch quantity of storage roots are important goals of sweet potato breeding programs aimed at developing improved varieties for direct consumption, processing, and industrial uses. However, developing improved lines of sweet potato is challenging due to the genetic complexity of this plant and the lack of genome information. Short sequence repeat (SSR) markers are powerful molecular tools for tracking important loci in crops and for molecular-based breeding strategies; however, few SSR markers and marker-trait associations have hitherto been identified in sweet potato. In this study, we identified 1824 SSRs by using a de novo assembly of publicly available ESTs and mRNAs in sweet potato, and designed 1476 primer pairs based on SSR-containing sequences. We mapped 214 pairs of primers in a natural population comprised of 239 germplasms, and identified 1278 alleles with an average of 5.972 alleles per locus and a major allele frequency of 0.7702. Population structure analysis revealed two subpopulations in this panel of germplasms, and phenotypic characterization demonstrated that this panel is suitable for association mapping of starch-related traits. We identified 32, 16, and 17 SSR markers associated with starch content, β-carotene content, and starch composition in the storage root, respectively, using association analysis and further evaluation of a subset of sweet potato genotypes with various characteristics. The SSR markers identified here can be used to select varieties with desired traits and to investigate the genetic mechanism underlying starch and carotenoid formation in the starchy roots of sweet potato. PMID:26973669

Sweet preference modified by early experience in mice and the related molecular modulations on the peripheral pathway.

PubMed

Li, Wei-Li; Chen, Meng-Ling; Liu, Si-Si; Li, Guo-Liang; Gu, Tian-Yuan; Liang, Pei; Qin, Yu-Mei; Zhan, Yue-Hua; Quan, Ying; Zhang, Gen-Hua

2013-09-01

The sweet taste is of immense interest to scientists and has been intensively studied during the last two decades. However, the sweet preference modification and the related mechanisms are still unclear. In this study, we try to establish a mice model with manipulated sweet taste preference and explore the involved possible molecular mechanisms. The animals were exposed to acesulfame-K via maternal milk during lactation and the sweet preference tests were carried out when they grew to adulthood. Our results showed that the preference thresholds for sweet taste were increased in adults by early acesulfame-K exposure and the preference ratios for sweet tastants at low or preferred concentrations were decreased. Moreover, by means of qRT-PCR and Western blot, we observed the increased expression of leptin receptor Ob-Rb and downregulation of Gα-gustducin protein in the soft palate. Thereby, the sweet taste sensitivity may be modified by early sweetener experience during lactation. Along the peripheral sweet sensory pathway, the sweet regulator receptors Ob-Rb, CB1 and components of sweet transduction signal Gα-gustducin and T1R2 in both the soft palate and tongue may be cooperatively involved in the plastic development of sweet taste.

Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Sweet Potato in Puerto Rico

PubMed Central

Rodriguez-Bonilla, Lorraine; Cuevas, Hugo E.; Montero-Rojas, Milly; Bird-Pico, Fernando; Luciano-Rosario, Dianiris; Siritunga, Dimuth

2014-01-01

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is the seventh most important food crop due to its distinct advantages, such as adaptability to different environmental conditions and high nutritional value. Assessing the genetic diversity of this important crop is necessary due to the constant increase of demand for food and the need for conservation of agricultural and genetic resources. In Puerto Rico (PR), the genetic diversity of sweet potato has been poorly understood, although it has been part of the diet since Pre-Columbus time. Thus, 137 landraces from different localities around PR were collected and subjected to a genetic diversity analysis using 23 SSR-markers. In addition, 8 accessions from a collection grown in Gurabo, PR at the Agricultural Experimental Station (GAES), 10 US commercial cultivars and 12 Puerto Rican accessions from the USDA repository collection were included in this assessment. The results of the analysis of the 23 loci showed 255 alleles in the 167 samples. Observed heterozygosity was high across populations (0.71) while measurements of total heterozygosity revealed a large genetic diversity throughout the population and within populations. UPGMA clustering method revealed two main clusters. Cluster 1 contained 12 PR accessions from the USDA repository collection, while cluster 2 consisted of PR landraces, US commercial cultivars and the PR accessions from GAES. Population structure analysis grouped PR landraces in five groups including four US commercial cultivars. Our study shows the presence of a high level of genetic diversity of sweet potato across PR which can be related to the genetic makeup of sweet potato, human intervention and out-crossing nature of the plant. The history of domestication and dispersal of sweet potato in the Caribbean and the high levels of genetic diversity found through this study makes sweet potato an invaluable resource that needs to be protected and further studied. PMID:25551388

Two Species of Myxomycetes Causing Slime Mold of Sweet Potato

PubMed Central

Lee, Sang Yeob; Cho, Weon Dae

2007-01-01

Specimens collected from sweet potato plants with slime mold symptoms in fields in Daejeon, Korea were examined. Two species of Myxomycetes, Fuligo septica and Stemonitis herbatica were identified based on their morphological characteristics. This is the first report that the two species of Myxomycetes cause slime mold of sweet potato in Korea. PMID:24015079

Inhibition of OsSWEET11 function in mesophyll cells improves resistance of rice to sheath blight disease.

PubMed

Gao, Yue; Zhang, Chong; Han, Xiao; Wang, Zi Yuan; Ma, Lai; Yuan, De Peng; Wu, Jing Ni; Zhu, Xiao Feng; Liu, Jing Miao; Li, Dao Pin; Hu, Yi Bing; Xuan, Yuan Hu

2018-04-16

Pathogen-host interaction is a complicated process; pathogens mainly infect host plants to acquire nutrients, especially sugars. Rhizoctonia solani, the causative agent of sheath blight disease, is a major pathogen of rice. However, it is not known, as to how this pathogen obtains sugar from rice plants. In this study, we found that the rice sugar transporter, OsSWEET11 is involved in the pathogenesis of sheath blight disease. qRT-PCR and β-d-glucuronidase expression analyses showed that R. solani infection significantly enhanced OsSWEET11 expression in leaves among the clade III SWEET members. The analyses of transgenic plants revealed that Ossweet11 mutants were less susceptible, whereas plants overexpressing OsSWEET11 were more susceptible to sheath blight compared to wild-type controls, but the yield of OsSWEET11 mutants and overexpressors was reduced. SWEETs become active upon oligomerization. Split-ubiquitin yeast two-hybrid, bimolecular fluorescence complementation, and coimmunoprecipitation assays showed that mutated-OsSWEET11 interacted with normal OsSWEET11. In addition, expressing conserved residue mutated-AtSWEET1 inhibits normal AtSWEET1 activity. To analyze whether inhibition of OsSWEET11 function in mesophyll cells is related to defense against this disease, mutated- OsSWEET11 was expressed under the control of Rubisco promoter, which is specific for green tissues. The resistance of transgenic plants to sheath blight disease, but not other disease was improved, while yield production was not evidently affected. Overall, these results suggest that R. solani might acquire sugar from rice leaves by activating OsSWEET11 expression. The plants can be protected from infection by manipulating the expression of OsSWEET11 without affecting the crop yield. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 BSPP and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Sweet taste preferences and experiences predict prosocial inferences, personalities, and behaviors.

PubMed

Meier, Brian P; Moeller, Sara K; Riemer-Peltz, Miles; Robinson, Michael D

2012-01-01

It is striking that prosocial people are considered "sweet" (e.g., "she's a sweetie") because they are unlikely to differentially taste this way. These metaphors aid communication, but theories of conceptual metaphor and embodiment led us to hypothesize that they can be used to derive novel insights about personality processes. Five studies converged on this idea. Study 1 revealed that people believed strangers who liked sweet foods (e.g., candy) were also higher in agreeableness. Studies 2 and 3 showed that individual differences in the preference for sweet foods predicted prosocial personalities, prosocial intentions, and prosocial behaviors. Studies 4 and 5 used experimental designs and showed that momentarily savoring a sweet food (vs. a nonsweet food or no food) increased participants' self-reports of agreeableness and helping behavior. The results reveal that an embodied metaphor approach provides a complementary but unique perspective to traditional trait views of personality.

The economic feasibility of producing sweet sorghum as an ethanol feedstock in Mississippi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Linton, Joseph Andrew

This study examines the feasibility of producing sweet sorghum as an ethanol feedstock in Mississippi. An enterprise budgeting system is used along with estimates of transportation costs to estimate farmers' breakeven costs for producing and delivering sweet sorghum biomass. This breakeven cost for the farmer, along with breakeven costs for the producer based on wholesale ethanol price, production costs, and transportation and marketing costs for the refined ethanol, is used to estimate the amounts that farmers and ethanol producers would be willing to accept (WTA) and willing to pay (WTP), respectively, for sweet sorghum biomass. These WTA and WTP estimates are analyzed by varying key factors in the biomass and ethanol production processes. Deterministic and stochastic models are used to estimate profits for sweet sorghum and competing crops in two representative counties in Mississippi, with sweet sorghum consistently yielding negative per-acre profits in both counties.

Suppression of the invasive plant mile-a-minute (Mikania micrantha) by local crop sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) by means of higher growth rate and competition for soil nutrients.

PubMed

Shen, Shicai; Xu, Gaofeng; Clements, David Roy; Jin, Guimei; Chen, Aidong; Zhang, Fudou; Kato-Noguchi, Hisashi

2015-01-28

There are a variety of ways of increasing crop diversity to increase agricultural sustainability and in turn having a positive influence on nearby natural ecosystems. Competitive crops may provide potent management tools against invasive plants. To elucidate the competitive mechanisms between a sweet potato crop (Ipomoea batatas) and an invasive plant, mile-a-minute (Mikania micrantha), field experiments were carried out in Longchuan County of Yunnan Province, Southwest China, utilizing a de Wit replacement series. The trial incorporated seven ratios of sweet potato and mile-a-minute plants in 25 m(2) plots. In monoculture, the total biomass, biomass of adventitious root, leafstalk length, and leaf area of sweet potato were all higher than those of mile-a-minute, and in mixed culture the plant height, branch, leaf, stem node, adventitious root, flowering and biomass of mile-a-minute were suppressed significantly (P < 0.05). The relative yield (RY) of mile-a-minute and sweet potato was less than 1.0 in mixed culture, indicating that intraspecific competition was less than interspecific competition. The competitive balance index of sweet potato demonstrated a higher competitive ability than mile-a-minute. Except pH, other soil nutrient contents of initial soil (CK) were significantly higher than those of seven treatments. The concentrations of soil organic matter, total N, total K, available N, available P, available K, exchange Ca, exchange Mg, available Mn, and available B were significantly greater (P < 0.05) in mile-a-minute monoculture soil than in sweet potato monoculture soil, and were reduced by the competition of sweet potato in the mixture. Evidently sweet potato has a competitive advantage in terms of plant growth characteristics and greater absorption of soil nutrients. Thus, planting sweet potato is a promising technique for reducing infestations of mile-a-minute, providing weed management benefits and economic returns from harvest of sweet

Angiotensin II modulates salty and sweet taste sensitivities.

PubMed

Shigemura, Noriatsu; Iwata, Shusuke; Yasumatsu, Keiko; Ohkuri, Tadahiro; Horio, Nao; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Margolskee, Robert F; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2013-04-10

Understanding the mechanisms underlying gustatory detection of dietary sodium is important for the prevention and treatment of hypertension. Here, we show that Angiotensin II (AngII), a major mediator of body fluid and sodium homeostasis, modulates salty and sweet taste sensitivities, and that this modulation critically influences ingestive behaviors in mice. Gustatory nerve recording demonstrated that AngII suppressed amiloride-sensitive taste responses to NaCl. Surprisingly, AngII also enhanced nerve responses to sweeteners, but had no effect on responses to KCl, sour, bitter, or umami tastants. These effects of AngII on nerve responses were blocked by the angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1) antagonist CV11974. In behavioral tests, CV11974 treatment reduced the stimulated high licking rate to NaCl and sweeteners in water-restricted mice with elevated plasma AngII levels. In taste cells AT1 proteins were coexpressed with αENaC (epithelial sodium channel α-subunit, an amiloride-sensitive salt taste receptor) or T1r3 (a sweet taste receptor component). These results suggest that the taste organ is a peripheral target of AngII. The specific reduction of amiloride-sensitive salt taste sensitivity by AngII may contribute to increased sodium intake. Furthermore, AngII may contribute to increased energy intake by enhancing sweet responses. The linkage between salty and sweet preferences via AngII signaling may optimize sodium and calorie intakes.

[Super sweet corn hybrids adaptability for industrial processing. I freezing].

PubMed

Alfonzo, Braunnier; Camacho, Candelario; Ortiz de Bertorelli, Ligia; De Venanzi, Frank

2002-09-01

With the purpose of evaluating adaptability to the freezing process of super sweet corn sh2 hybrids Krispy King, Victor and 324, 100 cobs of each type were frozen at -18 degrees C. After 120 days of storage, their chemical, microbiological and sensorial characteristics were compared with a sweet corn su. Industrial quality of the process of freezing and length and number of rows in cobs were also determined. Results revealed yields above 60% in frozen corns. Length and number of rows in cobs were acceptable. Most of the chemical characteristics of super sweet hybrids were not different from the sweet corn assayed at the 5% significance level. Moisture content and soluble solids of hybrid Victor, as well as total sugars of hybrid 324 were statistically different. All sh2 corns had higher pH values. During freezing, soluble solids concentration, sugars and acids decreased whereas pH increased. Frozen cobs exhibited acceptable microbiological rank, with low activities of mesophiles and total coliforms, absence of psychrophiles and fecal coliforms, and an appreciable amount of molds. In conclusion, sh2 hybrids adapted with no problems to the freezing process, they had lower contents of soluble solids and higher contents of total sugars, which almost doubled the amount of su corn; flavor, texture, sweetness and appearance of kernels were also better. Hybrid Victor was preferred by the evaluating panel and had an outstanding performance due to its yield and sensorial characteristics.

Toward the Understanding of MNEI Sweetness from Hydration Map Surfaces

PubMed Central

De Simone, Alfonso; Spadaccini, Roberta; Temussi, Piero A.; Fraternali, Franca

2006-01-01

The binding mechanism of sweet proteins to their receptor, a G-protein-coupled receptor, is not supported by direct structural information. In principle, the key groups responsible for biological activity (glucophores) can be localized on a small structural unit (sweet finger) or spread on a larger surface area. A recently proposed model, called “wedge model”, implies a large surface of interaction with the receptor. To explore this model in greater detail, it is necessary to examine the physicochemical features of the surfaces of sweet proteins, since their interaction with the receptor, with respect to that of small sweeteners, is more dependent on general physicochemical properties of the interface, such as electrostatic potential and hydration. In this study, we performed exhaustive molecular dynamics simulations in explicit water of the sweet protein MNEI and of its structural mutant G-16A, whose sweetness is one order of magnitude lower than that of MNEI. Solvent density and self-diffusion calculated from molecular dynamics simulations suggest a likely area of interaction delimited by four stretches arranged as a tetrahedron whose shape is complementary to that of a cavity on the surface of the receptor, in agreement with the wedge model. The suggested area of interaction is amazingly consistent with known mutagenesis data. In addition, the asymmetric hydration of the only helix in both proteins hints at a specific role for this secondary structure element in orienting the protein during the binding process. PMID:16461400

Leptin gene and leptin receptor gene polymorphisms are associated with sweet preference and obesity.

PubMed

Mizuta, Einosuke; Kokubo, Yoshihiro; Yamanaka, Itaru; Miyamoto, Yoshihiro; Okayama, Akira; Yoshimasa, Yasunao; Tomoike, Hitonobu; Morisaki, Hiroko; Morisaki, Takayuki

2008-06-01

Leptin is an adipocyte-secreted hormone that regulates food intake and body weight, and that was recently reported to suppress sweet sensitivity in an animal model. We investigated the associations among sweet preference, obesity, and polymorphisms of the leptin gene (LEP) or leptin receptor gene (LEPR). A total of 3,653 residents randomly selected from among the citizens of Suita City, Osaka, Japan were enlisted as subjects, in whom we investigated sweet preference, clinical characteristics, including obesity and serum leptin level, and the polymorphisms of LEP and LEPR (G-2548A and A19G for LEP; R109K, R223Q, and rs3790439 for LEPR). We determined the associations among the parameters using logistic regression analysis, in order to consider potential confounding factors for sweet preference and/or obesity. The LEP A19G and LEPR R109K polymorphisms were associated with sweet preference, whereas the serum leptin level was not. Further, the LEPR 109KK genotype was found to be associated with obesity along with sweet preference. In conclusion, our results are the first to show associations of LEP and LEPR polymorphisms with sweet preference, and may provide useful information for diagnosis and treatment of lifestyle-related diseases.

Garnacha Tintorera-based sweet wines: chromatic properties and global phenolic composition by means of UV-Vis spectrophotometry.

PubMed

Figueiredo-González, M; Cancho-Grande, B; Simal-Gándara, J

2013-09-01

Valdeorras (the N.W. corner of Spain) wants to promote the production and marketing of new sweet wines. The present work represents the first study on sweet wines manufactured with red grapes Vitis vinifera L. Garnacha Tintorera, a teinturier cultivar. Two different red sweet wines were elaborated: the first one was made with dried grapes; Vitis vinifera L. Garnacha Tintorera has excellent potential to produce wines from raisined grapes; the second one, a fortified sweet wine aged in oak barrels. Different red Garnacha Tintorera-based wines (a dry base wine, GBW; a naturally sweet wine, GNSW; and a fortified sweet wine, GFSW) were characterized. Chromatic characteristics and phenolic compounds were established by spectrophotometric methods in order to assess the technology of Garnacha Tintorera-based sweet wines. High molecular weight brown polymers, produced during the grape drying process and isolated from sweet wines by the dialysis process, were responsible for the brown colour of sweet wines. As a consequence, yellowness of sweet wines was also higher which was confirmed by colorimetric indexes. With respect to phenolic content, GFSW presented the lowest content because the maceration-alcoholic fermentation was stopped through the addition of alcohol before the diffusion of red pigments from skins to must was complete. GNSW presented the highest phenolic content due to the concentration effect resulting from evaporation of water from the grapes. Anthocyanins of sweet wines were polymerised in great extent. The percentage of polymerised tannins was sufficient to guarantee the aging process of sweet wines. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Predictors for the efficacy of naltrexone treatment in alcohol dependence: sweet preference.

PubMed

Laaksonen, E; Lahti, J; Sinclair, J D; Heinälä, P; Alho, H

2011-01-01

To analyse the possible associations between sweet preference and the efficacy of naltrexone treatment of alcohol dependence. The preference for different concentrations of sucrose was evaluated in 78 participants diagnosed with alcohol dependence after treatment for 32 weeks with naltrexone or placebo without prior detoxification. A significant difference between naltrexone and placebo groups was found in the association between the preference for higher sucrose concentrations and relapses to heavy drinking. Higher sweet preference was significantly related to successful treatment measures in the naltrexone group but not in the placebo group. Sweet preference has a strong correlation to treatment outcomes with naltrexone, and sweet preference might be used as a predictor for better treatment results in alcoholics. Our study offers one possible new explanation of the clinical observation that naltrexone is not effective for every patient.

Tapping the US historic sweet sorghum collection to identify biofuel germplasm

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] has gained an important role as a viable alternative to fossil fuels and a more profitable option than maize and sugarcane. Nevertheless, the actual narrow genetic base in sweet sorghum breeding programs is limiting the development of new biofuel varietie...

Single bright light exposure decreases sweet taste threshold in healthy volunteers.

PubMed

Srivastava, Shrikant; Donaldson, Lucy F; Rai, Dheeraj; Melichar, Jan K; Potokar, John

2013-10-01

Bright light exposure can alter circulating serotonin levels, and alteration of available serotonin by acute selective serotonin reuptake inhibition significantly lowers sweet but not salt taste recognition thresholds. We tested the hypothesis that bright light exposure would increase sweet but not salt taste sensitivity in healthy adults. Fourteen healthy volunteers were exposed to bright (10,000 lux) and dim (<20 lux) light for 30 min each, in counterbalanced order. Measures of taste perception (salt and sweet) and mood were determined at baseline, and before and after each light exposure period. Recognition thresholds for sucrose were significantly lower after bright but not dim light exposure. Thresholds for salt were unaffected by either condition. There were no significant changes in taste acuity, intensity or pleasantness for both the taste modalities and on visual analogue scales (VASs) for mood, anxiety, sleepiness and alertness, under either light condition. Brief bright light exposure reduces sweet but not salt taste recognition thresholds in healthy humans.

Selecting the Right Varieties in Riau Main Island: Sweet Corn Context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Surtinah; Nurwati, Niken

2018-05-01

The Riau Main island long way known has a unique geographic location and minerals contains in its soils. To help in selecting the best varieties that can help to sustain the food security plan in Riau main island is the aims of this study. Corn is a one of the local food that support the coastal and highland community in Riau and Sumatera Islands. Therefore corn was selected to be the object of this study. This experiment was conducted experimentally using a complete randomized environmental design and the treatment design with eight varieties of sweet corns. Data analysis uses Sidik variety and Duncan 5 % distance tes. The parameter observed is sweet corn which deals with the weight of cobs with cornhusk, the weight of cobs without cornhusk, the length of cobs without cornhusk and the sugar content of the seeds. The result shows that the best varieties are Sweet boy, sweet lady and bonanza.

Sweet taste transduction in hamster: role of protein kinases.

PubMed

Varkevisser, B; Kinnamon, S C

2000-05-01

Two different second-messenger pathways have been implicated in sweet taste transduction: sugars produce cyclic AMP (cAMP), whereas synthetic sweeteners stimulate production of inositol 1,4, 5-tris-phosphate (IP(3)) and diacylglycerol (DAG). Both sugars and sweeteners depolarize taste cells by blocking the same resting K(+) conductance, but the intermediate steps in the transduction pathways have not been examined. In this study, the loose-patch recording technique was used to examine the role of protein kinases and other downstream regulatory proteins in the two sweet transduction pathways. Bursts of action currents were elicited from approximately 35% of fungiform taste buds in response to sucrose (200 mM) or NC-00274-01 (NC-01, 200 microM), a synthetic sweetener. To determine whether protein kinase C (PKC) plays a role in sweet transduction, taste buds were stimulated with the PKC activator PDBu (10 microM). In all sweet-responsive taste buds tested (n = 11), PDBu elicited burst of action currents. In contrast, PDBu elicited responses in only 4 of 19 sweet-unresponsive taste buds. Inhibition of PKC by bisindolylmaleimide I (0.15 microM) resulted in inhibition of the NC-01 response by approximately 75%, whereas the response to sucrose either increased or remained unchanged. These data suggest that activation of PKC is required for the transduction of synthetic sweeteners. To determine whether protein kinase A (PKA) is required for the transduction of sugars, sweet responses were examined in the presence of the membrane-permeant PKA inhibitor H-89 (10 and 19 microM). Surprisingly, H-89 did not decrease responses to either sucrose or NC-01. Instead, responses to both compounds were increased in the presence of the inhibitor. These data suggest that PKA is not required for the transduction of sugars, but may play a modulatory role in both pathways, such as adaptation of the response. We also examined whether Ca(2+)-calmodulin dependent cAMP phosphodiesterase (Ca

Drug-induced Sweet's syndrome secondary to hepatitis C antiviral therapy.

PubMed

Gheorghe, Liana; Cotruta, Bogdan; Trifu, Viorel; Cotruta, Cristina; Becheanu, Gabriel; Gheorghe, Cristian

2008-09-01

Pegylated interferon-alpha in combination with ribavirin currently represents the therapeutic standard for the hepatitis C virus infection. Interferon based therapy may be responsible for many cutaneous side effects. We report a case of drug-induced Sweet's syndrome secondary to hepatitis C antiviral therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of Sweet's syndrome in association with pegylated interferon-alpha therapy.

Ventromedial prefrontal cortex response to concentrated sucrose reflects liking rather than sweet quality coding.

PubMed

Rudenga, Kristin J; Small, Dana M

2013-09-01

The perception of the pleasantness of sweet tastes varies widely across individuals. Here, we exploit these differences to isolate brain response to sweet-taste pleasantness while controlling for intensity, quality, and physiological significance. Thirty subjects participated in functional MRI scanning while consuming individually calibrated weak and strong sucrose solutions. All subjects found the weak sweet taste to be neutral in pleasantness, but half of the subjects found strong sweet taste pleasant (likers), whereas half found strong sweet taste unpleasant (dislikers). Greater response was observed in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) to the sucrose when it was rated pleasant versus neutral compared with unpleasant versus neutral. This suggests that response in the vmPFC underlies sweet-taste preference, this region is preferentially sensitive to affectively positive tastes, and it is the positive value rather than physiological significance, quality, or intensity that drives responses here. Likers versus dislikers did not differ in their diet, alcohol use, body weight, gender, or taq1A allele status, but likers were more likely to report emotional eating. None of these factors influenced response in the vmPFC.

Genome-wide identification, phylogeny, and expression analysis of the SWEET gene family in tomato.

PubMed

Feng, Chao-Yang; Han, Jia-Xuan; Han, Xiao-Xue; Jiang, Jing

2015-12-01

The SWEET (Sugars Will Eventually Be Exported Transporters) gene family encodes membrane-embedded sugar transporters containing seven transmembrane helices harboring two MtN3 and saliva domain. SWEETs play important roles in diverse biological processes, including plant growth, development, and response to environmental stimuli. Here, we conducted an exhaustive search of the tomato genome, leading to the identification of 29 SWEET genes. We analyzed the structures, conserved domains, and phylogenetic relationships of these protein-coding genes in detail. We also analyzed the transcript levels of SWEET genes in various tissues, organs, and developmental stages to obtain information about their functions. Furthermore, we investigated the expression patterns of the SWEET genes in response to exogenous sugar and adverse environmental stress (high and low temperatures). Some family members exhibited tissue-specific expression, whereas others were more ubiquitously expressed. Numerous stress-responsive candidate genes were obtained. The results of this study provide insights into the characteristics of the SWEET genes in tomato and may serve as a basis for further functional studies of such genes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The sweet taste of true synergy: positive allosteric modulation of the human sweet taste receptor.

PubMed

Servant, Guy; Tachdjian, Catherine; Li, Xiaodong; Karanewsky, Donald S

2011-11-01

A diet low in carbohydrates helps to reduce the amount of ingested calories and to maintain a healthy weight. With this in mind, food and beverage companies have reformulated a large number of their products, replacing sugar or high fructose corn syrup with several different types of zero-calorie sweeteners to decrease or even totally eliminate their caloric content. A challenge remains, however, with the level of acceptance of some of these products in the market-place. Many consumers believe that zero-calorie sweeteners simply do not taste like sugar. A recent breakthrough reveals that positive allosteric modulators of the human sweet taste receptor, small molecules that enhance the receptor activity and sweetness perception, could be more effective than other reported taste enhancers at reducing calories in consumer products without compromising on the true taste of sugar. A unique mechanism of action at the receptor level could explain the robust synergy achieved with these new modulators. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tonoplast Sugar Transporters (SbTSTs) putatively control sucrose accumulation in sweet sorghum stems.

PubMed

Bihmidine, Saadia; Julius, Benjamin T; Dweikat, Ismail; Braun, David M

2016-01-01

Carbohydrates are differentially partitioned in sweet versus grain sorghums. While the latter preferentially accumulate starch in the grain, the former primarily store large amounts of sucrose in the stem. Previous work determined that neither sucrose metabolizing enzymes nor changes in Sucrose transporter (SUT) gene expression accounted for the carbohydrate partitioning differences. Recently, 2 additional classes of sucrose transport proteins, Tonoplast Sugar Transporters (TSTs) and SWEETs, were identified; thus, we examined whether their expression tracked sucrose accumulation in sweet sorghum stems. We determined 2 TSTs were differentially expressed in sweet vs. grain sorghum stems, likely underlying the massive difference in sucrose accumulation. A model illustrating potential roles for different classes of sugar transport proteins in sorghum sugar partitioning is discussed.

2017 National Household Travel Survey - California Add-On |

Science.gov Websites

Transportation Secure Data Center | NREL 7 National Household Travel Survey - California Add-On 2017 National Household Travel Survey - California Add-On The California add-on survey supplements the 2017 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) with additional household samples and detailed travel

Peripheral gustatory processing of sweet stimuli by golden hamsters.

PubMed

Frank, Marion E; Formaker, Bradley K; Hettinger, Thomas P

2005-07-15

Behaviors and taste-nerve responses to bitter stimuli are linked to compounds that bind T2 receptors expressed in one subset of taste-bud receptor cells (TRCs); and behavioral and neural responses to sweet stimuli are linked to chemical compounds that bind a T1 receptor expressed in a different TRC subset. Neural and behavioral responses to bitter-sweet mixtures, however, complicate the ostensible bitter and sweet labeled lines. In the golden hamster, Mesocricetus auratus, quinine hydrochloride, the bitter prototype, suppresses chorda tympani (CT) nerve responses to the sweet prototype: sucrose. This bitter-sweet inhibition was tested with concentration series of sucrose and dulcin, a hydrophobic synthetic sweetener that hamsters behaviorally cross-generalize with sucrose. Dulcin, sucrose and other sweeteners activate one subset of CT fibers: S neurons; whereas, quinine activates a separate subset of CT fibers: E neurons. Whole-nerve and S-neuron CT responses to a sweetener concentration series, mixed with 0, 1, 3 and 10 mM quinine, were measured for 0-2.5 s transient and/or 2.6-10 s steady-state response periods. Ten-sec total single-fiber records, aligned at response onset, were averaged for 100 ms bins to identify response oscillations. Quinine inhibition of dulcin and sucrose responses was identical. Each log molar increment in quinine resulted in equivalent declines in response to either sweetener. Furthermore, sucrose response decrements paralleled response increments in quinine-sensitive CT neurons to the same quinine increases. A 1.43 Hz bursting rhythm to the sweeteners was unchanged by quinine inhibition or decreases in sweetener concentration. Taste-bud processing, possibly between-cell inhibition and within-cell negative feedback, must modify signals initiated by T1 receptors before they are transmitted to the brain.

Prediction and functional analysis of the sweet orange protein-protein interaction network.

PubMed

Ding, Yu-Duan; Chang, Ji-Wei; Guo, Jing; Chen, Dijun; Li, Sen; Xu, Qiang; Deng, Xiu-Xin; Cheng, Yun-Jiang; Chen, Ling-Ling

2014-08-05

Sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) is one of the most important fruits world-wide. Because it is a woody plant with a long growth cycle, genetic studies of sweet orange are lagging behind those of other species. In this analysis, we employed ortholog identification and domain combination methods to predict the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network for sweet orange. The K-nearest neighbors (KNN) classification method was used to verify and filter the network. The final predicted PPI network, CitrusNet, contained 8,195 proteins with 124,491 interactions. The quality of CitrusNet was evaluated using gene ontology (GO) and Mapman annotations, which confirmed the reliability of the network. In addition, we calculated the expression difference of interacting genes (EDI) in CitrusNet using RNA-seq data from four sweet orange tissues, and also analyzed the EDI distribution and variation in different sub-networks. Gene expression in CitrusNet has significant modular features. Target of rapamycin (TOR) protein served as the central node of the hormone-signaling sub-network. All evidence supported the idea that TOR can integrate various hormone signals and affect plant growth. CitrusNet provides valuable resources for the study of biological functions in sweet orange.

Sensory description of sweet wines obtained by the winemaking procedures of raisining, botrytisation and fortification.

PubMed

González-Álvarez, Mariana; Noguerol-Pato, Raquel; González-Barreiro, Carmen; Cancho-Grande, Beatriz; Simal-Gándara, Jesús

2014-02-15

The effect of winemaking procedures on the sensory modification of sweet wines was investigated. Garnacha Tintorera-based sweet wines were obtained by two different processes: by using raisins for vinification to obtain a naturally sweet wine and by using freshly harvested grapes with the stoppage of the fermentation by the addition of alcohol. Eight international sweet wines were also subjected to sensory analysis for comparative description purposes. Wines were described with a sensory profile by 12 trained panellists on 70 sensory attributes by employing the frequency of citation method. Analysis of variance of the descriptive data confirmed the existence of subtle sensory differences among Garnacha Tintorera-based sweet wines depending on the procedure used for their production. Cluster analysis emphasised discriminated attributes between the Garnacha Tintorera-based and the commercial groups of sweet wines for both those obtained by raisining and by fortification. Several kinds of discriminant functions were used to separate groups of sweet wines--obtained by botrytisation, raisining and fortification--to show the key descriptors that contribute to their separation and define the sensory perception of each type of wine. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The environment strongly affects estimates of heterosis in hybrid sweet sorghum

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) has potential as a biofuel feedstock but hybrid cultivars are needed to support an industry based on this crop. The purpose of this study was to compare five inbred sweet sorghum lines and 15 hybrids derived from them, and to determine the extent of envir...

Studies for Somatic Embryogenesis in Sweet Potato

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bennett, J. Rasheed; Prakash, C. S.

1997-01-01

The purpose of this study was to improve the somatic embryo (SE) system for plant production of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L(Lam)). Explants isolated from SE-derived sweet potato plants were compared with control (non SE-derived) plants for their competency for SE production. Leaf explants were cultured on Murashige-Skoog (MS) medium with 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (0.2 mg/L) and 6-benzylaminopurine (2.5 mg/L) for 2 weeks in darkness and transferred to MS medium with abscisic acid (2.5 mg/L). Explants isolated from those plants developed through somatic embryogenesis produced new somatic embryos rapidly and in higher frequency than those isolated from control plants They also appeared to grow faster in tissue culture than the control plants. Current studies in the laboratory are examining whether plants derived from a cyclical embryogenesis system (five cycles) would have any further positive impact on the rapidity and frequency of somatic embryo development. More detailed studies using electron microscopy are expected to show the point of origin of the embryos and to allow determination of their quality throughout the cyclical process. This study may facilitate improved plant micropropagation, gene transfer and germplasm conservation in sweet potato.

User's manual for Axisymmetric Diffuser Duct (ADD) code. Volume 1: General ADD code description

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, O. L.; Hankins, G. B., Jr.; Edwards, D. E.

1982-01-01

This User's Manual contains a complete description of the computer codes known as the AXISYMMETRIC DIFFUSER DUCT code or ADD code. It includes a list of references which describe the formulation of the ADD code and comparisons of calculation with experimental flows. The input/output and general use of the code is described in the first volume. The second volume contains a detailed description of the code including the global structure of the code, list of FORTRAN variables, and descriptions of the subroutines. The third volume contains a detailed description of the CODUCT code which generates coordinate systems for arbitrary axisymmetric ducts.

Intracellular acidification is required for full activation of the sweet taste receptor by miraculin

PubMed Central

Sanematsu, Keisuke; Kitagawa, Masayuki; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Nirasawa, Satoru; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2016-01-01

Acidification of the glycoprotein, miraculin (MCL), induces sweet taste in humans, but not in mice. The sweet taste induced by MCL is more intense when acidification occurs with weak acids as opposed to strong acids. MCL interacts with the human sweet receptor subunit hTAS1R2, but the mechanisms by which the acidification of MCL activates the sweet taste receptor remain largely unexplored. The work reported here speaks directly to this activation by utilizing a sweet receptor TAS1R2 + TAS1R3 assay. In accordance with previous data, MCL-applied cells displayed a pH dependence with citric acid (weak acid) being right shifted to that with hydrochloric acid (strong acid). When histidine residues in both the intracellular and extracellular region of hTAS1R2 were exchanged for alanine, taste-modifying effect of MCL was reduced or abolished. Stronger intracellular acidification of HEK293 cells was induced by citric acid than by HCl and taste-modifying effect of MCL was proportional to intracellular pH regardless of types of acids. These results suggest that intracellular acidity is required for full activation of the sweet taste receptor by MCL. PMID:26960429

Value-added probiotic development by high-solid fermentation of sweet potato with Saccharomyces boulardii.

PubMed

Campbell, Carmen; Nanjundaswamy, Ananda K; Njiti, Victor; Xia, Qun; Chukwuma, Franklin

2017-05-01

Controlled fermentation of Sweet potato ( Ipomoea batatas ) var. Beauregard by yeast, Saccharomyces boulardii (MAY 796) to enhance the nutritional value of sweet potato was investigated. An average 8.00 × 10 10 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/g of viable cells were obtained over 5-day high-solid fermentation. Yeast cell viability did not change significantly over time at 4°C whereas the number of viable yeast cells reduced significantly at room temperature (25°C), which was approximately 40% in 12 months. Overall, the controlled fermentation of sweet potato by MAY 796 enhanced protein, crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, amino acid, and fatty acid levels. Development of value-added sweet potato has a great potential in animal feed and human nutrition. S. boulardii - fermented sweet potato has great potential as probiotic-enriched animal feed and/or functional food for human nutrition.

Sweeter and stronger: enhancing sweetness and stability of the single chain monellin MNEI through molecular design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leone, Serena; Pica, Andrea; Merlino, Antonello; Sannino, Filomena; Temussi, Piero Andrea; Picone, Delia

2016-09-01

Sweet proteins are a family of proteins with no structure or sequence homology, able to elicit a sweet sensation in humans through their interaction with the dimeric T1R2-T1R3 sweet receptor. In particular, monellin and its single chain derivative (MNEI) are among the sweetest proteins known to men. Starting from a careful analysis of the surface electrostatic potentials, we have designed new mutants of MNEI with enhanced sweetness. Then, we have included in the most promising variant the stabilising mutation E23Q, obtaining a construct with enhanced performances, which combines extreme sweetness to high, pH-independent, thermal stability. The resulting mutant, with a sweetness threshold of only 0.28 mg/L (25 nM) is the strongest sweetener known to date. All the new proteins have been produced and purified and the structures of the most powerful mutants have been solved by X-ray crystallography. Docking studies have then confirmed the rationale of their interaction with the human sweet receptor, hinting at a previously unpredicted role of plasticity in said interaction.

Sweet spots, EROI, and the limits to Bakken production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waggoner, Egan Greiner

The Bakken Formation has generated attention due to its substantial role in the recent surge in US domestic oil production. However there may be significant problems in extrapolating past successes because production is not distributed equally, but is concentrated in "sweet spots." These sweet spots are saturated with wells, and some productive fields are declining already. If we are to maintain a consistent or increasing level of production from more marginal areas, an increasing number of wells must be drilled. As the most attractive areas for exploration and production appear already to have been drilled, new fields are likely to be less energetically and economically profitable. I analyze current and future production using the Energy Return on Investment (EROI) metric, a ratio of energy outputs over energy inputs. My results indicate that EROISTND for the sweet spot Parshall Field is 63:1 and the more energy cost-inclusive EROIFIN is 9:1.

Improving properties of sweet potato composite flour: Influence of lactic fermentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuliana, Neti; Nurdjanah, Siti; Setyani, Sri; Novianti, Dini

2017-06-01

The use of locally grown crops such as sweet potato as raw material for composite flour is considered advantageous as it reduces the importation of wheat flour. However the use of native sweetpotato flour has drawback properties when applied in the food. This study was aimed to modify sweet potato flour through six methods of lactic fermentation (spontaneous, pickle brine, Lb plantarum, Lc mesentereoides, a mixed of Lb plantarum and Lc mesentereoides, and mixed of Lb plantarum, Lc mesentereoides and yeast) to increase its properties in composite flour. Composite flours were obtained after fermentation of sweet potato slices for 48h in the proportion of 50% sweet potatoes flour and 50% wheat flour. pH, moisture content, swelling power, solubility, and pasting properties were determined for the fermented and unfermented composite flours. The results indicated that the composite fermented flours had better properties than those of non fermented flour. Fermentation increased swelling power, moisture content, meanwhile, solubility, and pH, deacresed. Amylose leaching, however, was not significantly affected by the fermentation process.

Crystal structure of the sweet-tasting protein thaumatin II at 1.27 A

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Masuda, Tetsuya, E-mail: t2masuda@kais.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Department Natural Resources, Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011; Ohta, Keisuke

2011-07-08

Highlights: {yields} X-ray crystallographic structure of sweet-tasting protein, thaumatin II, was determined at a resolution of 1.27 A. {yields} The overall structure of thaumatin II is similar to that of thaumatin I, but a slight shift of the C{alpha} atom of G96 in thaumatin II was observed. {yields} The side chain of two critical residues, 67 and 82, for sweetness was modeled in two alternative conformations. {yields} The flexibility and fluctuation of side chains at 67 and 82 seems to be suitable for interaction of thaumatin molecules with sweet receptors. -- Abstract: Thaumatin, an intensely sweet-tasting protein, elicits a sweetmore » taste sensation at 50 nM. Here the X-ray crystallographic structure of one of its variants, thaumatin II, was determined at a resolution of 1.27 A. Overall structure of thaumatin II is similar to thaumatin I, but a slight shift of the C{alpha} atom of G96 in thaumatin II was observed. Furthermore, the side chain of residue 67 in thaumatin II is highly disordered. Since residue 67 is one of two residues critical to the sweetness of thaumatin, the present results suggested that the critical positive charges at positions 67 and 82 are disordered and the flexibility and fluctuation of these side chains would be suitable for interaction of thaumatin molecules with sweet receptors.« less

Sweet Taste Receptor Gene Variation and Aspartame Taste in Primates and Other Species

PubMed Central

Li, Xia; Bachmanov, Alexander A.; Maehashi, Kenji; Li, Weihua; Lim, Raymond; Brand, Joseph G.; Beauchamp, Gary K.; Reed, Danielle R.; Thai, Chloe

2011-01-01

Aspartame is a sweetener added to foods and beverages as a low-calorie sugar replacement. Unlike sugars, which are apparently perceived as sweet and desirable by a range of mammals, the ability to taste aspartame varies, with humans, apes, and Old World monkeys perceiving aspartame as sweet but not other primate species. To investigate whether the ability to perceive the sweetness of aspartame correlates with variations in the DNA sequence of the genes encoding sweet taste receptor proteins, T1R2 and T1R3, we sequenced these genes in 9 aspartame taster and nontaster primate species. We then compared these sequences with sequences of their orthologs in 4 other nontasters species. We identified 9 variant sites in the gene encoding T1R2 and 32 variant sites in the gene encoding T1R3 that distinguish aspartame tasters and nontasters. Molecular docking of aspartame to computer-generated models of the T1R2 + T1R3 receptor dimer suggests that species variation at a secondary, allosteric binding site in the T1R2 protein is the most likely origin of differences in perception of the sweetness of aspartame. These results identified a previously unknown site of aspartame interaction with the sweet receptor and suggest that the ability to taste aspartame might have developed during evolution to exploit a specialized food niche. PMID:21414996

Sweet potato in a vegetarian menu plan for NASA's Advanced Life Support Program.

PubMed

Wilson, C D; Pace, R D; Bromfield, E; Jones, G; Lu, J Y

1998-01-01

Sweet potato has been selected as one of the crops for NASA's Advanced Life Support Program. Sweet potato primarily provides carbohydrate--an important energy source, beta-carotene, and ascorbic acid to a space diet. This study focuses on menus incorporating two sets of sweet potato recipes developed at Tuskegee University. One set includes recipes for 10 vegetarian products containing fom 6% to 20% sweet potato on a dry weight basis (pancakes, waffles, tortillas, bread, pie, pound cake, pasta, vegetable patties, doughnuts, and pretzels) that have been formulated, subjected to sensory evaluation, and determined to be acceptable. These recipes and the other set of recipes, not tested organoleptically, were substituted in a 10-day vegetarian menu plan developed by the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) Kennedy Space Center Biomass Processing Technical Panel. At least one recipe containing sweet potato was included in each meal. An analysis of the nutritional quality of this menu compared to the original AIBS menu found improved beta-carotene content (p<0.05). All other nutrients, except vitamin B6, and calories were equal and in some instances greater than those listed for NASA's Controlled Ecological Life Support Systems RDA. These results suggest that sweet potato products can be used successfully in menus developed for space with the added benefit of increased nutrient value and dietary variety.

Sweet taste receptor gene variation and aspartame taste in primates and other species.

PubMed

Li, Xia; Bachmanov, Alexander A; Maehashi, Kenji; Li, Weihua; Lim, Raymond; Brand, Joseph G; Beauchamp, Gary K; Reed, Danielle R; Thai, Chloe; Floriano, Wely B

2011-06-01

Aspartame is a sweetener added to foods and beverages as a low-calorie sugar replacement. Unlike sugars, which are apparently perceived as sweet and desirable by a range of mammals, the ability to taste aspartame varies, with humans, apes, and Old World monkeys perceiving aspartame as sweet but not other primate species. To investigate whether the ability to perceive the sweetness of aspartame correlates with variations in the DNA sequence of the genes encoding sweet taste receptor proteins, T1R2 and T1R3, we sequenced these genes in 9 aspartame taster and nontaster primate species. We then compared these sequences with sequences of their orthologs in 4 other nontasters species. We identified 9 variant sites in the gene encoding T1R2 and 32 variant sites in the gene encoding T1R3 that distinguish aspartame tasters and nontasters. Molecular docking of aspartame to computer-generated models of the T1R2 + T1R3 receptor dimer suggests that species variation at a secondary, allosteric binding site in the T1R2 protein is the most likely origin of differences in perception of the sweetness of aspartame. These results identified a previously unknown site of aspartame interaction with the sweet receptor and suggest that the ability to taste aspartame might have developed during evolution to exploit a specialized food niche.

Sweet-sensitive protein from bovine taste buds: isolation and assay.

PubMed

Dastoli, F R; Price, S

1966-11-18

Using refractometry and ultraviolet-difference spectroscopy to indicate interaction between proteins and coinpounds of low molecular weight, we found a protein fraction in bovine tongue extracts that coinplexes sugars and saccharin. The strengths of the coinzplexes parallel the degrees of sweetness of the compounds, and the effects of pH upon formation of complexes parallel the effects of pH upon sensitivity of taste buds to sweet compounds in vivo.

Fuel ethanol production from sweet sorghum using repeated-batch fermentation.

PubMed

Chohnan, Shigeru; Nakane, Megumi; Rahman, M Habibur; Nitta, Youji; Yoshiura, Takanori; Ohta, Hiroyuki; Kurusu, Yasurou

2011-04-01

Ethanol was efficiently produced from three varieties of sweet sorghum using repeated-batch fermentation without pasteurization or acidification. Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells could be recycled in 16 cycles of the fermentation process with good ethanol yields. This technique would make it possible to use a broader range of sweet sorghum varieties for ethanol production. Copyright © 2010 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sweet preferences and analgesia during childhood: effects of family history of alcoholism and depression

PubMed Central

Mennella, Julie A.; Pepino, M. Yanina; Lehmann-Castor, Sara M.; Yourshaw, Lauren M.

2010-01-01

Aim To determine whether depression and family history of alcoholism are associated with heightened sweet preferences in children, before they have experienced alcohol or tobacco and at a time during the life-span when sweets are particularly salient. Design Between- and within-subject experimental study. Participants Children, 5–12 years old (n = 300), formed four groups based on family history of alcohol dependence up to second-degree relatives [positive (FHP) versus negative (FHN)] and depressive symptoms as determined by the Pictorial Depression Scale [depressed (PDEP) versus non-depressed (NDEP)]. Measurements Children were tested individually to measure sucrose preferences, sweet food liking and, for a subset of the children, the analgesic properties of sucrose versus water during the cold pressor test. Findings The co-occurrence of having a family history of alcoholism and self-reports of depressive symptomatology was associated significantly with a preference for a more concentrated sucrose solution, while depressive symptomatology alone was associated with greater liking for sweet-tasting foods and candies and increased pain sensitivity. Depression antagonized the analgesic properties of sucrose. Conclusions While children as a group innately like sweets and feel better after eating them, the present study reveals significant contributions of family history of alcoholism and depression to this effect. Whether the heightened sweet preference and the use of sweets to alleviate depression are markers for developing alcohol-related problems or responses that are protective are important areas for future research. PMID:20148789

Lodging markedly reduced the biomass of sweet sorghum via decreasing photosynthesis in saline-alkali field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Jian Rong; Fan, Hai; Wang, Bao Shan

2018-06-01

Lodging is a serious problem in plant growth, especially in crops growth of the natural habitat. In order to determine the influence of lodging on the growth characters of sweet sorghum, plants grown in natural saline-alkali environment were used to investigate the fresh weight, dry weight, sugar content in the stalks and the photosynthesis index of salt tolerant crop sweet sorghum. Results showed that lodging significantly reduced the growth of sweet sorghum, the fresh weight and dry weight was only 28.3% and 22.5% of the normal plants when lodging occurred after 49 days. Lodging also reduced the stalks sugar content of sweet sorghum, the stalk sugar content of lodged plants was only 45.4% of that in the normal plants, when lodging occurred for 49 days. Lodging reduced the growth and sugar content by reducing the photosynthesis parameters of sweet sorghum grown in the saline-alkali field, thus, affected the accumulation of photosynthate. Interestingly, with the extension of the lodging time, lodging led to a decrease in photosynthetic rate of sweet sorghum mainly due to non-stomatal factors.

The potential contribution of bread buns fortified with beta-carotene-rich sweet potato in Central Mozambique.

PubMed

Low, Jan W; van Jaarsveld, Paul J

2008-06-01

Orange-fleshed sweet potato is an efficacious source of vitamin A. Substituting wheat flour with orange-fleshed sweet potato in processed products could reduce foreign exchange outlays, create new markets for producers, and result in increased vitamin A consumption among consumers provided there is adequate retention of beta-carotene during processing. To explore whether substituting 38% of wheat flour (by weight) in bread buns ("golden bread") with boiled and mashed orange-fleshed sweet potato from fresh roots or rehydrated chips would produce economically viable beta-carotene-rich products acceptable to Mozambican rural consumers. Modified local recipes maximized sweet potato content within the limits of consumer acceptability. Sensitivity analysis determined parameters underlying economic viability. Two samples each of buns from five varieties of orange-fleshed sweet potato were analyzed for beta-carotene content. Processed products with at least 15 microg/g product of trans-beta-carotene were considered good sources of vitamin A. Golden bread made from fresh roots of medium-intensity orange-fleshed sweet potato varieties met the good source criterion, but bread from lighter-intensity sweet potato varieties did not. Bread from rehydrated dried chips was not economically viable. Consumers strongly preferred golden bread over pure wheat flour bread because of its heavier texture and attractive appearance. The ratio of the price of wheat flour to that of raw sweet potato root varied from 3.1 to 3.5 among the bakers, whose increase in profit margins ranged from 54% to 92%. Golden bread is a good source of beta-carotene and is economically viable when the price ratio of wheat flour to raw orange-fleshed sweet potato root is at least 1.5. Widespread adoption during sweet potato harvesting periods is feasible; year-round availability requires storage.

Sweet cherries from farm to table: A review.

PubMed

Habib, Muzammil; Bhat, Mudassir; Dar, B N; Wani, Ali Abas

2017-05-24

In order to enable long-distance transportation and ensure that the fruit presents the requisite quality on arrival at markets, the cherry industry for direct consumption needs to prolong post-harvest shelf life. Sweet cherries are highly perishable, non-climacteric fruits with shelf life of 7-14 days in cold storage. Their shelf life is shortened by loss of firmness, color and flavor, stem discoloration, desiccation and mould growth. Various factors such as harvest time, proper handling and cooling practices and above all packaging, greatly influence the shelf life of cherries. One of the areas of research that has shown promise, and had success, is modified atmosphere packaging (MAP). It is one of the fastest growing packaging technologies and has many advantages for different food products. Properly designed modified atmosphere packs can be exploited to lower respiration rates and thus ripening of fruits which results in least changes in physiochemical parameters of sweet cherries during postharvest storage. This paper intended to review a broad spectrum of studies dealt with the use of MAP for preservation of sweet cherries cultivars with an interest for future research work.

Heterosis and combining ability of F1 hybrid sweet sorghum in Thailand

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a sugar-based biofuel crop that is well-suited to tropical environments. Most sweet sorghum cultivars are open-pollinated, but hybrids could offer yield and seed production advantages. Fifteen hybrids were generated among five female and three male pa...

AtSWEET4, a hexose facilitator, mediates sugar transport to axial sinks and affects plant development

PubMed Central

Liu, Xiaozhu; Zhang, Yan; Yang, Chao; Tian, Zhihong; Li, Jianxiong

2016-01-01

Plants transport photoassimilates from source organs to sink tissues through the phloem translocation pathway. In the transport phloem, sugars that escape from the sieve tubes are released into the apoplasmic space between the sieve element/companion cell complex (SE/CC) and phloem parenchyma cells (PPCs) during the process of long-distance transport. The competition for sugar acquisition between SE/CC and adjoining PPCs is mediated by plasma membrane translocators. YFP-tagged AtSWEET4 protein is localized in the plasma membrane, and PromoterAtSWEET4-GUS analysis showed that AtSWEET4 is expressed in the stele of roots and veins of leaves and flowers. Overexpression of AtSWEET4 in Arabidopsis increases plant size and accumulates more glucose and fructose. By contrast, knock-down of AtSWEET4 by RNA-interference leads to small plant size, reduction in glucose and fructose contents, chlorosis in the leaf vein network, and reduction in chlorophyll content in leaves. Yeast assays demonstrated that AtSWEET4 is able to complement both fructose and glucose transport deficiency. Transgenic plants of AtSWEET4 overexpression exhibit higher freezing tolerance and support more growth of bacterium Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola NPS3121. We conclude that AtSWEET4 plays an important role in mediating sugar transport in axial tissues during plant growth and development. PMID:27102826

Consumption patterns of sweet drinks in a population of Australian children and adolescents (2003-2008).

PubMed

Jensen, Britt W; Nichols, Melanie; Allender, Steven; de Silva-Sanigorski, Andrea; Millar, Lynne; Kremer, Peter; Lacy, Kathleen; Swinburn, Boyd

2012-09-12

Intake of sweet drinks has previously been associated with the development of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents. The present study aimed to assess the consumption pattern of sweet drinks in a population of children and adolescents in Victoria, Australia. Data on 1,604 children and adolescents (4-18 years) from the comparison groups of two quasi-experimental intervention studies from Victoria, Australia were analysed. Sweet drink consumption (soft drink and fruit juice/cordial) was assessed as one day's intake and typical intake over the last week or month at two time points between 2003 and 2008 (mean time between measurement: 2.2 years). Assessed using dietary recalls, more than 70% of the children and adolescents consumed sweet drinks, with no difference between age groups (p = 0.28). The median intake among consumers was 500 ml and almost a third consumed more than 750 ml per day. More children and adolescents consumed fruit juice/cordial (69%) than soft drink (33%) (p < 0.0001) and in larger volumes (median intake fruit juice/cordial: 500 ml and soft drink: 375 ml). Secular changes in sweet drink consumption were observed with a lower proportion of children and adolescents consuming sweet drinks at time 2 compared to time 1 (significant for age group 8 to <10 years, p = 0.001). The proportion of Australian children and adolescents from the state of Victoria consuming sweet drinks has been stable or decreasing, although a high proportion of this sample consumed sweet drinks, especially fruit juice/cordial at both time points.

Synthetic study on the relationship between structure and sweet taste properties of steviol glycosides.

PubMed

Upreti, Mani; Dubois, Grant; Prakash, Indra

2012-04-05

The structure activity relationship between the C₁₆-C₁₇ methylene double bond on the aglycone of steviol glycosides and the corresponding impact on their sweet taste has been reported here for the first time. It has been observed that converting stevioside and rebaudioside A to their corresponding ketones by switching the doubly bonded methylene on C-17 for a ketone group actually removes the sweet taste properties of these molecules completely. Regenerating the original molecules tends to restore the sweet taste of both the steviol glycosides. Thus this C₁₆-C₁₇ methylene double bond in rebaudioside A and stevioside can be regarded as a pharmacophore essential for the sweetness property of these molecules.

Perillaldehyde Controls Postharvest Black Rot Caused by Ceratocystis fimbriata in Sweet Potatoes

PubMed Central

Zhang, Man; Liu, Man; Pan, Shenyuan; Pan, Chao; Li, Yongxin; Tian, Jun

2018-01-01

Black rot caused by Ceratocystis fimbriata is the most damaging postharvest disease among sweet potatoes. Black rot can be controlled by synthetic fungicides, but these synthetic fungicides also have several negative effects. Perillaldehyde (PAE), a major component of the herb perilla, is an effective and eco-friendly method of controlling this disease. The antifungal activity of PAE on the mycelial growth in C. fimbriata was evaluated in vitro. Sweet potatoes at the postharvest stage were surfaced-disinfected with 75% ethanol. Artificially created wounds were inoculated with a C. fimbriata cell suspension, and then, the PAE was spontaneously volatilized inside the residual airspace of the containers at 28°C. Samples were collected at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 21 days from each group, and the tissues around the wounds of the sweet potatoes were collected using a sterilized knife and then homogenized to determine their defense-related enzyme activity and quality parameters. In vitro assays showed that the mycelial growth of C. fimbriata was inhibited by PAE in a dose-dependent manner. An in vivo test demonstrated that 25, 50, and 100 μl/l PAE doses, when applied to sweet potatoes inoculated with C. fimbriata, could remarkable lower lesion diameter as compared to the control. Even though the storage time was prolonged, PAE vapor treatment still drastically inhibited sweet potato decay during storage at 28°C. These PAE vapor treatments also enhanced the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), peroxidase (POD), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL). These treatments remarkably decreased weight loss rates and had minor effects on other fruit quality parameters, such as anthocyanin content and vitamin C content. In our study, the results suggested that the effects of PAE on postharvest sweet potatoes may be attributed to the maintenance of enzymatic activity and fruit quality. In sum, PAE may be

From the Garden of Eden to the land of plenty. Restriction of fruit and sweets intake leads to increased fruit and sweets consumption in children.

PubMed

Jansen, Esther; Mulkens, Sandra; Emond, Yvette; Jansen, Anita

2008-11-01

Overweight is increasing rapidly in children, compelling researchers to seek for determinants of adverse food intake. In a previous experiment it was found that manipulating the restriction of attractive snacks increased the desirability and intake of these snacks. In the present study, we tested whether this paradoxical restricting effect is also seen in relatively less attractive but healthy food, i.e. fruit. Will fruit become more desirable through restriction, and will children eat more forbidden fruit than non-forbidden fruit? Two groups of young children were forbidden to eat fruits and sweets, respectively, whereas a control group was invited to eat everything. Desire for sweets remained high in the sweets-prohibition condition, whereas it decreased in the fruit-prohibition and no-prohibition conditions. No group differences were found regarding the desire for fruit. With respect to intake, children in both the fruit- and the sweets-prohibition condition consumed more of the formerly forbidden food during a taste session as compared to the no-prohibition condition. In addition, total food intake was higher in the two prohibition conditions than in the no-prohibition condition. These data indicate that the adverse effects of restriction apply to both attractive unhealthy and relatively less attractive but healthy food.

Production of purple sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) juice having high anthocyanin content and antioxidant activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dwiyanti, G.; Siswaningsih, W.; Febrianti, A.

2018-05-01

The purpose of the study was to retrieve procedure of production of purple sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) juice with the best total anthocyanin and antioxidant activity. Purple sweet potato was processed into purple sweet potato juice through a process of heating with temperature variations of 700C, 800C, and 900C and various duration of heating, which are 5 mins, 10 mins, and 15 mins. The total anthocyanin was determined by using pH differential method. The antioxidant activity was determined by using DPPH (2,2-Diphenyl-l-picrylhydrazyl) method. Total anthocyanin of purple sweet potato juice declined in the range between 215.08 mg/L - 101.86 mg/L. The antioxidant activity of purple sweet potato juice declined in the range between 90.63% - 67.79%. Antioxidant activity and total anthocyanin purple sweet potato juice decreases with increasing temperature and duration of heating. The best characteristics found in purple sweet potato juice were made with warming temperatures of 800C. The product with the highest antioxidant activity, total anthocyanins, and good durability was prepared at 800C heating temperature for 5 mins.

Aquatic toxicity of nine aircraft deicer and anti-icer formulations and relative toxicity of additive package ingredients alkylphenol ethoxylates and 4,5-methyl-1H-henzotriazoles.

PubMed

Corsi, Steven R; Geis, Steven W; Loyo-Rosales, Jorge E; Rice, Clifford P

2006-12-01

Characterization of the effects of aircraft deicer and anti-icer fluid (ADAF) runoff on aquatic organisms in receiving streams is a complex issue because the identities of numerous toxic additives are proprietary and not publicly available. Most potentially toxic and endocrine disrupting effects caused by ADAF are due to the numerous additive package ingredients which vary among manufacturers and types of ADAF formulation. Toxicity investigations of nine ADAF formulations indicate that endpoint concentrations for formulations of different manufacturers are widely variable. Type IV ADAF (anti-icers) are more toxic than Type I (deicers) for the four organisms tested (Vibrio fischeri, Pimephales promelas, Ceriodaphnia dubia, and Selenastrum capricornutum). Acute toxicity endpoint concentrations ranged from 347 to 7700 mg/L as ADAF for Type IV and from 1550 to 45,100 mg/L for Type I formulations. Chronic endpoint concentrations ranged from 70 to 1300 mg/L for Type IV and from 37 to 18,400 mg/L for Type I formulations. Alkylphenol ethoxylates and tolyltriazoles are two known classes of additives. Nonylphenol, nonylphenol ethoxylates, octylphenol, octylphenol ethoxylates, and 4,5-methyl-1H-benzotriazoles were quantified in the nine ADAF formulations, and toxicity tests were conducted with nonylphenol ethoxylates and 4,5-methyl-1H-benzotriazoles. Toxicity units computed for glycol and these additives, with respect to toxicity of the ADAF formulations, indicate that a portion of ADAF toxicity can be explained by the known additives and glycols, but much of the toxicity is due to unidentified additives.

Role of sweet and other flavours in liking and disliking of electronic cigarettes

PubMed Central

Kim, Hyoshin; Lim, Juyun; Buehler, Stephanie S; Brinkman, Marielle C; Johnson, Nathan M; Wilson, Laura; Cross, Kandice S; Clark, Pamela I

2017-01-01

Objective To examine the extent to which the perception of sweet and other flavours is associated with liking and disliking of flavoured electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). Methods 31 participants (13 females/18 males; 12 sole/19 dual users) vaped 6 commercially available flavours of blu Tanks: Classic Tobacco (CT), Magnificent Menthol (MM), Cherry Crush (CC), Vivid Vanilla (VV), Piña Colada (PC) and Peach Schnapps (PS); all ‘medium’ strength, 12 mg/mL nicotine concentration. For each flavoured e-cigarette, participants first rated liking/disliking on the Labeled Hedonic Scale, followed by perceived intensities of sweetness, coolness, bitterness, harshness and specific flavour on the generalised version of the Labeled Magnitude Scale. The psychophysical testing was conducted individually in an environmental chamber. Results PC was perceived as sweetest and liked the most; CT was perceived as least sweet and liked the least. Across all flavours, liking was correlated with sweetness (r=0.31), coolness (r=0.25), bitterness (r=−0.25) and harshness (r=−0.29, all p<0.001). Specifically, liking was positively correlated with sweetness of PS (r=0.56, p=0.001) and PC (r=0.36, p=0.048); and with coolness of MM, CT and VV (r=0.41–0.52, p<0.05). In contrast, harshness was negatively correlated with liking for CC, PC and PS (r=0.37–0.40, p<0.05). In a multivariate model, sweetness had the greatest positive impact on liking followed by coolness; harshness had the greatest negative impact on liking. Conclusions Our findings indicate that bitterness and harshness, most likely from nicotine, have negative impacts on the liking of e-cigarettes, but the addition of flavourants that elicit sweetness or coolness generally improves liking. The results suggest that flavours play an important role in e-cigarette preference and most likely use. PMID:27708124

Inviting Calm Within: ADD, Neurology, and Mindfulness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riner, Phillip S.; Tanase, Madalina

2014-01-01

The fourth edition of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" ("DSM IV") describes ADD as behaviorally observed impairments in attention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. Officially known as AD/HD, we use ADD here because we are dealing primarily with attention, organizational, and impulsivity issues. A more…

Desire for Sweet Taste Unchanged After Eating: Evidence of a Dessert Mentality?

PubMed

Harington, Kate; Smeele, Rebecca; Van Loon, Fiona; Yuan, Jannie; Haszard, Jillian Joy; Drewer, Amanda; Venn, Bernard Joseph

2016-08-01

Added sugars provide calories and desirability to foods and beverages. Our aim was to test whether desire for a sweet taste would be better maintained than a desire for other tastes for 3 hours after a test meal. Eighty-three young adults ate 2 slices of bread on 2 separate occasions after which they were asked to rate their desire for savory, sweet, fatty, or salty tastes and to specify the number of servings of white rice, pizza, cheese and crackers, sweet biscuits, and pasta they could consume. Desirability was assessed using 100-mm visual analog scales (VAS), with 0 mm representing no desire and 100 mm great desire. When participants provided a quantitative assessment of the servings of foods that they wanted to eat following the bread meal, desire decreased on average for all foods measured, χ 2 (3) = 2.63, p = 0.452. Mean (95% confidence interval [CI]) change in VAS taste desirability 30 minutes after eating declined for salty (14.5 mm [10.5, 18.6]), fatty (11.2 mm [7.1, 15.2]), and savory (24.1 mm [19.7, 28.5]) tastes (p < 0.001). Desirability for sweet taste did not differ from baseline (2.4 mm [-2.3, 7.1]), and this level of desire was maintained throughout the 3-hour period. The data indicate a partial disconnection between appetite and desirability for sweet taste. Physiological and psychosocial reward systems may make it difficult for people to resist sweet tasting foods and beverages. Targeting familial and cultural practices that discourage the consumption of added sugar foods might be useful to combat desire-driven food intake.

Higher sensitivity to sweet and salty taste in obese compared to lean individuals.

PubMed

Hardikar, Samyogita; Höchenberger, Richard; Villringer, Arno; Ohla, Kathrin

2017-04-01

Although putatively taste has been associated with obesity as one of the factors governing food intake, previous studies have failed to find a consistent link between taste perception and Body Mass Index (BMI). A comprehensive comparison of both thresholds and hedonics for four basic taste modalities (sweet, salty, sour, and bitter) has only been carried out with a very small sample size in adults. In the present exploratory study, we compared 23 obese (OB; BMI > 30), and 31 lean (LN; BMI < 25) individuals on three dimensions of taste perception - recognition thresholds, intensity, and pleasantness - using different concentrations of sucrose (sweet), sodium chloride (NaCl; salty), citric acid (sour), and quinine hydrochloride (bitter) dissolved in water. Recognition thresholds were estimated with an adaptive Bayesian staircase procedure (QUEST). Intensity and pleasantness ratings were acquired using visual analogue scales (VAS). It was found that OB had lower thresholds than LN for sucrose and NaCl, indicating a higher sensitivity to sweet and salty tastes. This effect was also reflected in ratings of intensity, which were significantly higher in the OB group for the lower concentrations of sweet, salty, and sour. Calculation of Bayes factors further corroborated the differences observed with null-hypothesis significance testing (NHST). Overall, the results suggest that OB are more sensitive to sweet and salty, and perceive sweet, salty, and sour more intensely than LN. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Influence of De-icers on the Corrosion and Fatigue Behavior of 4140 Steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dean, William P.; Sanford, Brittain J.; Wright, Matthew R.; Evans, Jeffrey L.

2012-11-01

The purpose of this test was to evaluate the effects of calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) and sodium chloride (NaCl)—two common substances used to de-ice roadways—on the corrosion and fatigue behavior of annealed AISI 4140 steel. When CMA-corroded, NaCl-corroded, and as-machined samples were tested using R = 0.1, and f = 20 Hz, it was found that, within the scope of this study, samples corroded in both 3.5% CMA solution and 3.5% NaCl solution exhibited a lower fatigue strength than samples tested in the as-machined, uncorroded condition. For the short lives tested in this study, the difference in the effects of CMA and NaCl is minimal. However, at longer lives it is suspected, based on the trends, that the CMA solution would be less detrimental to the fatigue life.

Pseudogenization of a Sweet-Receptor Gene Accounts for Cats' Indifference toward Sugar

PubMed Central

Li, Xia; Li, Weihua; Wang, Hong; Cao, Jie; Maehashi, Kenji; Huang, Liquan; Bachmanov, Alexander A; Reed, Danielle R; Legrand-Defretin, Véronique; Beauchamp, Gary K; Brand, Joseph G

2005-01-01

Although domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) possess an otherwise functional sense of taste, they, unlike most mammals, do not prefer and may be unable to detect the sweetness of sugars. One possible explanation for this behavior is that cats lack the sensory system to taste sugars and therefore are indifferent to them. Drawing on work in mice, demonstrating that alleles of sweet-receptor genes predict low sugar intake, we examined the possibility that genes involved in the initial transduction of sweet perception might account for the indifference to sweet-tasting foods by cats. We characterized the sweet-receptor genes of domestic cats as well as those of other members of the Felidae family of obligate carnivores, tiger and cheetah. Because the mammalian sweet-taste receptor is formed by the dimerization of two proteins (T1R2 and T1R3; gene symbols Tas1r2 and Tas1r3), we identified and sequenced both genes in the cat by screening a feline genomic BAC library and by performing PCR with degenerate primers on cat genomic DNA. Gene expression was assessed by RT-PCR of taste tissue, in situ hybridization, and immunohistochemistry. The cat Tas1r3 gene shows high sequence similarity with functional Tas1r3 genes of other species. Message from Tas1r3 was detected by RT-PCR of taste tissue. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemical studies demonstrate that Tas1r3 is expressed, as expected, in taste buds. However, the cat Tas1r2 gene shows a 247-base pair microdeletion in exon 3 and stop codons in exons 4 and 6. There was no evidence of detectable mRNA from cat Tas1r2 by RT-PCR or in situ hybridization, and no evidence of protein expression by immunohistochemistry. Tas1r2 in tiger and cheetah and in six healthy adult domestic cats all show the similar deletion and stop codons. We conclude that cat Tas1r3 is an apparently functional and expressed receptor but that cat Tas1r2 is an unexpressed pseudogene. A functional sweet-taste receptor heteromer cannot form, and

Sweet and bitter taste in the brain of awake behaving animals

PubMed Central

Peng, Yueqing; Gillis-Smith, Sarah; Jin, Hao; Tränkner, Dimitri; Ryba, Nicholas J. P.; Zuker, Charles S.

2015-01-01

Taste is responsible for evaluating the nutritious content of food, guiding essential appetitive behaviors, preventing the ingestion of toxic substances, and helping ensure the maintenance of a healthy diet. Sweet and bitter are two of the most salient sensory percepts for humans and other animals; sweet taste permits the identification of energy-rich nutrients while bitter warns against the intake of potentially noxious chemicals1. In mammals, information from taste receptor cells in the tongue is transmitted through multiple neural stations to the primary gustatory cortex in the brain2. Recent imaging studies have shown that sweet and bitter are represented in the primary gustatory cortex by neurons organized in a spatial map3,4, with each taste quality encoded by distinct cortical fields4. Here we demonstrate that by manipulating the brain fields representing sweet and bitter taste we directly control an animal’s internal representation, sensory perception, and behavioral actions. These results substantiate the segregation of taste qualities in the cortex, expose the innate nature of appetitive and aversive taste responses, and illustrate the ability of gustatory cortex to recapitulate complex behaviors in the absence of sensory input. PMID:26580015

Sweet proteins – Potential replacement for artificial low calorie sweeteners

PubMed Central

Kant, Ravi

2005-01-01

Exponential growth in the number of patients suffering from diseases caused by the consumption of sugar has become a threat to mankind's health. Artificial low calorie sweeteners available in the market may have severe side effects. It takes time to figure out the long term side effects and by the time these are established, they are replaced by a new low calorie sweetener. Saccharine has been used for centuries to sweeten foods and beverages without calories or carbohydrate. It was also used on a large scale during the sugar shortage of the two world wars but was abandoned as soon as it was linked with development of bladder cancer. Naturally occurring sweet and taste modifying proteins are being seen as potential replacements for the currently available artificial low calorie sweeteners. Interaction aspects of sweet proteins and the human sweet taste receptor are being investigated. PMID:15703077

Origin and emergence of the sweet dessert watermelon, Citrullus lanatus

PubMed Central

Paris, Harry S.

2015-01-01

Background and Aims Watermelons, Citrullus species (Cucurbitaceae), are native to Africa and have been cultivated since ancient times. The fruit flesh of wild watermelons is watery, but typically hard-textured, pale-coloured and bland or bitter. The familiar sweet dessert watermelons, C. lanatus, featuring non-bitter, tender, well-coloured flesh, have a narrow genetic base, suggesting that they originated from a series of selection events in a single ancestral population. The objective of the present investigation was to determine where dessert watermelons originated and the time frame during which sweet dessert watermelons emerged. Key Findings Archaeological remains of watermelons, mostly seeds, that date from 5000 years ago have been found in northeastern Africa. An image of a large, striped, oblong fruit on a tray has been found in an Egyptian tomb that dates to at least 4000 years ago. The Greek word pepon, Latin pepo and Hebrew avattiah of the first centuries ce were used for the same large, thick-rinded, wet fruit which, evidently, was the watermelon. Hebrew literature from the end of the second century ce and Latin literature from the beginning of the sixth century ce present watermelons together with three sweet fruits: figs, table grapes and pomegranates. Wild and primitive watermelons have been observed repeatedly in Sudan and neighbouring countries of northeastern Africa. Conclusions The diverse evidence, combined, indicates that northeastern Africa is the centre of origin of the dessert watermelon, that watermelons were domesticated for water and food there over 4000 years ago, and that sweet dessert watermelons emerged in Mediterranean lands by approximately 2000 years ago. Next-generation ancient-DNA sequencing and state-of-the-art genomic analysis offer opportunities to rigorously assess the relationships among ancient and living wild and primitive watermelons from northeastern Africa, modern sweet dessert watermelons and other Citrullus taxa. PMID

Arbuscular mycorrhiza Symbiosis Induces a Major Transcriptional Reprogramming of the Potato SWEET Sugar Transporter Family.

PubMed

Manck-Götzenberger, Jasmin; Requena, Natalia

2016-01-01

Biotrophic microbes feeding on plants must obtain carbon from their hosts without killing the cells. The symbiotic Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi colonizing plant roots do so by inducing major transcriptional changes in the host that ultimately also reprogram the whole carbon partitioning of the plant. AM fungi obtain carbohydrates from the root cortex apoplast, in particular from the periarbuscular space that surrounds arbuscules. However, the mechanisms by which cortical cells export sugars into the apoplast for fungal nutrition are unknown. Recently a novel type of sugar transporter, the SWEET, able to perform not only uptake but also efflux from cells was identified. Plant SWEETs have been shown to be involved in the feeding of pathogenic microbes and are, therefore, good candidates to play a similar role in symbiotic associations. Here we have carried out the first phylogenetic and expression analyses of the potato SWEET family and investigated its role during mycorrhiza symbiosis. The potato genome contains 35 SWEETs that cluster into the same four clades defined in Arabidopsis. Colonization of potato roots by the AM fungus Rhizophagus irregularis imposes major transcriptional rewiring of the SWEET family involving, only in roots, changes in 22 of the 35 members. None of the SWEETs showed mycorrhiza-exclusive induction and most of the 12 induced genes belong to the putative hexose transporters of clade I and II, while only two are putative sucrose transporters from clade III. In contrast, most of the repressed transcripts (10) corresponded to clade III SWEETs. Promoter-reporter assays for three of the induced genes, each from one cluster, showed re-localization of expression to arbuscule-containing cells, supporting a role for SWEETs in the supply of sugars at biotrophic interfaces. The complex transcriptional regulation of SWEETs in roots in response to AM fungal colonization supports a model in which symplastic sucrose in cortical cells could be cleaved

Arbuscular mycorrhiza Symbiosis Induces a Major Transcriptional Reprogramming of the Potato SWEET Sugar Transporter Family

PubMed Central

Manck-Götzenberger, Jasmin; Requena, Natalia

2016-01-01

Biotrophic microbes feeding on plants must obtain carbon from their hosts without killing the cells. The symbiotic Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi colonizing plant roots do so by inducing major transcriptional changes in the host that ultimately also reprogram the whole carbon partitioning of the plant. AM fungi obtain carbohydrates from the root cortex apoplast, in particular from the periarbuscular space that surrounds arbuscules. However, the mechanisms by which cortical cells export sugars into the apoplast for fungal nutrition are unknown. Recently a novel type of sugar transporter, the SWEET, able to perform not only uptake but also efflux from cells was identified. Plant SWEETs have been shown to be involved in the feeding of pathogenic microbes and are, therefore, good candidates to play a similar role in symbiotic associations. Here we have carried out the first phylogenetic and expression analyses of the potato SWEET family and investigated its role during mycorrhiza symbiosis. The potato genome contains 35 SWEETs that cluster into the same four clades defined in Arabidopsis. Colonization of potato roots by the AM fungus Rhizophagus irregularis imposes major transcriptional rewiring of the SWEET family involving, only in roots, changes in 22 of the 35 members. None of the SWEETs showed mycorrhiza-exclusive induction and most of the 12 induced genes belong to the putative hexose transporters of clade I and II, while only two are putative sucrose transporters from clade III. In contrast, most of the repressed transcripts (10) corresponded to clade III SWEETs. Promoter-reporter assays for three of the induced genes, each from one cluster, showed re-localization of expression to arbuscule-containing cells, supporting a role for SWEETs in the supply of sugars at biotrophic interfaces. The complex transcriptional regulation of SWEETs in roots in response to AM fungal colonization supports a model in which symplastic sucrose in cortical cells could be cleaved

Silvical characteristics of sweet birch (Betula lenta)

Treesearch

William B. Leak

1958-01-01

Sweet birch (Betula lenta) is also known as black birch and cherry birch. It is commercially less important than the two principal members of the genus, yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis) and paper birch (Betula papyrifera).

Effect of national recommendation on sweet selling as an intervention for a healthier school environment.

PubMed

Anttila, Jaakko; Rytkönen, Tatu; Kankaanpää, Rami; Tolvanen, Mimmi; Lahti, Satu

2015-02-01

In 2007, the Finnish National Board of Education (FNBE) and the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) gave a national recommendation that Finnish upper comprehensive schools should not sell sweet products. The aim was to find out how the national recommendation changed the schools' selling of sweet products. This longitudinal survey was conducted in Finnish upper comprehensive school classes 7-9 (13-15-year-old pupils) in 2007 and 2010. All the schools (N=970) were invited to answer the questionnaire and 237 schools answered in both years (response rate 24%). The questionnaires contained questions concerning the selling of sweet and healthy products and school policy on sweet selling guidelines. Of the nine items in the questionnaire, three weighted sum scores were formed for oral health promotion: Exposure, enabling and policy (higher score indicating better actions). These sum scores were also trichotomized. Statistical significances of the changes were analyzed using nonparametric Wilcoxon's test, McNemar's test, and McNemar-Bowker's test. Schools had decreased exposure of pupils to sweet products (p<0.001), more often provided oral health protecting items (p=0.047) and had improved their oral health-promoting policy (p<0.001). The selling of some sweet products, candies and soft drinks had decreased (p<0.001) whereas the selling of other sweet products had not changed (p=0.665). Schools tended to improve their exposure and policy status (p<0.001). It is possible to improve school environments by means of a national recommendation. Other actions are needed both inside and outside schools in order to decrease the total consumption of sweet products among adolescents. © 2014 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

Effects of baking and boiling on the nutritional and antioxidant properties of sweet potato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.] cultivars.

PubMed

Dincer, Cuneyt; Karaoglan, Mert; Erden, Fidan; Tetik, Nedim; Topuz, Ayhan; Ozdemir, Feramuz

2011-11-01

The effects of baking and boiling on the nutritional and antioxidant properties of three sweet potato cultivars (Beniazuma, Koganesengan, Kotobuki) cultivated in Turkey were investigated. The samples were analyzed for proximate composition, total phenolic content, ascorbic acid, β-carotene, antiradical activity, and free sugars. The dry matter, protein, and starch contents of the sweet potatoes were significantly changed by the treatments while the ash and crude fiber contents did not differ as significantly. The β-carotene contents of baked and boiled sweet potatoes were lower than those of fresh sweet potatoes; however, the total phenolic and ascorbic acid contents of the baked and boiled sweet potatoes were higher than those of the fresh samples. Generally, the antiradical activity of the sweet potatoes increased with the treatments. Sucrose, glucose, and fructose were quantified as free sugars in all fresh sweet potatoes; however, maltose was determined in the treated samples. In terms of the analyzed parameters, there were no explicit differences among the sweet potato cultivars.

Effect of sweet orange aroma on experimental anxiety in humans.

PubMed

Goes, Tiago Costa; Antunes, Fabrício Dias; Alves, Péricles Barreto; Teixeira-Silva, Flavia

2012-08-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential anxiolytic effect of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) aroma in healthy volunteers submitted to an anxiogenic situation. Forty (40) male volunteers were allocated to five different groups for the inhalation of sweet orange essential oil (test aroma: 2.5, 5, or 10 drops), tea tree essential oil (control aroma: 2.5 drops), or water (nonaromatic control: 2.5 drops). Immediately after inhalation, each volunteer was submitted to a model of anxiety, the video-monitored version of the Stroop Color-Word Test (SCWT). Psychologic parameters (state-anxiety, subjective tension, tranquilization, and sedation) and physiologic parameters (heart rate and gastrocnemius electromyogram) were evaluated before the inhalation period and before, during, and after the SCWT. Unlike the control groups, the individuals exposed to the test aroma (2.5 and 10 drops) presented a lack of significant alterations (p>0.05) in state-anxiety, subjective tension and tranquillity levels throughout the anxiogenic situation, revealing an anxiolytic activity of sweet orange essential oil. Physiologic alterations along the test were not prevented in any treatment group, as has previously been observed for diazepam. Although more studies are needed to find out the clinical relevance of aromatherapy for anxiety disorders, the present results indicate an acute anxiolytic activity of sweet orange aroma, giving some scientific support to its use as a tranquilizer by aromatherapists.

SWEET-Cat update and FASMA. A new minimization procedure for stellar parameters using high-quality spectra

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andreasen, D. T.; Sousa, S. G.; Tsantaki, M.; Teixeira, G. D. C.; Mortier, A.; Santos, N. C.; Suárez-Andrés, L.; Delgado-Mena, E.; Ferreira, A. C. S.

2017-04-01

Context. Thanks to the importance that the star-planet relation has to our understanding of the planet formation process, the precise determination of stellar parameters for the ever increasing number of discovered extrasolar planets is of great relevance. Furthermore, precise stellar parameters are needed to fully characterize the planet properties. It is thus important to continue the efforts to determine, in the most uniform way possible, the parameters for stars with planets as new discoveries are announced. Aims: In this paper we present new precise atmospheric parameters for a sample of 50 stars with planets. The results are presented in the catalogue: SWEET-Cat. Methods: Stellar atmospheric parameters and masses for the 50 stars were derived assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium and using high-resolution and high signal-to-noise spectra. The methodology used is based on the measurement of equivalent widths with ARES2 for a list of iron lines. The line abundances were derived using MOOG. We then used the curve of growth analysis to determine the parameters. We implemented a new minimization procedure which significantly improves the computational time. Results: The stellar parameters for the 50 stars are presented and compared with previously determined literature values. For SWEET-Cat, we compile values for the effective temperature, surface gravity, metallicity, and stellar mass for almost all the planet host stars listed in the Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia. This data will be updated on a continuous basis. The data can be used for statistical studies of the star-planet correlation, and for the derivation of consistent properties for known planets. Based on observations collected at the La Silla Observatory, ESO (Chile), with FEROS/2.2 m (run 2014B/020), with UVES/VLT at the Cerro Paranal Observatory (runs ID 092.C-0695, 093.C-0219, 094.C-0367, 095.C-0324, and 096.C-0092), and with FIES/NOT at Roque de los Muchachos (Spain; runs ID 14AF14 and 53

Nectar secretion requires sucrose phosphate synthases and the sugar transporter SWEET9.

PubMed

Lin, I Winnie; Sosso, Davide; Chen, Li-Qing; Gase, Klaus; Kim, Sang-Gyu; Kessler, Danny; Klinkenberg, Peter M; Gorder, Molly K; Hou, Bi-Huei; Qu, Xiao-Qing; Carter, Clay J; Baldwin, Ian T; Frommer, Wolf B

2014-04-24

Angiosperms developed floral nectaries that reward pollinating insects. Although nectar function and composition have been characterized, the mechanism of nectar secretion has remained unclear. Here we identify SWEET9 as a nectary-specific sugar transporter in three eudicot species: Arabidopsis thaliana, Brassica rapa (extrastaminal nectaries) and Nicotiana attenuata (gynoecial nectaries). We show that SWEET9 is essential for nectar production and can function as an efflux transporter. We also show that sucrose phosphate synthase genes, encoding key enzymes for sucrose biosynthesis, are highly expressed in nectaries and that their expression is also essential for nectar secretion. Together these data are consistent with a model in which sucrose is synthesized in the nectary parenchyma and subsequently secreted into the extracellular space via SWEET9, where sucrose is hydrolysed by an apoplasmic invertase to produce a mixture of sucrose, glucose and fructose. The recruitment of SWEET9 for sucrose export may have been a key innovation, and could have coincided with the evolution of core eudicots and contributed to the evolution of nectar secretion to reward pollinators.

Association of TAS2R38 variants with sweet food intake in children aged 1-6 years.

PubMed

Pawellek, Ingrid; Grote, Veit; Rzehak, Peter; Xhonneux, Annick; Verduci, Elvira; Stolarczyk, Anna; Closa-Monasterolo, Ricardo; Reischl, Eva; Koletzko, Berthold

2016-12-01

We aimed at studying whether genetic variants of the TAS2R38 gene are associated with energy intake from sweet tasting foods, total energy and macronutrient intake and body weight in children. Children (n = 691) from five European countries were genotyped for the first variant site rs713598 of the TAS2R38 bitter receptor gene. Three-day dietary records were obtained yearly from one to six years of age. Foods were categorized in sweet and non-sweet-tasting. Mixed models were used to describe group differences in food and nutrient intake and BMI z-score over time. TAS2R38 genotype was related to energy intake from sweet tasting foods: Children with PP and PA genotype consumed an average 83 kJ/d (95% CI 21 to 146; p = 0.009) more sweet tasting foods than children with AA genotype and a mean 56 kJ/d (95% CI 15 to 98; p = 0.007) more energy from energy dense sweet products. Intake of sweet tasting foods was lower in girls than boys and differed between countries. TAS2R38 genotype was not associated with the intake of energy, macronutrients, sugar, single food groups and BMI z-score. Despite many other factors influencing food preference and intake in children, actual intake of sweet food items is associated with TAS2R38 genotype. Children with PP or PA genotype consume more (energy dense) sweet tasting foods. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

General and specific combining ability of F1-hybrid sweet sorghum in Thailand

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a promising biofuel crop that accumulates fermentable sugar in the stalk and can be directly fermented as bioethanol. Currently, most of sweet sorghum cultivars are pure lines. However, developing high-yielding hybrids has many advantages. To date there...

Survey of genome sequences in a wild sweet potato, Ipomoea trifida (H. B. K.) G. Don

PubMed Central

Hirakawa, Hideki; Okada, Yoshihiro; Tabuchi, Hiroaki; Shirasawa, Kenta; Watanabe, Akiko; Tsuruoka, Hisano; Minami, Chiharu; Nakayama, Shinobu; Sasamoto, Shigemi; Kohara, Mitsuyo; Kishida, Yoshie; Fujishiro, Tsunakazu; Kato, Midori; Nanri, Keiko; Komaki, Akiko; Yoshinaga, Masaru; Takahata, Yasuhiro; Tanaka, Masaru; Tabata, Satoshi; Isobe, Sachiko N.

2015-01-01

Ipomoea trifida (H. B. K.) G. Don. is the most likely diploid ancestor of the hexaploid sweet potato, I. batatas (L.) Lam. To assist in analysis of the sweet potato genome, de novo whole-genome sequencing was performed with two lines of I. trifida, namely the selfed line Mx23Hm and the highly heterozygous line 0431-1, using the Illumina HiSeq platform. We classified the sequences thus obtained as either ‘core candidates’ (common to the two lines) or ‘line specific’. The total lengths of the assembled sequences of Mx23Hm (ITR_r1.0) was 513 Mb, while that of 0431-1 (ITRk_r1.0) was 712 Mb. Of the assembled sequences, 240 Mb (Mx23Hm) and 353 Mb (0431-1) were classified into core candidate sequences. A total of 62,407 (62.4 Mb) and 109,449 (87.2 Mb) putative genes were identified, respectively, in the genomes of Mx23Hm and 0431-1, of which 11,823 were derived from core sequences of Mx23Hm, while 28,831 were from the core candidate sequence of 0431-1. There were a total of 1,464,173 single-nucleotide polymorphisms and 16,682 copy number variations (CNVs) in the two assembled genomic sequences (under the condition of log2 ratio of >1 and CNV size >1,000 bases). The results presented here are expected to contribute to the progress of genomic and genetic studies of I. trifida, as well as studies of the sweet potato and the genus Ipomoea in general. PMID:25805887

Decrease in sweet taste in rats after gastric bypass surgery.

PubMed

Tichansky, David S; Glatt, A Rebecca; Madan, Atul K; Harper, Jason; Tokita, Kenichi; Boughter, John D

2011-04-01

The literature contains evidence that Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery has an effect in humans on taste and preference for carbohydrate-rich foods. This study tested the hypothesis that RYGB affects sweet taste behavior using a rat model. Male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent either RYGB or sham surgery. Then 4 weeks after surgery, the rats were given taste-salient, brief-access lick tests with a series of sucrose concentrations. The RYGB rats, but not the sham rats, lost weight over the 5-week postoperative period. The RYGB rats showed a significant decrease in mean licks for the highest concentration of sucrose (0.25-1.0 mol/l) but not for the low concentrations of sucrose or water. The findings showed that RYGB surgery affected sweet taste behavior in rats, with postsurgical rats having lower sensitivity or avidity for sucrose than sham-treated control rats. This finding is similar to human reports that sweet taste and preferences for high-caloric foods are altered after bypass surgery.

CALHM1 ion channel mediates purinergic neurotransmission of sweet, bitter and umami tastes.

PubMed

Taruno, Akiyuki; Vingtdeux, Valérie; Ohmoto, Makoto; Ma, Zhongming; Dvoryanchikov, Gennady; Li, Ang; Adrien, Leslie; Zhao, Haitian; Leung, Sze; Abernethy, Maria; Koppel, Jeremy; Davies, Peter; Civan, Mortimer M; Chaudhari, Nirupa; Matsumoto, Ichiro; Hellekant, Göran; Tordoff, Michael G; Marambaud, Philippe; Foskett, J Kevin

2013-03-14

Recognition of sweet, bitter and umami tastes requires the non-vesicular release from taste bud cells of ATP, which acts as a neurotransmitter to activate afferent neural gustatory pathways. However, how ATP is released to fulfil this function is not fully understood. Here we show that calcium homeostasis modulator 1 (CALHM1), a voltage-gated ion channel, is indispensable for taste-stimuli-evoked ATP release from sweet-, bitter- and umami-sensing taste bud cells. Calhm1 knockout mice have severely impaired perceptions of sweet, bitter and umami compounds, whereas their recognition of sour and salty tastes remains mostly normal. Calhm1 deficiency affects taste perception without interfering with taste cell development or integrity. CALHM1 is expressed specifically in sweet/bitter/umami-sensing type II taste bud cells. Its heterologous expression induces a novel ATP permeability that releases ATP from cells in response to manipulations that activate the CALHM1 ion channel. Knockout of Calhm1 strongly reduces voltage-gated currents in type II cells and taste-evoked ATP release from taste buds without affecting the excitability of taste cells by taste stimuli. Thus, CALHM1 is a voltage-gated ATP-release channel required for sweet, bitter and umami taste perception.

Development of a Sweetness Sensor for Aspartame, a Positively Charged High-Potency Sweetener

PubMed Central

Yasuura, Masato; Tahara, Yusuke; Ikezaki, Hidekazu; Toko, Kiyoshi

2014-01-01

Taste evaluation technology has been developed by several methods, such as sensory tests, electronic tongues and a taste sensor based on lipid/polymer membranes. In particular, the taste sensor can individually quantify five basic tastes without multivariate analysis. However, it has proven difficult to develop a sweetness sensor, because sweeteners are classified into three types according to the electric charges in an aqueous solution; that is, no charge, negative charge and positive charge. Using membrane potential measurements, the taste-sensing system needs three types of sensor membrane for each electric charge type of sweetener. Since the commercially available sweetness sensor was only intended for uncharged sweeteners, a sweetness sensor for positively charged high-potency sweeteners such as aspartame was developed in this study. Using a lipid and plasticizers, we fabricated various lipid/polymer membranes for the sweetness sensor to identify the suitable components of the sensor membranes. As a result, one of the developed sensors showed responses of more than 20 mV to 10 mM aspartame and less than 5 mV to any other taste. The responses of the sensor depended on the concentration of aspartame. These results suggested that the developed sweetness sensor had high sensitivity to and high selectivity for aspartame. PMID:24763213

Enhanced leavening properties of baker's yeast by reducing sucrase activity in sweet dough.

PubMed

Zhang, Cui-Ying; Lin, Xue; Feng, Bing; Liu, Xiao-Er; Bai, Xiao-Wen; Xu, Jia; Pi, Li; Xiao, Dong-Guang

2016-07-01

Leavening ability in sweet dough is required for the commercial applications of baker's yeast. This property depends on many factors, such as glycolytic activity, sucrase activity, and osmotolerance. This study explored the importance of sucrase level on the leavening ability of baker's yeast in sweet dough. Furthermore, the baker's yeast strains with varying sucrase activities were constructed by deleting SUC2, which encodes sucrase or replacing the SUC2 promoter with the VPS8/TEF1 promoter. The results verify that the sucrase activity negatively affects the leavening ability of baker's yeast strains under high-sucrose conditions. Based on a certain level of osmotolerance, sucrase level plays a significant role in the fermentation performance of baker's yeast, and appropriate sucrase activity is an important determinant for the leavening property of baker's yeast in sweet dough. Therefore, modification on sucrase activity is an effective method for improving the leavening properties of baker's yeast in sweet dough. This finding provides guidance for the breeding of industrial baker's yeast strains for sweet dough leavening. The transformants BS1 with deleted SUC2 genetic background provided decreased sucrase activity (a decrease of 39.3 %) and exhibited enhanced leavening property (an increase of 12.4 %). Such a strain could be useful for industrial applications.

Development of a sweetness sensor for aspartame, a positively charged high-potency sweetener.

PubMed

Yasuura, Masato; Tahara, Yusuke; Ikezaki, Hidekazu; Toko, Kiyoshi

2014-04-23

Taste evaluation technology has been developed by several methods, such as sensory tests, electronic tongues and a taste sensor based on lipid/polymer membranes. In particular, the taste sensor can individually quantify five basic tastes without multivariate analysis. However, it has proven difficult to develop a sweetness sensor, because sweeteners are classified into three types according to the electric charges in an aqueous solution; that is, no charge, negative charge and positive charge. Using membrane potential measurements, the taste-sensing system needs three types of sensor membrane for each electric charge type of sweetener. Since the commercially available sweetness sensor was only intended for uncharged sweeteners, a sweetness sensor for positively charged high-potency sweeteners such as aspartame was developed in this study. Using a lipid and plasticizers, we fabricated various lipid/polymer membranes for the sweetness sensor to identify the suitable components of the sensor membranes. As a result, one of the developed sensors showed responses of more than 20 mV to 10 mM aspartame and less than 5 mV to any other taste. The responses of the sensor depended on the concentration of aspartame. These results suggested that the developed sweetness sensor had high sensitivity to and high selectivity for aspartame.

Effect of plant density and mixing ratio on crop yield in sweet corn/mungbean intercropping.

PubMed

Sarlak, S; Aghaalikhani, M; Zand, B

2008-09-01

In order to evaluate the ear and forage yield of sweet corn (Zea mays L. var. Saccarata) in pure stand and intercropped with mung bean (Vigna radiata L.), a field experiment was conducted at Varamin region on summer 2006. Experiment was carried out in a split plot design based on randomized complete blocks with 4 replications. Plant density with 3 levels [Low (D1), Mean (D2) and High (D3) respecting 6, 8 and 10 m(-2) for sweet corn, cultivar S.C.403 and 10, 20 and 30 m(-2) for mung bean cultivar, Partow] was arranged in main plots and 5 mixing ratios [(P1) = 0/100, (P2) = 25/75, (P3) = 50/50, (P4) = 75/25, (P5) = 100/0% for sweet corn/mung bean, respectively] were arranged in subplots. Quantitative attributes such as plant height, sucker numbers, LER, dry matter distribution in different plant organs were measured in sweet corn economical maturity. Furthermore the yield of cannable ear corn and yield components of sweet corn and mung bean were investigated. Results showed that plant density has not any significant effect on evaluated traits, while the effect of mixing ratio was significant (p < 0.01). Therefore, the mixing ratio of 75/25 (sweet corn/mung bean) could be introduced as the superior mixing ratio; because of it's maximum rate of total sweet corn's biomass, forage yield, yield and yield components of ear corn in intercropping. Regarding to profitability indices of intercropping, the mixing ratio 75/25 (sweet corn/mung bean) in low density (D1P2) which showed the LER = 1.03 and 1.09 for total crop yield before ear harvesting and total forage yield after ear harvest respectively, was better than corn or mung bean monoculture.

FGF21 Regulates Sweet and Alcohol Preference.

PubMed

Talukdar, Saswata; Owen, Bryn M; Song, Parkyong; Hernandez, Genaro; Zhang, Yuan; Zhou, Yingjiang; Scott, William T; Paratala, Bhavna; Turner, Tod; Smith, Andrew; Bernardo, Barbara; Müller, Christian P; Tang, Hao; Mangelsdorf, David J; Goodwin, Bryan; Kliewer, Steven A

2016-02-09

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a hormone induced by various metabolic stresses, including ketogenic and high-carbohydrate diets, that regulates energy homeostasis. In humans, SNPs in and around the FGF21 gene have been associated with macronutrient preference, including carbohydrate, fat, and protein intake. Here we show that FGF21 administration markedly reduces sweet and alcohol preference in mice and sweet preference in cynomolgus monkeys. In mice, these effects require the FGF21 co-receptor β-Klotho in the central nervous system and correlate with reductions in dopamine concentrations in the nucleus accumbens. Since analogs of FGF21 are currently undergoing clinical evaluation for the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes, our findings raise the possibility that FGF21 administration could affect nutrient preference and other reward behaviors in humans. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sweet Spots and Door Stops

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Michael; Tsui, Stella; Leung, Chi Fan

2011-01-01

A sweet spot is referred to in sport as the perfect place to strike a ball with a racquet or bat. It is the point of contact between bat and ball where maximum results can be produced with minimal effort from the hand of the player. Similar physics can be applied to the less inspiring examples of door stops; the perfect position of a door stop is…

Sweet's syndrome associated with systemic lupus erythematosus: a case report and review of the literature.

PubMed

Tsuji, Hideaki; Yoshifuji, Hajime; Nakashima, Ran; Imura, Yoshitaka; Yukawa, Naoichiro; Ohmura, Koichiro; Miyagawa-Hayashino, Aya; Kabashima, Kenji; Mimori, Tsuneyo

2013-08-01

A 35-year-old Japanese female patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) presented with fever, erythematous papules and nodules, and polyarthralgia. Skin biopsy of a nodule was compatible with Sweet's syndrome. The papules/nodules were well treated with an oral glucocorticoid. Thirty cases of Sweet's syndrome associated with lupus erythematosus (LE) have been reported in the published work. The mean age was 34.2 years. They showed a higher male ratio (male : female, 1:2) compared with patients with SLE (1:9) and Sweet's syndrome (1:3.7). Sweet's syndrome may occur as a manifestation of LE, and a moderate dose of an oral glucocorticoid will result in a good response. © 2013 Japanese Dermatological Association.

Physico-chemical properties of gluten-free pancakes from rice and sweet potato flours.

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Gluten-free pancakes were prepared using rice flour, and rice flour replaced with various amounts, at 10, 20 and 40%, of sweet potato flour. The apparent viscosity of the pancake batter increased with increased sweet potato flour replacement. Texture properties of the cooked pancakes, such as, har...

De Novo Assembly and Comparative Transcriptome Analyses of Red and Green Morphs of Sweet Basil Grown in Full Sunlight.

PubMed

Torre, Sara; Tattini, Massimiliano; Brunetti, Cecilia; Guidi, Lucia; Gori, Antonella; Marzano, Cristina; Landi, Marco; Sebastiani, Federico

2016-01-01

Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum), one of the most popular cultivated herbs worldwide, displays a number of varieties differing in several characteristics, such as the color of the leaves. The development of a reference transcriptome for sweet basil, and the analysis of differentially expressed genes in acyanic and cyanic cultivars exposed to natural sunlight irradiance, has interest from horticultural and biological point of views. There is still great uncertainty about the significance of anthocyanins in photoprotection, and how green and red morphs may perform when exposed to photo-inhibitory light, a condition plants face on daily and seasonal basis. We sequenced the leaf transcriptome of the green-leaved Tigullio (TIG) and the purple-leaved Red Rubin (RR) exposed to full sunlight over a four-week experimental period. We assembled and annotated 111,007 transcripts. A total of 5,468 and 5,969 potential SSRs were identified in TIG and RR, respectively, out of which 66 were polymorphic in silico. Comparative analysis of the two transcriptomes showed 2,372 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) clustered in 222 enriched Gene ontology terms. Green and red basil mostly differed for transcripts abundance of genes involved in secondary metabolism. While the biosynthesis of waxes was up-regulated in red basil, the biosynthesis of flavonols and carotenoids was up-regulated in green basil. Data from our study provides a comprehensive transcriptome survey, gene sequence resources and microsatellites that can be used for further investigations in sweet basil. The analysis of DEGs and their functional classification also offers new insights on the functional role of anthocyanins in photoprotection.

De Novo Assembly and Comparative Transcriptome Analyses of Red and Green Morphs of Sweet Basil Grown in Full Sunlight

PubMed Central

Torre, Sara; Tattini, Massimiliano; Brunetti, Cecilia; Guidi, Lucia; Gori, Antonella; Marzano, Cristina; Landi, Marco; Sebastiani, Federico

2016-01-01

Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum), one of the most popular cultivated herbs worldwide, displays a number of varieties differing in several characteristics, such as the color of the leaves. The development of a reference transcriptome for sweet basil, and the analysis of differentially expressed genes in acyanic and cyanic cultivars exposed to natural sunlight irradiance, has interest from horticultural and biological point of views. There is still great uncertainty about the significance of anthocyanins in photoprotection, and how green and red morphs may perform when exposed to photo-inhibitory light, a condition plants face on daily and seasonal basis. We sequenced the leaf transcriptome of the green-leaved Tigullio (TIG) and the purple-leaved Red Rubin (RR) exposed to full sunlight over a four-week experimental period. We assembled and annotated 111,007 transcripts. A total of 5,468 and 5,969 potential SSRs were identified in TIG and RR, respectively, out of which 66 were polymorphic in silico. Comparative analysis of the two transcriptomes showed 2,372 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) clustered in 222 enriched Gene ontology terms. Green and red basil mostly differed for transcripts abundance of genes involved in secondary metabolism. While the biosynthesis of waxes was up-regulated in red basil, the biosynthesis of flavonols and carotenoids was up-regulated in green basil. Data from our study provides a comprehensive transcriptome survey, gene sequence resources and microsatellites that can be used for further investigations in sweet basil. The analysis of DEGs and their functional classification also offers new insights on the functional role of anthocyanins in photoprotection. PMID:27483170

Possibilities and challenges of a large international benchmarking in pediatric diabetology-The SWEET experience.

PubMed

Witsch, Michael; Kosteria, Ioanna; Kordonouri, Olga; Alonso, Guy; Archinkova, Margarita; Besancon, Stephane; Birkebæk, Niels H; Bratina, Natasa; Cherubini, Valentino; Hanas, Ragnar; Hasnani, Dhruvi; Iotova, Violeta; Raposo, João Filipe; Schwandt, Anke; Sumnik, Zdenek; Svensson, Jannet; Veeze, Henk

2016-10-01

Despite the existence of evidence-based guidelines for the care of children with diabetes, widespread gaps in knowledge, attitude, and practice remain. The purpose of this paper is to present a review of benchmarking practices and results of this process within SWEET, moreover focusing on current challenges and future directions. Biannually, members electronically transfer de-identified clinic data for 37 parameters to the SWEET database. Each center receives benchmarking and data validation reports. In 2015, 48 centers have contributed data for 20 165 unique patients (51.6% male). After exclusion for missing data 19 131 patients remain for further analysis. The median age is 14.2 years, with a median diabetes duration 4.8 years; 96.0% of patients have type 1, 1.1% type 2, and 2.9% other diabetes types. Data completeness has increased over time. In 2015, median HbA1c of all patients' (diabetes type 1) medians was 7.8% (61.7 mmol/mol) with 39.1%, 41.4%, and 19.4% of patients having HbA1c < 7.5% (58 mmol/mol), 7.5%-9% (58-75 mmol/mol) and >9% (75 mmol/mol), respectively. Although HbA1c has been stable over time [7.7%-7.8% (60.7-61.7 mmol/mol)], there remains wide variation between centers. Fourteen centers achieve a median HbA1c <7.5% (58 mmol/mol). Our vision is that the participation in SWEET is encouraging members to deliver increasingly accurate and complete data. Dissemination of results and prospective projects serve as further motivation to improve data reporting. Comparing processes and outcomes will help members identify weaknesses and introduce innovative solutions, resulting in improved and more uniform care for patients with diabetes. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Role of sweet and other flavours in liking and disliking of electronic cigarettes.

PubMed

Kim, Hyoshin; Lim, Juyun; Buehler, Stephanie S; Brinkman, Marielle C; Johnson, Nathan M; Wilson, Laura; Cross, Kandice S; Clark, Pamela I

2016-11-01

To examine the extent to which the perception of sweet and other flavours is associated with liking and disliking of flavoured electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). 31 participants (13 females/18 males; 12 sole/19 dual users) vaped 6 commercially available flavours of blu Tanks: Classic Tobacco (CT), Magnificent Menthol (MM), Cherry Crush (CC), Vivid Vanilla (VV), Piña Colada (PC) and Peach Schnapps (PS); all 'medium' strength, 12 mg/mL nicotine concentration. For each flavoured e-cigarette, participants first rated liking/disliking on the Labeled Hedonic Scale, followed by perceived intensities of sweetness, coolness, bitterness, harshness and specific flavour on the generalised version of the Labeled Magnitude Scale. The psychophysical testing was conducted individually in an environmental chamber. PC was perceived as sweetest and liked the most; CT was perceived as least sweet and liked the least. Across all flavours, liking was correlated with sweetness (r=0.31), coolness (r=0.25), bitterness (r=-0.25) and harshness (r=-0.29, all p<0.001). Specifically, liking was positively correlated with sweetness of PS (r=0.56, p=0.001) and PC (r=0.36, p=0.048); and with coolness of MM, CT and VV (r=0.41-0.52, p<0.05). In contrast, harshness was negatively correlated with liking for CC, PC and PS (r=0.37-0.40, p<0.05). In a multivariate model, sweetness had the greatest positive impact on liking followed by coolness; harshness had the greatest negative impact on liking. Our findings indicate that bitterness and harshness, most likely from nicotine, have negative impacts on the liking of e-cigarettes, but the addition of flavourants that elicit sweetness or coolness generally improves liking. The results suggest that flavours play an important role in e-cigarette preference and most likely use. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

75 FR 34345 - Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast Oregon...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-17

...; FV10-956-1 FR] Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast... under the marketing order regulating the handling of sweet onions grown in the Walla Walla Valley of... Sweet Onion Marketing Committee (hereinafter referred to as the ``Committee''). This rule revises the...

Intercropping of two Leucaena spp. with sweet potato: yield, growth rate and biomass

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Swift, J.F.

1982-01-01

Results of trials with Leucaena leucocephala and Leucaena diversifolia at Wau, Papua New Guinea, showed potential benefits of the agroforestry cropping system. The total biomass yield (sweet potato plus firewood and green manure) was considerably greater than the yield per unit area of sweet potato alone. 3 references.

Electro-activation of sweet defatted whey: Impact on the induced Maillard reaction products and bioactive peptides.

PubMed

Kareb, Ourdia; Gomaa, Ahmed; Champagne, Claude P; Jean, Julie; Aïder, Mohammed

2017-04-15

Electro-activation was used to add value to sweet defatted whey. This study aimed to investigate and to characterize the bioactive compounds formed under different electro-activation conditions by molecular and proteomic approaches. The effects of electric current intensity (400, 500 or 600mA) and whey concentration (7, 14 or 21% (w/v)) as a function of the electro-activation time (0, 15, 30 or 45min) were evaluated. The targeted dependent variables were the formation of Maillard reaction products (MRPs), protein hydrolysates and glycated compounds. It was shown that the MRPs derived from electro-activated whey at a concentration of 14% had the highest potential of biological activity. SDS-PAGE analyses indicated the formation of hydrolysates and glycated compounds with different molecular weight distributions. FTIR indicated the predominance of intermediate MRPs, such as the Schiff base compounds. LC-MS/MS and proteomics analysis showed the production of multi-functional bioactive peptides due to the hydrolysis of whey proteins. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Consumption patterns of sweet drinks in a population of Australian children and adolescents (2003–2008)

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Intake of sweet drinks has previously been associated with the development of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents. The present study aimed to assess the consumption pattern of sweet drinks in a population of children and adolescents in Victoria, Australia. Methods Data on 1,604 children and adolescents (4–18 years) from the comparison groups of two quasi-experimental intervention studies from Victoria, Australia were analysed. Sweet drink consumption (soft drink and fruit juice/cordial) was assessed as one day’s intake and typical intake over the last week or month at two time points between 2003 and 2008 (mean time between measurement: 2.2 years). Results Assessed using dietary recalls, more than 70% of the children and adolescents consumed sweet drinks, with no difference between age groups (p = 0.28). The median intake among consumers was 500 ml and almost a third consumed more than 750 ml per day. More children and adolescents consumed fruit juice/cordial (69%) than soft drink (33%) (p < 0.0001) and in larger volumes (median intake fruit juice/cordial: 500 ml and soft drink: 375 ml). Secular changes in sweet drink consumption were observed with a lower proportion of children and adolescents consuming sweet drinks at time 2 compared to time 1 (significant for age group 8 to <10 years, p = 0.001). Conclusion The proportion of Australian children and adolescents from the state of Victoria consuming sweet drinks has been stable or decreasing, although a high proportion of this sample consumed sweet drinks, especially fruit juice/cordial at both time points. PMID:22966937

New frontiers in gut nutrient sensor research: nutrient sensors in the gastrointestinal tract: modulation of sweet taste sensitivity by leptin.

PubMed

Horio, Nao; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2010-01-01

The ability to perceive sweet compounds is important for animals to detect an external carbohydrate source of calories and has a critical role in the nutritional status of animals. In mice, a subset of sweet-sensitive taste cells possesses leptin receptors. Increase of plasma leptin with increasing internal energy storage in the adipose tissue suppresses sweet taste responses via this receptor. The data from recent studies indicate that leptin may also act as a modulator of sweet taste sensation in humans with a diurnal variation in sweet sensitivity. The plasma leptin level and sweet taste sensitivity are proposed to link with post-ingestive plasma glucose level. This leptin modulation of sweet taste sensitivity may influence an individual's preference, ingestive behavior, and absorption of nutrients, thereby playing important roles in regulation of energy homeostasis.

Sweet potato for closed ecological life support systems using the nutrient film technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Loretan, P. A.; Hill, W. A.; Bonsi, C. K.; Morris, C. E.; Lu, J. Y.; Ogbuehi, C. R. A.; Mortley, D. G.

1990-01-01

Sweet potatoes were grown hydroponically using the nutrient film technique (NFT) in support of the Closed Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) program. Experiments in the greenhouse with the TI-155 sweet potato cultivar produced up to 1790 g/plant of fresh storage roots. Studies with both TI-155 and Georgia Jet cultivars resulted in an edible biomass index of approximately 60 percent, with edible biomass linear growth rates of 12.1 to 66.0 g m(exp -2)d(exp -1) in 0.05 to 0.13 sq meters in 105 to 130 days. Additional experimental results are given. All studies indicate good potential for sweet potatoes in CELSS.

Sweet food improves chronic stress-induced irritable bowel syndrome-like symptoms in rats.

PubMed

Rho, Sang-Gyun; Kim, Yong Sung; Choi, Suck Chei; Lee, Moon Young

2014-03-07

To investigate whether palatable sweet foods have a beneficial effect on chronic stress-induced colonic motility and inflammatory cytokines. Adult male rats were divided into 3 groups: control (CON, n = 5), chronic variable stress with chow (CVS-A, n = 6), and chronic variable stress with chow and sweet food (CVS-B, n = 6). The rats were fed standard rodent chow as the chow food and/or AIN-76A as the sweet food. A food preference test for AIN-76A was performed in another group of normal rats (n = 10) for twelve days. Fecal pellet output (FPO) was measured for 6 wk during water bedding stress in the CVS groups. The weight of the adrenal glands, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and corticosterone levels in plasma were measured. The expression levels of transforming growth factor-β, interleukin (IL)-2, and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) were measured in the distal part of colonic tissues and plasma using Western blot analysis. In sweet preference test, all rats initially preferred sweet food to chow food. However, the consumption rate of sweet food gradually decreased and reduced to below 50% of total intake eight days after sweet food feeding. Accumulated FPO was higher in the CVS-A group compared with the CVS-B group over time. All stress groups showed significant increases in the adrenal to body weight ratio (CVS-A, 0.14 ± 0.01; CVS-B, 0.14 ± 0.01) compared with the control group (0.12 ± 0.01, P < 0.05). The plasma corticosterone and ACTH levels were significantly higher in the CVS-A (537.42 ± 32.95, 44.44 ± 6.54 pg/mL) and CVS-B (655.07 ± 30.82, 65.46 ± 4.44 pg/mL) groups than in the control group (46.96 ± 13.29, 8.51 ± 1.35 pg/mL, P < 0.05). Notably, the ratio of corticosterone to ACTH was significantly increased in the CVS-A group only. Rats exposed to CVS displayed significantly increased expression of IL-2 and IFN-γ in the plasma and distal colon compared to the control group, whereas this effect was significantly attenuated in the CVS-B group. These

Occurrence of sweet refuse at disposal sites: rainwater retention capacity and potential breeding opportunities for Aedes aegypti.

PubMed

Dieng, Hamady; Satho, Tomomitsu; Meli, Nur Khairatun Khadijah Binti; Abang, Fatimah; Nolasco-Hipolito, Cirilo; Hakim, Hafijah; Miake, Fumio; Zuharah, Wan Fatma; Kassim, Nur Faeza A; Ab Majid, Abdul Hafiz; Morales Vargas, Ronald E; Morales, Noppawan P; Noweg, Gabriel Tonga

2018-05-01

Nectar is the staple diet of adult mosquitoes in the wild, but its availability is inconsistent and can be affected by rainfall. In urban centers, Aedes vectors commonly use man-made containers as their major habitat; however, they can colonize any items replenished by rainfall. Garbage output has increased significantly in recent years, at a time when collection frequency is reducing. Such garbage usually includes organic components, some of which are sweet and can be fed upon by other animals or become can containers for rainwater. Despite evidence that Aedes larvae can thrive in containers comprised of organic waste material, which can be produced by rodents gnawing on fruits or vegetables, and that adults can survive on sweet waste fluids, the capacity of organic waste materials to accumulate rainwater and act as egg deposition sites has not been examined. It is also unknown for how long sweet extracts can sustain the life of adult vectors. Here, we investigated the abundance of sweet leftovers at garbage sites and the rainwater retention capacity of some organic materials through a field survey and laboratory bioassays. We also examined whether sweet waste fluids impact egg hatching success and longevity of Aedes aegypti. The results of this study indicated that sweet products with leftovers are highly prevalent in garbage. When exposed to rain, food items (BAFrc, banana fruit resembling container; and BSPrc, boiled sweet potato resembling container) and the packaging of sweet foods (SMIc, sweetened condensed milk can) retained water. When provided an opportunity to oviposit in cups containing BAF extract (BAFex), BSP extract (BSPex), and SMI extract (SMIex), eggs were deposited in all media. Egg maturation in the BAFex environment resulted in similar larval eclosion success to that resulting from embryo development in a water milieu. Adults maintained on sweet waste extracts had long lifespans, although shorter than that of their sugar solution (SUS

Characterization of the Binding Site of Aspartame in the Human Sweet Taste Receptor

PubMed Central

Maillet, Emeline L.; Cui, Meng; Jiang, Peihua; Mezei, Mihaly; Hecht, Elizabeth; Quijada, Jeniffer; Osman, Roman; Max, Marianna

2015-01-01

The sweet taste receptor, a heterodimeric G protein-coupled receptor comprised of T1R2 and T1R3, binds sugars, small molecule sweeteners, and sweet proteins to multiple binding sites. The dipeptide sweetener, aspartame binds in the Venus Flytrap Module (VFTM) of T1R2. We developed homology models of the open and closed forms of human T1R2 and human T1R3 VFTMs and their dimers and then docked aspartame into the closed form of T1R2’s VFTM. To test and refine the predictions of our model, we mutated various T1R2 VFTM residues, assayed activity of the mutants and identified 11 critical residues (S40, Y103, D142, S144, S165, S168, Y215, D278, E302, D307, and R383) in and proximal to the binding pocket of the sweet taste receptor that are important for ligand recognition and activity of aspartame. Furthermore, we propose that binding is dependent on 2 water molecules situated in the ligand pocket that bridge 2 carbonyl groups of aspartame to residues D142 and L279. These results shed light on the activation mechanism and how signal transmission arising from the extracellular domain of the T1R2 monomer of the sweet receptor leads to the perception of sweet taste. PMID:26377607

Sensory properties and consumer acceptance of sweet tamarind varieties grown in Thailand.

PubMed

Oupadissakoon, Chintana; Chambers, Edgar; Kongpensook, Varapha; Suwonsichon, Suntaree; Yenket, Renoo; Retiveau, Annlyse

2010-04-30

Sweet tamarind is a major edible fruit and flavoring ingredient particularly in south-east and southern Asia. Little research has focused on the fruit and almost nothing is known of its particular sensory properties. The aims of this research were to develop a lexicon for describing sweet tamarind, to compare varieties grown in Thailand, determine if orchard impacts sensory properties, and determine consumer acceptance of the varieties. A descriptive sensory lexicon of 25 terms was developed and six varieties were grouped into three clusters based on their sensory properties. The clusters appear to represent varieties that differ in their dark fruity notes and firm, fibrous texture. Generally, the orchard in which the plants were grown had little effect on sensory properties. In general, Sithong was liked by consumers along with Kunthee and Pragaithong. Intapalum was liked less but one small segment of consumers disliked Sithong and liked the Intapalum variety more. This research provides a foundation for further sensory and consumer research on sweet tamarind varieties by providing the initial data on the sensory properties of sweet tamarind, a lexicon that can be used for future research, and information on the consumer acceptance of tamarind varieties.

Origin and emergence of the sweet dessert watermelon, Citrullus lanatus.

PubMed

Paris, Harry S

2015-08-01

Watermelons, Citrullus species (Cucurbitaceae), are native to Africa and have been cultivated since ancient times. The fruit flesh of wild watermelons is watery, but typically hard-textured, pale-coloured and bland or bitter. The familiar sweet dessert watermelons, C. lanatus, featuring non-bitter, tender, well-coloured flesh, have a narrow genetic base, suggesting that they originated from a series of selection events in a single ancestral population. The objective of the present investigation was to determine where dessert watermelons originated and the time frame during which sweet dessert watermelons emerged. Archaeological remains of watermelons, mostly seeds, that date from 5000 years ago have been found in northeastern Africa. An image of a large, striped, oblong fruit on a tray has been found in an Egyptian tomb that dates to at least 4000 years ago. The Greek word pepon, Latin pepo and Hebrew avattiah of the first centuries CE were used for the same large, thick-rinded, wet fruit which, evidently, was the watermelon. Hebrew literature from the end of the second century CE and Latin literature from the beginning of the sixth century CE present watermelons together with three sweet fruits: figs, table grapes and pomegranates. Wild and primitive watermelons have been observed repeatedly in Sudan and neighbouring countries of northeastern Africa. The diverse evidence, combined, indicates that northeastern Africa is the centre of origin of the dessert watermelon, that watermelons were domesticated for water and food there over 4000 years ago, and that sweet dessert watermelons emerged in Mediterranean lands by approximately 2000 years ago. Next-generation ancient-DNA sequencing and state-of-the-art genomic analysis offer opportunities to rigorously assess the relationships among ancient and living wild and primitive watermelons from northeastern Africa, modern sweet dessert watermelons and other Citrullus taxa. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University

The Influence of Sweet Taste Perception on Dietary Intake in Relation to Dental Caries and BMI in Saudi Arabian Schoolchildren

PubMed Central

Campus, Guglielmo; Bertéus Forslund, Heléne; Hafiz, Waleed; Ahmed, Neveen; Lingström, Peter

2017-01-01

Objectives The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of sweet taste perception on dietary habits in Saudi schoolchildren. In addition, the relationship between dietary habits and both caries and BMI was studied. Methods A cross-sectional observational study comprising 225 schoolchildren aged 13–15 years from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was conducted. The consumption frequency of certain food items was analysed from a beverage and snack questionnaire and a three-day estimated dietary record was obtained. The sweet taste perception level was determined as sweet taste threshold (TT) and sweet taste preference (TP). Children were grouped into low, medium, and high, according to their sweet taste perception level. ICDAS and DMFS indices were used for caries registration and anthropometric measurements using BMI were collected. Results Sweet taste perception was found to be negatively correlated to the number of main meals and positively correlated to both snack and sweet intake occasions. Statistically significant differences were found between the TT and TP groups with regard to the number of main meals and sweet intake (p ≤ 0.01). No significant correlation between the dietary variables and caries or BMI was found. Conclusions The dietary habits and sweet intake were found to be influenced by the sweet taste perception level, while the relation between the dietary habits and the caries and BMI was found insignificant. PMID:28912812

The Influence of Sweet Taste Perception on Dietary Intake in Relation to Dental Caries and BMI in Saudi Arabian Schoolchildren.

PubMed

Ashi, Heba; Campus, Guglielmo; Bertéus Forslund, Heléne; Hafiz, Waleed; Ahmed, Neveen; Lingström, Peter

2017-01-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of sweet taste perception on dietary habits in Saudi schoolchildren. In addition, the relationship between dietary habits and both caries and BMI was studied. A cross-sectional observational study comprising 225 schoolchildren aged 13-15 years from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was conducted. The consumption frequency of certain food items was analysed from a beverage and snack questionnaire and a three-day estimated dietary record was obtained. The sweet taste perception level was determined as sweet taste threshold (TT) and sweet taste preference (TP). Children were grouped into low, medium, and high, according to their sweet taste perception level. ICDAS and DMFS indices were used for caries registration and anthropometric measurements using BMI were collected. Sweet taste perception was found to be negatively correlated to the number of main meals and positively correlated to both snack and sweet intake occasions. Statistically significant differences were found between the TT and TP groups with regard to the number of main meals and sweet intake ( p ≤ 0.01). No significant correlation between the dietary variables and caries or BMI was found. The dietary habits and sweet intake were found to be influenced by the sweet taste perception level, while the relation between the dietary habits and the caries and BMI was found insignificant.

Hernandulcin: an intensely sweet compound discovered by review of ancient literature.

PubMed

Compadre, C M; Pezzuto, J M; Kinghorn, A D; Kamath, S K

1985-01-25

Ancient Mexican botanical literature was systematically searched for new plant sources of intensely sweet substances. Lippia dulcis Trev., a sweet plant, emerged as a candidate for fractionation studies, and hernandulcin, a sesquiterpene, was isolated and judged by a human taste panel as more than 1000 times sweeter than sucrose. The structure of the sesquiterpene was determined spectroscopically and confirmed by chemical synthesis. Hernandulcin was nontoxic when administered orally to mice, and it did not induce bacterial mutation.

The comparative gastrointestinal response of young children to the ingestion of 25 g sweets containing sucrose or isomalt.

PubMed

Storey, David M; Lee, Adam; Zumbé, Albert

2002-04-01

Sugar-free confectionery products containing the low-energy, non-cariogenic sweetener isomalt are widely available in the market place and increasingly aimed at children. However, over-consumption of such products may lead to gastrointestinal symptoms and/or osmotic diarrhoea. Little is known about the gastrointestinal tolerance of children following consumption of isomalt. The aim of the present study was to assess gastrointestinal symptoms in children following consumption of sugar-free confectionery containing isomalt compared with sweets containing sucrose. In a double-blind, randomised, controlled, crossover study, sixty-seven children aged 6-9 years ingested 25 g hard-boiled sweets containing either sucrose or isomalt on two consecutive test days. Isomalt sweets were received as enthusiastically as sucrose sweets and, when given the choice, 97 % of children asked to be given the isomalt or the sucrose sweets on the second test day. Most children did not report multiple symptoms and few experienced symptoms on both days of isomalt consumption. However, significantly more children reported stomach-ache (P<0.01), abdominal rumbling (P<0.025) and passing watery faeces (P<0.001) following consumption of isomalt sweets compared with sucrose sweets. Consumption of 25 g isomalt-containing sweets by children is not associated with significant gastrointestinal effects graded as 'considerably more than usual' or multiple symptoms, but is associated with a laxative effect and increase in symptoms graded as 'slightly more than usual'. For the majority of children in the present study, 25 g isomalt-containing sweets represents an acceptable level of consumption, although some children are sensitive to the effects of isomalt ingestion.

Twenty-Five Years and Counting of "Sweet Valley": Jessica and Elizabeth in Romance Novels for Young Children?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth

2010-01-01

With the 2008 reissue of Francine Pascal's (1983) "Sweet Valley High", the popular cultural icons of twins Jessica and Elizabeth have been revitalized. Jessica and Elizabeth are the much-beloved protagonists in romance novels strategically targeted for young adults in "Sweet Valley High" or "Sweet Valley U", and for first- and second-grade readers…

78 FR 37150 - Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast Oregon...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-06-20

... Service 7 CFR Part 956 [Docket No. AMS-FV-13-0024; FV13-956-1 CR] Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla... conducted among eligible producers of sweet onions in the Walla Walla Valley of southeast Washington and... of sweet onions produced in the production area. DATES: The referendum will be conducted from...

75 FR 18428 - Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast Oregon...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-12

... Service 7 CFR Part 956 [Doc. No. AMS-FV-10-0020; FV10-956-1 PR] Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla... the handling of sweet onions grown in the Walla Walla Valley of southeast Washington and northeast Oregon. The marketing order is administered locally by the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee...

Sweet sorghum bagasse for production of biochar

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum bagasse is an untapped resourceful carbon-rich material that can be thermochemically converted into value-added biochars. These biochars can be applied to the field as soil amendment for soil health enhancement, improved soil carbon content, water holding capacity, soil drainage and a...

Reduced dietary intake of simple sugars alters perceived sweet taste intensity but not perceived pleasantness.

PubMed

Wise, Paul M; Nattress, Laura; Flammer, Linda J; Beauchamp, Gary K

2016-01-01

Individuals who adhere to reduced-sodium diets come to prefer less salt over time, but it is unclear whether sweet taste perception is modulated by reduced sugar intake. The objective was to determine how a substantial reduction in dietary intake of simple sugars affects sweetness intensity and pleasantness of sweet foods and beverages. Healthy men and women aged 21-54 y participated for 5 mo. After the baseline month, 2 subject groups were matched for demographic characteristics, body mass index, and intake of simple sugars. One group (n = 16; 13 of whom completed key experimental manipulations) was randomly assigned to receive a low-sugar diet during the subsequent 3 mo, with instructions to replace 40% of calories from simple sugars with fats, proteins, and complex carbohydrates. The other (control) group (n = 17; 16 of whom completed the study) did not change their sugar intake. During the final month, both groups chose any diet they wished. Each month subjects rated the sweetness intensity and pleasantness of vanilla puddings and raspberry beverages that varied in sucrose concentration. ANOVA showed no systematic differences between groups in rated sweetness during the baseline or first diet month. During the second diet month, the low-sugar group rated low-sucrose pudding samples as more intense than did the control group (significant group-by-concentration interaction, P = 0.002). During the third diet month, the low-sugar subjects rated both low and high concentrations in puddings as ∼40% sweeter than did the control group (significant effect of group, P = 0.01). A weaker effect on rated sweetness was obtained for the beverages. Rated pleasantness was not affected for either of the stimuli. This experiment provides empirical evidence that changes in consumption of simple sugars influence perceived sweet taste intensity. More work is needed to determine whether sugar intake ultimately shifts preferences for sweet foods and beverages. This trial was

CH-19 sweet, a non-pungent cultivar of red pepper, increased body temperature and oxygen consumption in humans.

PubMed

Ohnuki, K; Niwa, S; Maeda, S; Inoue, N; Yazawa, S; Fushiki, T

2001-09-01

We investigated the effect of CH-19 Sweet, a non-pungent cultivar of red pepper, on body temperature and oxygen consumption in humans. CH-19 Sweet was given to 11 healthy volunteers, and core body temperature, body surface temperature and oxygen consumption were measured. The control group ingested California-Wandar, which contained neither capsaicin nor capsiate. The core body temperature in the CH-19 Sweet group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.01). The forehead temperature measured by infrared thermography in the CH-19 Sweet group was significantly higher than that in the control group. The body surface temperature was increased for about 20 min after consumption of CH-19 Sweet intake, and the neck temperature was significantly higher (P<0.001) than when the subjects consumed California-Wandar. We also measured respiratory gas by indirect calorimetry while subjects wore a face mask. A significant difference was detected in oxygen consumption between the two groups, and the value was significantly higher in the CH-19 Sweet group (P<0.03). These results suggest that CH-19 Sweet increased thermogenesis and energy consumption.

Effect of heat treatment on quality, thermal and pasting properties of sweet potato starch during yearlong storage.

PubMed

Hu, Wenzhong; Jiang, Aili; Jin, Liming; Liu, Chenghui; Tian, Mixia; Wang, Yanying

2011-06-01

Proper postharvest handling and storage of sweet potato is an important link in the chain from producer to consumer or manufacturing industry. Heat treatments have been used as a non-chemical means to modify the postharvest quality and reduce pathogen levels and disease development of a wide variety of horticultural products. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of hot water treatment (HWT) on the quality, gelatinisation enthalpy and pasting properties of sweet potato starch during long-term storage. The weight loss, sprouting, spoilage and sugar content of sweet potato were also determined. HWT significantly inhibited the sprouting and decay of sweet potato during the storage period. There were no significant differences (P < 0.05) in the pasting properties and onset (T(O)), peak (T(P)) and endset (T(E)) temperatures of gelatinisation of sweet potato starch among all treatments, especially between heat-treated and non-heat-treated samples. HWT also had no significant impact on the quality of the internal components of the roots. Less than 4% of the yearlong-stored roots were discarded owing to spoilage. HWT supplied a lethal dose of heat to surface pathogens and black spot without damaging the nutritional and processing qualities of sweet potato. HWT was an effective method to reduce root sprouting and deterioration without significant impact on the quality of the internal components of sweet potato. This novel technique will open a new avenue to extend the storage life of sweet potato with good quality and minimal waste. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.

A collection of European sweet cherry phenology data for assessing climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wenden, Bénédicte; Campoy, José Antonio; Lecourt, Julien; López Ortega, Gregorio; Blanke, Michael; Radičević, Sanja; Schüller, Elisabeth; Spornberger, Andreas; Christen, Danilo; Magein, Hugo; Giovannini, Daniela; Campillo, Carlos; Malchev, Svetoslav; Peris, José Miguel; Meland, Mekjell; Stehr, Rolf; Charlot, Gérard; Quero-García, José

2016-12-01

Professional and scientific networks built around the production of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) led to the collection of phenology data for a wide range of cultivars grown in experimental sites characterized by highly contrasted climatic conditions. We present a dataset of flowering and maturity dates, recorded each year for one tree when available, or the average of several trees for each cultivar, over a period of 37 years (1978-2015). Such a dataset is extremely valuable for characterizing the phenological response to climate change, and the plasticity of the different cultivars' behaviour under different environmental conditions. In addition, this dataset will support the development of predictive models for sweet cherry phenology exploitable at the continental scale, and will help anticipate breeding strategies in order to maintain and improve sweet cherry production in Europe.

A collection of European sweet cherry phenology data for assessing climate change.

PubMed

Wenden, Bénédicte; Campoy, José Antonio; Lecourt, Julien; López Ortega, Gregorio; Blanke, Michael; Radičević, Sanja; Schüller, Elisabeth; Spornberger, Andreas; Christen, Danilo; Magein, Hugo; Giovannini, Daniela; Campillo, Carlos; Malchev, Svetoslav; Peris, José Miguel; Meland, Mekjell; Stehr, Rolf; Charlot, Gérard; Quero-García, José

2016-12-06

Professional and scientific networks built around the production of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) led to the collection of phenology data for a wide range of cultivars grown in experimental sites characterized by highly contrasted climatic conditions. We present a dataset of flowering and maturity dates, recorded each year for one tree when available, or the average of several trees for each cultivar, over a period of 37 years (1978-2015). Such a dataset is extremely valuable for characterizing the phenological response to climate change, and the plasticity of the different cultivars' behaviour under different environmental conditions. In addition, this dataset will support the development of predictive models for sweet cherry phenology exploitable at the continental scale, and will help anticipate breeding strategies in order to maintain and improve sweet cherry production in Europe.

Characterization of Nitrogen use efficiency in sweet sorghum

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dweikat, Ismail; Clemente, Thomas

2014-09-09

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) has the potential to augment the increasing demand for alternative fuels and for the production of input efficient, environmentally friendly bioenergy crops. Nitrogen (N) and water availability are considered two of the major limiting factors in crop growth. Nitrogen fertilization accounts for about 40% of the total production cost in sorghum. In cereals, including sorghum, the nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) from fertilizer is approximately 33% of the amount applied. There is therefore extensive concern in relation to the N that is not used by the plant, which is lost by leaching of nitrate, denitrificationmore » from the soil, and loss of ammonia to the atmosphere, all of which can have deleterious environmental effects. To improve the potential of sweet sorghum as a leading and cost effective bioenergy crop, the enhancement of NUE must be addressed. To this end, we have identified a sorghum line (SanChi San) that displays about 25% increase in NUE over other sorghum lines. As such, the overarching goal of this project is to employ three complementary strategies to enhance the ability of sweet sorghum to become an efficient nitrogen user. To achieve the project goal, we will pursue the following specific objectives: Objective 1: Phenotypic characterization of SanChi San/Ck60 RILs under low and moderate N-availability including biochemical profiles, vegetative growth and seed yield Objective 2: Conduct quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis and marker identification for nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in a grain sorghum RIL population. Objective 3: Identify novel candidate genes for NUE using proteomic and gene expression profiling comparisons of high- and low-NUE RILs. Candidate genes will be brought into the pipeline for transgenic manipulation of NUE This project will apply the latest genomics resources to discover genes controlling NUE, one of the most complex and economically important traits in cereal crops. As a

Taste responses to sweet stimuli in alpha-gustducin knockout and wild-type mice.

PubMed

Danilova, Vicktoria; Damak, Sami; Margolskee, Robert F; Hellekant, Göran

2006-07-01

The importance of alpha-gustducin in sweet taste transduction is based on data obtained with sucrose and the artificial sweetener SC45647. Here we studied the role of alpha-gustducin in sweet taste. We compared the behavioral and electrophysiological responses of alpha-gustducin knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice to 11 different sweeteners, representing carbohydrates, artificial sweeteners, and sweet amino acids. In behavioral experiments, over 48-h preference ratios were measured in two-bottle preference tests. In electrophysiological experiments, integrated responses of chorda tympani (CT) and glossopharyngeal (NG) nerves were recorded. We found that preference ratios of the KO mice were significantly lower than those of WT for acesulfame-K, dulcin, fructose, NC00174, D-phenylalanine, L-proline, D-tryptophan, saccharin, SC45647, sucrose, but not neotame. The nerve responses to all sweeteners, except neotame, were smaller in the KO mice than in the WT mice. The differences between the responses in WT and KO mice were more pronounced in the CT than in the NG. These data indicate that alpha-gustducin participates in the transduction of the sweet taste in general.

Bioethanol production from sweet potato using Saccharomyces diastaticus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdullah, Suryani, Irma; Pradia Paundradewa, J.

2015-12-01

Sweet potato contains about 16 to 40% dry matter and about 70-90% of the dry matter is a carbohydrate made up of starch, sugar, cellulose, hemicellulose and pectin so suitable for used as raw material for bioethanol. In this study focused on the manufacture of bioethanol with changes in temperature and concentration variations of yeast with sweet potato raw materials used yeast Saccharomyces diastaticus. Operating variables used are at a temperature of 30°C; 31,475°C; 35°C; 38,525°C; and 40°C with a yeast concentration of 25.9%; 30%; 40%; 50% and 54.1%. The experimental results obtained, the optimum conditions of ethanol fermentation with yeast Saccharomyces diastaticus on 36,67 °C temperature and yeast concentration of 43,43 % v / v.

Isolation and biological activities of decanal, linalool, valencene, and octanal from sweet orange oil.

PubMed

Liu, Kehai; Chen, Qiulin; Liu, Yanjun; Zhou, Xiaoyan; Wang, Xichang

2012-11-01

Product 1 (82.25% valencene), product 2 (73.36% decanal), product 3 (78.12% octanal), and product 4 (90.61% linalool) were isolated from sweet orange oil by combined usage of molecular distillation and column chromatography. The antioxidant activity of sweet orange oil and these products was investigated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and reducing power assays. In this test, product 1 (82.25% valencene), product 2 (73.36% decanal), and product 4 (90.61% linalool) had antioxidant activity, but lower than sweet orange oil. The antimicrobial activity was investigated in order to evaluate their efficacy against 5 microorganisms. The results showed that sweet orange oil, product 2 (73.36% decanal), product 3 (78.12% octanal), and product 4 (90.61% linalool) had inhibitory and bactericidal effect on the test microorganisms (except Penicillium citrinum). Valencene did not show any inhibitory effect. Saccharomyces cerivisiae was more susceptible, especially to the crude sweet orange oil (minimal inhibitory concentration 6.25 μL/mL). The cytotoxicity was evaluated on Hela cells using the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide assay. All test samples showed significant cytotoxicity on the cell lines with IC(50) values much less than 20 μg/mL. © 2012 Institute of Food Technologists®

Examining the impact of climate change and variability on sweet potatoes in East Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ddumba, S. D.; Andresen, J.; Moore, N. J.; Olson, J.; Snapp, S.; Winkler, J. A.

2013-12-01

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges to food security for the rapidly increasing population of East Africa. Rainfall is becoming more variable and temperatures are rising, consequently leading to increased occurrence of droughts and floods, and, changes in the timing and length of growing seasons. These changes have serious implications on crop production with the greatest impact likely to be on C4 crops such as cereals compared to C3 crops such as root tubers. Sweet potatoes is one the four most important food crops in East Africa owing to its high nutrition and calorie content, and, high tolerance to heat and drought, but little is known about how the crop will be affected by climate change. This study identifies the major climatic constraints to sweet potato production and examines the impact of projected future climates on sweet potato production in East Africa during the next 10 to 30 years. A process-based Sweet POTato COMputer Simulation (SPOTCOMS) model is used to assess four sweet potato cultivars; Naspot 1, Naspot 10, Naspot 11 and SPK 004-Ejumula. This is work in progress but preliminary results from the crop modeling experiments and the strength and weakness of the crop model will be presented.

[Do analgesic sweet solutions in neonates influence glycemia? A literature review].

PubMed

Walter-Nicolet, E; Chary-Tardy, A C; Tourniaire, B

2017-12-01

Sweet solutions are one of the most widely used nonpharmacologic analgesics used for newborns. They alleviate mild to moderate pain induced by painful procedures. They are used daily in neonatal intensive care units before a venepuncture or a heel stick, especially for a blood-sugar measurement. It is agreed that analgesic sweet solutions do not modify glycemia results. This nevertheless remains a recurrent question that the present review attempts to answer. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Technical solution for data collection, data safety and data privacy legislation: experiences from the SWEET study.

PubMed

Forsander, Gun; Pellinat, Martin; Volk, Michael; Muller, Markus; Pinelli, Leonardo; Magnen, Agnes; Danne, Thomas; Aschemeier, Bärbel; de Beaufort, Carine

2012-09-01

One of the most important tasks of the SWEET study is benchmarking the data collected. Information on the occurrence of the disease of diabetes, the treatment, and their outcomes in children from the different member states of European Union (EU) is crucial. How the collection of data is realized is essential, concerning both the technical issues and the results. The creation of SWEET Centers of Reference (CoR), all over Europe will be facilitated by the access to safe data collection, where legal aspects and privacy are ascertained. To describe the rationale for- and the technical procedure in the data collection implementation, in the SWEET study. Selected data on all patients treated at SWEET CoR are collected. The SWEET project data collection and management system, consists of modular components for data collection, online data interchange, and a database for statistical analysis. The SWEET study and the organization of CoR aims for the goal of offering an updated, secure, and continuous evaluation of diabetes treatment regimens for all children with diabetes in Europe. To support this goal, an appropriate and secure data management system as described in this paper has been created. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Whole-Genome Characterization of Prunus necrotic ringspot virus Infecting Sweet Cherry in China

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT Prunus necrotic ringspot virus (PNRSV) causes yield loss in most cultivated stone fruits, including sweet cherry. Using a small RNA deep-sequencing approach combined with end-genome sequence cloning, we identified the complete genomes of all three PNRSV strands from PNRSV-infected sweet cherry trees and compared them with those of two previously reported isolates. PMID:29496825

Alternative Fuels Data Center: Seattle Rideshare Fleet Adds EVs, Enjoys

Science.gov Websites

Fuels Data Center: Seattle Rideshare Fleet Adds EVs, Enjoys Success on Facebook Tweet about Alternative Fuels Data Center: Seattle Rideshare Fleet Adds EVs, Enjoys Success on Twitter Bookmark Alternative Fuels Data Center: Seattle Rideshare Fleet Adds EVs, Enjoys Success on Google Bookmark Alternative Fuels

Successful treatment of ulcerative colitis complicated by Sweet's syndrome by corticosteroid therapy and leukocytapheresis.

PubMed

Terai, Tomohiro; Sugimoto, Mitsushige; Osawa, Satoshi; Sugimoto, Ken; Furuta, Takahisa; Kanaoka, Shigeru; Ikuma, Mutsuhiro

2011-06-01

Ulcerative colitis is occasionally complicated by dermatological disorders presenting as extra-intestinal manifestations, including erythema nodosum and pyoderma gangrenosum. Sweet's syndrome is considered to be a rare cutaneous disease in patients with ulcerative colitis. To date, only 17 cases of Sweet's syndrome complicating ulcerative colitis have been reported in the English literature. Here, we report a case of a 41-year-old male who had been suffering from ulcerative colitis for 20 years. He was admitted to hospital with hematochezia, diarrhea and fever, and painful erythematous nodules on the face and arms. Histological examination of skin biopsies showed inflammatory cell infiltration composed mainly of neutrophils without evidence of necrotizing vasculitis, and the condition was diagnosed as Sweet's syndrome. The patient was treated with prednisolone and leukocytapheresis and the erythematous nodules on the skin, as well as the abdominal symptoms and endoscopic findings of ulcerative colitis, immediately improved. In this paper we report on this case and review the literature concerning ulcerative colitis and Sweet's syndrome.

Acid sensing by sweet and bitter taste neurons in Drosophila melanogaster.

PubMed

Charlu, Sandhya; Wisotsky, Zev; Medina, Adriana; Dahanukar, Anupama

2013-01-01

Drosophila melanogaster can taste various compounds and separate them into few basic categories such as sweet, bitter and salt taste. Here we investigate mechanisms underlying acid detection in Drosophila and report that the fly displays strong taste aversion to common carboxylic acids. We find that acid tastants act by the activation of a subset of bitter neurons and inhibition of sweet neurons. Bitter neurons begin to respond at pH 5 and show an increase in spike frequency as the extracellular pH drops, which does not rely on previously identified chemoreceptors. Notably, sweet neuron activity depends on the balance of sugar and acid tastant concentrations. This is independent of bitter neuron firing, and allows the fly to avoid acid-laced food sources even in the absence of functional bitter neurons. The two mechanisms may allow the fly to better evaluate the risk of ingesting acidic foods and modulate its feeding decisions accordingly.

Design of sweet protein based sweeteners: hints from structure-function relationships.

PubMed

Rega, Michele Fortunato; Di Monaco, Rossella; Leone, Serena; Donnarumma, Federica; Spadaccini, Roberta; Cavella, Silvana; Picone, Delia

2015-04-15

Sweet proteins represent a class of natural molecules, which are extremely interesting regarding their potential use as safe low-calories sweeteners for individuals who need to control sugar intake, such as obese or diabetic subjects. Punctual mutations of amino acid residues of MNEI, a single chain derivative of the natural sweet protein monellin, allow the modulation of its taste. In this study we present a structural and functional comparison between MNEI and a sweeter mutant Y65R, containing an extra positive charge on the protein surface, in conditions mimicking those of typical beverages. Y65R exhibits superior sweetness in all the experimental conditions tested, has a better solubility at mild acidic pH and preserves a significant thermal stability in a wide range of pH conditions, although slightly lower than MNEI. Our findings confirm the advantages of structure-guided protein engineering to design improved low-calorie sweeteners and excipients for food and pharmaceutical preparations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health benefits of legumes and pulses with a focus on Australian sweet lupins.

PubMed

Kouris-Blazos, Antigone; Belski, Regina

2016-01-01

The 68th United Nations General Assembly declared 2016 the International Year of Pulses. Therefore it is timely to review the current evidence of the benefits of legumes for human health with a focus on Australian sweet lupins. Medline, Pubmed, Cochrane library were searched to identify cross-sectional/epidemiological studies, randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews. The strongest evidence appears to be for links between eating legumes and reduced risk of colorectal cancer as well as eating soy foods and reduced LDL cholesterol. However, epidemiological studies and RCTs suggest that replacing several meat-based meals a week with legumes can have a positive impact on longevity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and weight management, potentially via favourable effects on the gut microbiome. Sweet lupins are unique among legumes with one of the highest combined amounts of digestible plant protein (38%) and dietary fibre (30%). Unlike other legumes, their low amount of anti-nutritional factors negates the need for soaking/cooking and they can therefore be eaten uncooked. Sweet lupins may lower blood pressure, improve blood lipids and insulin sensitivity and favourably alter the gut microbiome. There is growing interest in pulses, especially sweet lupins, as ingredients to improve the nutritional value of baked goods (particularly gluten free) and to create novel products to replace meat. Legumes form part of most traditional diets. They, including sweet lupins, can play a useful role in health maintenance.

Effect of methyl jasmonate on secondary metabolites of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.).

PubMed

Kim, Hyun-Jin; Chen, Feng; Wang, Xi; Rajapakse, Nihal C

2006-03-22

The effect of methyl jasmonate (MeJA) in terms of its induction of inherent bioactive chemicals in sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) was evaluated after MeJA was sprayed on healthy basil plants. The total phenolic content of the sweet basil significantly increased after 0.1 and 0.5 mM MeJA treatments compared with the control not subjected to MeJA. Two phenolic compounds, rosmarinic acid (RA) and caffeic acid (CA), were identified as strong antioxidant constituents of the sweet basil. Their amounts also significantly increased after the MeJA treatment. In addition, eugenol and linalool increased 56 and 43%, respectively, by the 0.5 mM MeJA treatment. Due to the accumulation of RA, CA, and eugenol, which possess strong 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH*) free radical scavenging activities, the antioxidant activity of the sweet basil extract was 2.3-fold greater than that of the control after the 0.5 mM MeJA treatment. In the DPPH* assay, the EC50 values of RA, CA, and eugenol were determined as 23, 46, and 59 microM, respectively, which indicated they were 6-, 3-, and 2.4-fold more efficient than BHT (140 microM). Besides, an unidentified HPLC peak in the methanolic extract of the sweet basil was 4.3-fold higher than that of the control after the 0.5 mM MeJA treatment.

Cocaine decreases saccharin preference without altering sweet taste sensitivity.

PubMed

Roebber, Jennifer K; Izenwasser, Sari; Chaudhari, Nirupa

2015-06-01

In rodents, saccharin consumption is suppressed when the sweet taste stimulus is paired with moderate doses of cocaine. Several hypotheses have been used to explain the seemingly contradictory effect of decreased consumption of a normally preferred substance following a highly rewarding drug. A common theme across these hypotheses is that saccharin is interpreted as less rewarding after cocaine pairing. We considered the alternative possibility that suppression is caused not by a change in reward circuitry, but rather by a change in taste detection, for instance by altering the afferent taste response and decreasing sensitivity to sweet taste stimuli. To evaluate this possibility, we measured saccharin taste sensitivity of mice before and after a standard cocaine-pairing paradigm. We measured taste sensitivity using a brief-access lickometer equipped with multiple concentrations of saccharin solution and established concentration-response curves before and after saccharin-cocaine pairing. Our results indicate that the EC50 for saccharin was unaltered following pairing. Instead, the avidity of licking saccharin, an indicator of motivation, was depressed. Latency to first-lick, a negative indicator of motivation, was also dramatically increased. Thus, our findings are consistent with the interpretation that saccharin-cocaine pairing results in devaluing of the sweet taste reward. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Alteration of sweet taste in high-fat diet induced obese rats after 4 weeks treatment with exenatide.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiao-juan; Wang, Yu-qing; Long, Yang; Wang, Lei; Li, Yun; Gao, Fa-bao; Tian, Hao-ming

2013-09-01

Exenatide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, is effective in inducing weight loss. The exact mechanisms are not fully understood. Reduced appetite and food intake may play important roles. Sweet taste contributes to food palatability, which promotes appetite. Interestingly, GLP-1 and its receptor are expressed in the taste buds of rodents and their interaction has an effect on mediating sweet taste sensitivity. Our aim was to investigate whether sweet taste will be changed after long term treatment with exenatide. The results showed that high-fat diet induced obese rats (HF-C) presented metabolic disorders in food intake, body weight, blood glucose and lipid metabolism compared with long term exenatide treated obese rats (EX) and normal chow fed control rats (NC). Meanwhile, greater preference for sweet taste was observed in HF-C rats but not in EX rats. Compared with NC rats, brain activities induced by sweet taste stimulation were stronger in HF-C rats, however these stronger activities were not found in EX rats. We further found reduced sweet taste receptor T1R3 in circumvallte taste buds of HF-C rats, while GLP-1 was increased. Besides, serum leptin was evaluated in HF-C rats with decreased leptin receptor expressed in taste buds. These changes were not observed in EX rats, which suggest them to be the underlying hormone and molecular mechanisms responsible for alterations in sweet taste of HF-C rats and EX rats. In summary, our results suggest that long term treatment with exenatide could benefit dietary obese rats partially by reversing sweet taste changes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Potential of Heterorhabditis indica to control Cylas formicarius in field culled sweet potato roots

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet potato weevil, Cylas formicarius, is one of the most destructive insect pests of sweet potato in Hawaii. The larvae feed and tunnel inside the root causing malformation and a bitter taste that makes the product unmarketable. During harvest, farmers leave off-grade roots in the field which se...

Purification and complete amino acid sequence of a new type of sweet protein taste-modifying activity, curculin.

PubMed

Yamashita, H; Theerasilp, S; Aiuchi, T; Nakaya, K; Nakamura, Y; Kurihara, Y

1990-09-15

A new taste-modifying protein named curculin was extracted with 0.5 M NaCl from the fruits of Curculigo latifolia and purified by ammonium sulfate fractionation, CM-Sepharose ion-exchange chromatography, and gel filtration. Purified curculin thus obtained gave a single band having a Mr of 12,000 on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of 8 M urea. The molecular weight determined by low-angle laser light scattering was 27,800. These results suggest that native curculin is a dimer of a 12,000-Da polypeptide. The complete amino acid sequence of curculin was determined by automatic Edman degradation. Curculin consists of 114 residues. Curculin itself elicits a sweet taste. After curculin, water elicits a sweet taste, and sour substances induce a stronger sense of sweetness. No protein with both sweet-tasting and taste-modifying activities has ever been found. There are five sets of tripeptides common to miraculin (a taste-modifying protein), six sets of tripeptides common to thaumatin (a sweet protein), and two sets of tripeptides common to monellin (a sweet protein). Anti-miraculin serum was not immunologically reactive with curculin. The mechanism of the taste-modifying action of curculin is discussed.

76 FR 58075 - Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: “Sanja Iveković: Sweet...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-19

... DEPARTMENT OF STATE [Public Notice: 7590] Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: ``Sanja Ivekovi[cacute]: Sweet Violence'' SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the following... exhibition ``Sanja Ivekovi[cacute]: Sweet Violence,'' imported from abroad for temporary exhibition within...

76 FR 58074 - Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: “Sanja Iveković: Sweet...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-19

... DEPARTMENT OF STATE [Public Notice: 7590] Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: ``Sanja Ivekovi[cacute]: Sweet Violence'' SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the following... exhibition ``Sanja Ivekovi[cacute]: Sweet Violence,'' imported from abroad for temporary exhibition within...

A collection of European sweet cherry phenology data for assessing climate change

PubMed Central

Wenden, Bénédicte; Campoy, José Antonio; Lecourt, Julien; López Ortega, Gregorio; Blanke, Michael; Radičević, Sanja; Schüller, Elisabeth; Spornberger, Andreas; Christen, Danilo; Magein, Hugo; Giovannini, Daniela; Campillo, Carlos; Malchev, Svetoslav; Peris, José Miguel; Meland, Mekjell; Stehr, Rolf; Charlot, Gérard; Quero-García, José

2016-01-01

Professional and scientific networks built around the production of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) led to the collection of phenology data for a wide range of cultivars grown in experimental sites characterized by highly contrasted climatic conditions. We present a dataset of flowering and maturity dates, recorded each year for one tree when available, or the average of several trees for each cultivar, over a period of 37 years (1978–2015). Such a dataset is extremely valuable for characterizing the phenological response to climate change, and the plasticity of the different cultivars’ behaviour under different environmental conditions. In addition, this dataset will support the development of predictive models for sweet cherry phenology exploitable at the continental scale, and will help anticipate breeding strategies in order to maintain and improve sweet cherry production in Europe. PMID:27922629

The optimized log interpretation method and sweet-spot prediction of gas-bearing shale reservoirs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tan, Maojin; Bai, Ze; Xu, Jingjing

2017-04-01

Shale gas is one of the most important unconventional oil and gas resources, and its lithology and reservoir type are both different from conventional reservoirs [1,2]. "Where are shale reservoirs" "How to determine the hydrocarbon potential" "How to evaluate the reservoir quality", these are some key problems in front of geophysicists. These are sweet spots prediction and quantitative evaluation. As we known, sweet spots of organic shale include geological sweet spot and engineering sweet spot. Geophysical well logging can provide a lot of in-site formation information along the borehole, and all parameters describing the sweet spots of organic shale are attained by geophysical log interpretation[2]. Based on geological and petrophysical characteristics of gas shale, the log response characteristics of gas shales are summarized. Geological sweet spot includes hydrocarbon potential, porosity, fracture, water saturation and total gas content, which can be calculated by using wireline logs[3]. Firstly, the based-logging hydrocarbon potential evaluation is carried out, and the RBF neural network method is developed to estimate the total organic carbon content (TOC), which was proved more effective and suitable than empirical formula and ΔlogR methods [4]. Next, the optimized log interpretation is achieved by using model-searching, and the mineral concentrations of kerogen, clay, feldspar and pyrite and porosity are calculated. On the other hand, engineering sweet spot of shale refers to the rock physical properties and rock mechanism parameters. Some elastic properties including volume module, shear modulus and Poisson's ratio are correspondingly determined from log interpretation, and the brittleness index (BI), effective stress and pore pressure are also estimated. BI is one of the most important engineering sweet spot parameters. A large number of instances show that the summarized log responses can accurately identify the gas-bearing shale, and the proposed RBF

Whole-Genome Characterization of Prunus necrotic ringspot virus Infecting Sweet Cherry in China.

PubMed

Wang, Jiawei; Zhai, Ying; Zhu, Dongzi; Liu, Weizhen; Pappu, Hanu R; Liu, Qingzhong

2018-03-01

Prunus necrotic ringspot virus (PNRSV) causes yield loss in most cultivated stone fruits, including sweet cherry. Using a small RNA deep-sequencing approach combined with end-genome sequence cloning, we identified the complete genomes of all three PNRSV strands from PNRSV-infected sweet cherry trees and compared them with those of two previously reported isolates. Copyright © 2018 Wang et al.

Detection of Sour Skin Diseases in Vidalia Sweet Onions using Near-Infrared Hyperspectral Imaging

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Vidalia sweet onion is an important specialty crop grown in southeast area of Georgia, which accounts for approximate 13% of the vegetable farm gate value in the state. However, Vidalia sweet onions are more prone to rotting and sprouting due to lacking some pungent compounds found in other onion va...

The high-sweet-fat food craving among women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder: emotional response, implicit attitude and rewards sensitivity.

PubMed

Yen, Ju-Yu; Chang, Shun-Jen; Ko, Chih-Hung; Yen, Cheng-Fang; Chen, Cheng-Sheng; Yeh, Yi-Chun; Chen, Cheng-Chung

2010-09-01

This study aimed to: (1) evaluate food craving and high-sweet-fat food craving across the menstrual cycle; (2) compare the craving and explicit/implicit emotional response to different food; and (3) investigate the reward sensitivity among PMDD and control groups. The PMDD group without treatment history and control group were evaluated for food craving, emotional response to food, implicit attitude task to food, and responsiveness to reward both in luteal and follicular phases. A total of 59 women with PMDD and 60 controls had completed the study. The results revealed that both PMDD diagnosis and luteal phase were associated with higher body mass index. The high-sweet-fat food provoked higher craving, positive emotional, and positive implicit response more than other foods. The luteal phase contributed to higher food and high-sweet-fat food cravings. Besides, the PMDD women had higher reward sensitivity, emotional response, positive implicit attitude, and craving response to high-sweet-fat foods. Further, the rewarding sensitivity was associated with emotional response to high-sweet-fat food which was associated with high-sweet-fat food craving. These results would suggest emotional response and implicit attitude might play a role for high-sweet-fat food craving of PMDD. Further, PMDD women with higher reward sensitivity should be a target group of intervention for high-sweet-fat food craving. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Sugar triggers our reward-system. Sweets release opiates which stimulates the appetite for sucrose--insulin can depress it].

PubMed

Erlanson-Albertsson, Charlotte

The consumption of sweet food has increased in Sweden, as in other Western countries. The type of food item has changed. The sweet is dominated by soft drinks. Appetite regulation for sucrose has been described in experimental animal models. It has been found that opioids stimulate appetite for sucrose. At the same time sucrose releases endogenous opioids so that a triggering of sucrose consumption occurs. Insulin has been shown to decrease sucrose intake by blocking the opioid response. Sucrose addiction has been described in rat model. With a concentrated sucrose solution to drink an opioid dependence developed with 1) increased consumption of sucrose 2) abstinence symptoms with no sucrose and 3) anxiety with an opiate blocker. Sucrose addiction in man has not been described in the scientific literature. There is an increased liking of sweets with alcoholic persons, which may be significant to support a strongly rewarding effect of sucrose, also in man. We should limit the access to sweet foods, in particular the sweet drinks. Insulin and insulin sensitivity may be an important factor to restrict the intake of sweet food.

Diurnal Variation of Sweet Taste Recognition Thresholds Is Absent in Overweight and Obese Humans

PubMed Central

Sanematsu, Keisuke; Nakamura, Yuki; Nomura, Masatoshi; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2018-01-01

Sweet taste thresholds are positively related to plasma leptin levels in normal weight humans: both show parallel diurnal variations and associations with postprandial glucose and insulin rises. Here, we tested whether this relationship also exists in overweight and obese (OW/Ob) individuals with hyperleptinemia. We tested 36 Japanese OW/Ob subjects (body mass index (BMI) > 25 kg/m2) for recognition thresholds for various taste stimuli at seven different time points from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. using the staircase methodology, and measured plasma leptin, insulin, and blood glucose levels before each taste threshold measurement. We also used the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) to evaluate insulin resistance. The results demonstrated that, unlike normal weight subjects, OW/Ob subjects showed no significant diurnal variations in the recognition thresholds for sweet stimuli but exhibited negative associations between the diurnal variations of both leptin and sweet recognition thresholds and the HOMA-IR scores. These findings suggest that in OW/Ob subjects, the basal leptin levels (~20 ng/mL) may already exceed leptin’s effective concentration for the modulation of sweet sensitivity and that this leptin resistance-based attenuation of the diurnal variations of the sweet taste recognition thresholds may also be indirectly linked to insulin resistance in OW/Ob subjects. PMID:29498693

Sweets, sweetened beverages, and risk of pancreatic cancer in a large population-based case-control study.

PubMed

Chan, June M; Wang, Furong; Holly, Elizabeth A

2009-08-01

We examined the associations between sweets, sweetened and unsweetened beverages, and sugars and pancreatic cancer risk. We conducted a population-based case-control study (532 cases, 1,701 controls) and used multivariate logistic regression models to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Because associations were often different by sex, we present results for men and women combined and separately. Among men, greater intakes of total and specific sweets were associated with pancreatic cancer risk (total sweets: OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.0, 3.6; sweet condiments: OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.2, 3.1; chocolate candy: OR = 2.4, 95% CI: 1.1, 5.0; other mixed candy bars: OR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.5, 7.3 for 1 + servings/day versus none/rarely). Sweets were not consistently associated with risk among women. Sweetened beverages were not associated with increased pancreatic cancer risk. In contrast, low-calorie soft drinks were associated with increased risk among men only; while other low-/non-caloric beverages (e.g., coffee, tea, and water) were unassociated with risk. Of the three sugars assessed (lactose, fructose, and sucrose), only the milk sugar lactose was associated with pancreatic cancer risk (OR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.5, 2.7 comparing extreme quartiles). These results provide limited support for the hypothesis that sweets or sugars increase pancreatic cancer risk.

Sweets and fats tasting in patients with anorexia nervosa: the role of the thought-shape fusion cognitive distortion.

PubMed

Monje Moreno, José Manuel; Alvarez Amor, Leticia; Ruiz-Prieto, Inmaculada; Bolaños-Ríos, Patricia; Jáuregui-Lobera, Ignacio

2014-05-01

It has been found that the olfactorygustatory function is altered in patients with eating disorders, with an impairment affecting the perception of olfactory and gustatory stimuli. The aim was to explore the subjective reactivity after the exposure and tasting of foods with different gradient of sweetness and different fats textures. In addition, changes in the thought-shape fusion (TSF) cognitive distortion were assessed after tasting those different presentations as well as the correlations between the initial scores on TSF-Questionnaire (TSF-Q) and the different responses after that tasting. A total of 15 healthy controls and 23 outpatients with anorexia nervosa underwent two sessions of tasting (sweets with different gradient of sweetness and fats with different textures) and they filled several questionnaires (pre- and post-tasting) to measure their responses after tasting. Participants showed less "self-control" after tasting sweets. The score on TSF-Q increased significantly after the sweets tasting in the patients group. Patients had the worst response after tasting presentations with more quantity of glucose (less gradient of sweetness) than after tasting those with more amount of sucrose (much more sweetness). With respect to the fats, patients showed the worst reaction after tasting the most unfamiliar texture. Pre fats tasting TSF-Q scores correlated significantly with all responses in the patients group. Both psychological and biological (e.g. genetic) factors could be involved in the reactions of patients with anorexia nervosa after tasting sweets and fats. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

Enhancing monoterpene alcohols in sweet potato shochu using the diglycoside-specific β-primeverosidase.

PubMed

Sato, Yuichiro; Han, Jinshun; Fukuda, Hisashi; Mikami, Shigeaki

2018-02-01

Monoterpene alcohols (MTAs) are characteristic flavour-imparting compounds in sweet potato shochu (Japanese distilled spirit) that are liberated following hydrolysis by specific enzymes during fermentation. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of an exogenously added diglycoside-specific β-glycosidase (β-primeverosidase) on aroma formation during shochu brewing using various sweet potato species to address whether MTAs are predominantly present as diglycosidic precursors in raw materials. The results showed that the amount of MTAs produced from enzyme-treated mash was dramatically increased by 2- to 9-fold compared with untreated controls, and the increase varied with sweet potato species. In addition, levels of methyl salicylate, 1-octene-3-ol and ethyl benzoate were also elevated by enzyme treatment. These results indicate that a large amount of MTAs and other volatile aroma compounds are stored in the form of disaccharide β-glycosides such as β-primeverosides in sweet potato. This enzyme may therefore be useful for controlling aroma formation during shochu manufacturing, and may ultimately contribute to diversifying shochu quality. Copyright © 2017 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Using patient lists to add value to integrated data repositories.

PubMed

Wade, Ted D; Zelarney, Pearlanne T; Hum, Richard C; McGee, Sylvia; Batson, Deborah H

2014-12-01

Patient lists are project-specific sets of patients that can be queried in integrated data repositories (IDR's). By allowing a set of patients to be an addition to the qualifying conditions of a query, returned results will refer to, and only to, that set of patients. We report a variety of use cases for such lists, including: restricting retrospective chart review to a defined set of patients; following a set of patients for practice management purposes; distributing "honest-brokered" (deidentified) data; adding phenotypes to biosamples; and enhancing the content of study or registry data. Among the capabilities needed to implement patient lists in an IDR are: capture of patient identifiers from a query and feedback of these into the IDR; the existence of a permanent internal identifier in the IDR that is mappable to external identifiers; the ability to add queryable attributes to the IDR; the ability to merge data from multiple queries; and suitable control over user access and de-identification of results. We implemented patient lists in a custom IDR of our own design. We reviewed capabilities of other published IDRs for focusing on sets of patients. The widely used i2b2 IDR platform has various ways to address patient sets, and it could be modified to add the low-overhead version of patient lists that we describe. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparative analysis of phytochemicals and nutrient availability in two contrasting cultivars of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.).

PubMed

Shekhar, Shubhendu; Mishra, Divya; Buragohain, Alak Kumar; Chakraborty, Subhra; Chakraborty, Niranjan

2015-04-15

Sweet potato ranks as the world's seventh most important food crop, and has major contribution to energy and phytochemical source of nutrition. To unravel the molecular basis for differential nutrient availability, and to exploit the natural genetic variation(s) of sweet potato, a series of physiochemical and proteomics experiment was conducted using two contrasting cultivars, an orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) and a white-fleshed sweet potato (WFSP). Phytochemical screening revealed high percentage of carbohydrate, reducing sugar and phenolics in WFSP, whereas OFSP showed increased levels of total protein, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and carotenoids. The rate of starch and cellulose degradation was found to be less in OFSP during storage, indicating tight regulation of gene(s) responsible for starch-degradation. Comparative proteomics displayed a cultivar-dependent expression of proteins along with evolutionarily conserved proteins. These results suggest that cultivar-specific expression of proteins and/or their interacting partners might play a crucial role for nutrient acquisition in sweet potato. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transcriptional dynamics of the developing sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) fruit: sequencing, annotation and expression profiling of exocarp-associated genes

PubMed Central

Alkio, Merianne; Jonas, Uwe; Declercq, Myriam; Van Nocker, Steven; Knoche, Moritz

2014-01-01

The exocarp, or skin, of fleshy fruit is a specialized tissue that protects the fruit, attracts seed dispersing fruit eaters, and has large economical relevance for fruit quality. Development of the exocarp involves regulated activities of many genes. This research analyzed global gene expression in the exocarp of developing sweet cherry (Prunus avium L., ‘Regina’), a fruit crop species with little public genomic resources. A catalog of transcript models (contigs) representing expressed genes was constructed from de novo assembled short complementary DNA (cDNA) sequences generated from developing fruit between flowering and maturity at 14 time points. Expression levels in each sample were estimated for 34 695 contigs from numbers of reads mapping to each contig. Contigs were annotated functionally based on BLAST, gene ontology and InterProScan analyses. Coregulated genes were detected using partitional clustering of expression patterns. The results are discussed with emphasis on genes putatively involved in cuticle deposition, cell wall metabolism and sugar transport. The high temporal resolution of the expression patterns presented here reveals finely tuned developmental specialization of individual members of gene families. Moreover, the de novo assembled sweet cherry fruit transcriptome with 7760 full-length protein coding sequences and over 20 000 other, annotated cDNA sequences together with their developmental expression patterns is expected to accelerate molecular research on this important tree fruit crop. PMID:26504533

GENETIC DIVERSITY OF SOME IRANIAN SWEET CHERRY (PRUNUS AVIUM) CULTIVARS USING MICROSATELLITE MARKERS AND MORPHOLOGICAL TRAITS.

PubMed

Farsad, A; Esna-Ashari, M

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to characterize 23 important Iranian sweet cherry (Prunus avium) cultivars collected from different provinces of Iran and 1 foreign cultivar, which was used as control, considered for breeding programs by using 21 microsatellite markers and 27 morphological traits. In sweet cherry (Prunus avium) accessions, leaf, fruit, and stone morphological characters were evaluated during two consecutive years. The study revealed a high variability in the set of evaluated sweet cherry accessions. The majority of important correlations were determined among variables representing fruit and leaf size and variables related to color. Cluster analysis distinguished sweet cherry accessions into two distinct groups. Principal component analysis (PCA) of qualitative and quantitative morphological parameters explained over 86.59% of total variability in the first seven axes. In PCA, leaf traits such as leaf length and width, and fruit traits such as length, width, and weight, and fruit flesh and juice color were predominant in the first two components, indicating that they were useful for the assessment of sweet cherry germplasm characterization. Out of 21 SSR markers, 16 were polymorphic, producing 177 alleles that varied from 4 to 16 alleles (9.35 on average) with a mean heterozygosity value of 0.82 that produced successful amplifications and revealed DNA polymorphisms. Allele size varied from 95 to 290 bp. Cluster analyses showed that the studied sweet cherry genotypes were classified intofive main groups based mainly on their species characteristics and SSR data. In general, our results did not show a clear structuring of genetic variability within the Iranian diffusion area of sweet cherry, so it was not possible to draw any indications on regions of provenance delimitation. The results of this study contribute to a better understanding of sweet cherry genetic variations in Iran, thus making for more efficient programs aimed at preserving biodiversity and

Sweet taste transduction in hamster: sweeteners and cyclic nucleotides depolarize taste cells by reducing a K+ current.

PubMed

Cummings, T A; Daniels, C; Kinnamon, S C

1996-03-01

1. The gigaseal voltage-clamp technique was used to record responses of hamster taste receptor cells to synthetic sweeteners and cyclic nucleotides. Voltage-dependent currents and steady-state currents were monitored during bath exchanges of saccharin, two high-potency sweeteners, 8-chlorophenylthio-adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8cpt-cAMP), and dibutyryl-guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (db-cGMP). 2. Of the 237 fungiform taste cells studied, only one in eight was sweet responsive. Outward currents, both voltage-dependent and resting, were reduced by all of the sweeteners tested in sweet-responsive taste cells, whereas these currents were unaffected by sweeteners in sweet-unresponsive taste cells. 3. In every sweet-responsive cell tested, 8cpt-cAMP and db-cGMP mimicked the response to the sweeteners, but neither nucleotide elicited responses in sweet-unresponsive cells. Thus there was a one-to-one correlation between sweet responsivity and cyclic nucleotide responsivity. 4. Sweet responses showed cross adaptation with cyclic nucleotide responses. This indicates that the same ion channel is modulated by sweeteners and cyclic nucleotides. 5. The sweetener- and cyclic nucleotide-blocked current had an apparent reversal potential of -50 mV, which was close to the potassium reversal potential in these experiments. In addition, there was no effect of sweeteners and cyclic nucleotides in the presence of the K+ channel blocker tetraethylammonium bromide (TEA). These data suggest that block of a resting, TEA-sensitive K+ current is the final common step leading to taste cell depolarization during sweet transduction. 6. These data, together with data from a previous study (Cummings et al. 1993), suggest that both synthetic sweeteners and sucrose utilize second-messenger pathways that block a resting K+ conductance to depolarize the taste cell membrane.

Transcriptome profiling and digital gene expression analysis of sweet potato for the identification of putative genes involved in the defense response against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. batatas.

PubMed

Lin, Yuli; Zou, Weikun; Lin, Shiqiang; Onofua, Dennis; Yang, Zhijian; Chen, Haizhou; Wang, Songliang; Chen, Xuanyang

2017-01-01

Sweet potato production is constrained by Fusarium wilt, which is caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. batatas (Fob). The identification of genes related to disease resistance and the underlying mechanisms will contribute to improving disease resistance via sweet potato breeding programs. In the present study, we performed de novo transcriptome assembly and digital gene expression (DGE) profiling of sweet potato challenged with Fob using Illumina HiSeq technology. In total, 89,944,188 clean reads were generated from 12 samples and assembled into 101,988 unigenes with an average length of 666 bp; of these unigenes, 62,605 (61.38%) were functionally annotated in the NCBI non-redundant protein database by BLASTX with a cutoff E-value of 10-5. Clusters of Orthologous Groups (COG), Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) annotations were examined to explore the unigenes' functions. We constructed four DGE libraries for the sweet potato cultivars JinShan57 (JS57, highly resistant) and XinZhongHua (XZH, highly susceptible), which were challenged with pathogenic Fob. Genes that were differentially expressed in the four libraries were identified by comparing the transcriptomes. Various genes that were differentially expressed during defense, including chitin elicitor receptor kinase 1 (CERK), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), WRKY, NAC, MYB, and ethylene-responsive transcription factor (ERF), as well as resistance genes, pathogenesis-related genes, and genes involved in salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA) signaling pathways, were identified. These data represent a sequence resource for genetic and genomic studies of sweet potato that will enhance the understanding of the mechanism of disease resistance.

Characterization of the Binding Site of Aspartame in the Human Sweet Taste Receptor.

PubMed

Maillet, Emeline L; Cui, Meng; Jiang, Peihua; Mezei, Mihaly; Hecht, Elizabeth; Quijada, Jeniffer; Margolskee, Robert F; Osman, Roman; Max, Marianna

2015-10-01

The sweet taste receptor, a heterodimeric G protein-coupled receptor comprised of T1R2 and T1R3, binds sugars, small molecule sweeteners, and sweet proteins to multiple binding sites. The dipeptide sweetener, aspartame binds in the Venus Flytrap Module (VFTM) of T1R2. We developed homology models of the open and closed forms of human T1R2 and human T1R3 VFTMs and their dimers and then docked aspartame into the closed form of T1R2's VFTM. To test and refine the predictions of our model, we mutated various T1R2 VFTM residues, assayed activity of the mutants and identified 11 critical residues (S40, Y103, D142, S144, S165, S168, Y215, D278, E302, D307, and R383) in and proximal to the binding pocket of the sweet taste receptor that are important for ligand recognition and activity of aspartame. Furthermore, we propose that binding is dependent on 2 water molecules situated in the ligand pocket that bridge 2 carbonyl groups of aspartame to residues D142 and L279. These results shed light on the activation mechanism and how signal transmission arising from the extracellular domain of the T1R2 monomer of the sweet receptor leads to the perception of sweet taste. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Intake of sweet foods and counts of cariogenic microorganisms in obese and normal-weight women.

PubMed

Barkeling, B; Andersson, I; Lindroos, A K; Birkhed, D; Rössner, S

2001-10-01

To study the intake of sweet foods in obese and normal-weight women, while also taking menstrual cycle effects on eating behaviour into consideration. An objective test of the intake of sugar-containing foods was introduced by measuring salivary counts of mutans streptococci and lactobacilli. A cross-sectional comparison of the intake of sweet foods in obese and normal-weight women. The obese women were also studied longitudinally after 10 weeks in a weight reduction programme. Obese (n=72, body mass index (BMI) 42.0+/-5.2 kg/m2) and normal-weight women (n=67, BMI 22.2+/-1.6 kg/m2) participated. Mutans streptococci in saliva were higher in obese than in normal-weight women (P<0.0001), although the reported habitual daily intake of sweet foods did not differ. Of the menstruating women, 80% of the obese subjects and 62% of the normal-weight ones (P<0.05) reported periods during the menstrual cycle with an 'extra large' intake of sweet foods; these intakes were higher in obese than in normal-weight women (P<0.01). The obese women reduced their intake of sweet foods after 10 weeks of weight reduction, although these changes were not pronounced enough to significantly affect the counts of cariogenic microorganisms. In contrast to most previous cross-sectional studies, this study shows that obese women have a higher intake of sweet foods, especially pre-menstrually. This was indicated by higher salivary counts of cariogenic microorganisms. Karolinska Institute Research Funds.

The use of sensory attributes, sugar content, instrumental data and consumer acceptability in selection of sweet potato varieties.

PubMed

Laurie, Sunette M; Faber, Mieke; Calitz, Frikkie J; Moelich, Erika I; Muller, Nina; Labuschagne, Maryke T

2013-05-01

As eating quality is important for adoption of new varieties, nine orange-fleshed and three cream-fleshed sweet potato varieties were assessed for sensory characteristics, dry mass and free sugar content, instrumental texture and colour and consumer acceptability (n =  216) in a peri-urban South African setting. Cream-fleshed varieties were higher in yellow-green colour and sweet potato-like flavour and lower in graininess. Orange-fleshed varieties were higher in pumpkin-like flavour, orange colour, discolouration and sucrose content. Partial least squares regression analysis showed that the most accepted varieties (Impilo, Excel, Resisto, 2001_5_2, Serolane, W-119 and Monate) were associated with sweet flavour, dry mass and maltose content, while the least accepted varieties (Beauregard, Khano and 1999_1_7) were associated with wateriness. Pearson correlation analysis highlighted correlations of sensory attributes yellow and orange with instrumental colour measurements (colour a* and colour b*), instrumental firmness with sensory firmness, dry mass with sensory wateriness, and maltose content with sensory sweet and sweet potato-like flavour. The varieties were clustered into three groups. Consumer acceptability for eating quality correlated with maltose content, dry mass and sweet flavour. Chemical and instrumental measurements were identified to evaluate key attributes and will be useful in the intermediate phases of sweet potato varietal development. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

Influence of yeast macromolecules on sweetness in dry wines: role of the saccharomyces cerevisiae protein Hsp12.

PubMed

Marchal, Axel; Marullo, Philippe; Moine, Virginie; Dubourdieu, Denis

2011-03-09

Yeast autolysis during lees contact influences the organoleptic properties of wines especially by increasing their sweet taste. Although observed by winemakers, this phenomenon is poorly explained in enology. Moreover, the compounds responsible for sweetness in wine remain unidentified. This work provides new insights in this way by combining sensorial, biochemical and genetic approaches. First, we verified by sensory analysis that yeast autolysis in red wine has a significant effect on sweetness. Moderate additions of ethanol or glycerol did not have the same effect. Second, a sapid fraction was isolated from lees extracts by successive ultrafiltrations and HPLC purifications. Using nano-LC-MS/MS, peptides released by the yeast heat shock protein Hsp12p were distinctly identified in this sample. Third, we confirmed the sweet contribution of this protein by sensorial comparison of red wines incubated with two kinds of yeast strains: a wild-type strain containing the native Hsp12p and a deletion mutant strain that lacks the Hsp12p protein (Δ°HSP12 strain). Red wines incubated with wild-type strain showed a significantly higher sweetness than control wines incubated with Δ°HSP12 strains. These results demonstrated the contribution of protein Hsp12p in the sweet perception consecutive to yeast autolysis in wine.

Volatile and nonvolatile flavor chemical evaluation of USDA orange-mandarin hybrids for comparison to sweet orange and mandarin fruit

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Three citrus hybrids, containing 50-75% sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) genome in their pedigrees and similar to sweet orange in fruit size, color and taste, were tested for their potential to be classified as new “sweet orange” cultivars. 'Hamlin', ‘Midsweet’, and three other early to mid-season swe...

Higher Potassium Concentration in Shoots Reduces Gray Mold in Sweet Basil.

PubMed

Yermiyahu, Uri; Israeli, Lior; David, Dalia Rav; Faingold, Inna; Elad, Yigal

2015-08-01

Nutritional elements can affect plant susceptibility to plant pathogens, including Botrytis cinerea. We tested the effect of potassium (K) fertilization on gray mold in sweet basil grown in pots, containers, and soil. Increased K in the irrigation water and in the sweet basil tissue resulted in an exponential decrease in gray mold severity. Potassium supplied to plants by foliar application resulted in a significant decrease in gray mold in plants grown with a low rate of K fertigation. Lower K fertigation resulted in a significant increase in B. cinerea infection under semi-commercial conditions. Gray mold severity in harvested shoots was significantly negatively correlated with K concentration in the irrigation solution, revealing resistance to B. cinerea infection as a result of high K concentration in sweet basil tissue. Gray mold was reduced following K foliar application of the plants. In general, there was no synergy between the fertigation and foliar spray treatments. Proper K fertilization can replace some of the required chemical fungicide treatments and it may be integrated into gray mold management for improved disease suppression.

Perception of bitterness, sweetness and liking of different genotypes of lettuce.

PubMed

Chadwick, M; Gawthrop, F; Michelmore, R W; Wagstaff, C; Methven, L

2016-04-15

Lettuce is an important leafy vegetable, consumed across the world, containing bitter sesquiterpenoid lactone (SL) compounds that may negatively affect consumer acceptance and consumption. We assessed liking of samples with differing absolute abundance and different ratios of bitter:sweet compounds by analysing recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from an interspecific lettuce mapping population derived from a cross between a wild (L. serriola acc. UC96US23) and domesticated lettuce (L. sativa, cv. Salinas). We found that the ratio of bitter:sweet compounds was a key determinant of bitterness perception and liking. We were able to demonstrate that SLs, such as 8-deoxylactucin-15-sulphate, contribute most strongly to bitterness perception, whilst 15-p-hydroxylphenylacetyllactucin-8-sulphate does not contribute to bitter taste. Glucose was the sugar most highly correlated with sweetness perception. There is a genetic basis to the biochemical composition of lettuce. This information will be useful in lettuce breeding programmes in order to produce leaves with more favourable taste profiles. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimation methods and parameter assessment for ethanol yields from total soluble solids of sweet sorghum

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Estimation methods and evaluation of ethanol yield from sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench.) based on agronomic production traits and juice characteristics is important for developing parents and inbred lines of sweet sorghum that can be used by the bio-ethanol industry. The objectives of th...

Sweet and fat taste preference in obesity have different associations with personality and eating behavior.

PubMed

Elfhag, K; Erlanson-Albertsson, C

2006-06-15

The aim of this study was to test associations between self-reported attitudes of sweet and fat taste preferences and psychological constructs of eating behavior and personality in obesity. Sixty obese patients were included. The Three Factor Eating Questionnaire was used for the assessment of psychological constructs of eating behavior, and the Swedish universities Scales of Personality was used for measuring personality traits. A strong sweet taste preference was associated with more neurotic personality traits (P=.003), in particular lack of assertiveness (P=.001) and embitterment (P=.002). Strong fat taste preference was rather related to lower levels of the eating characteristic cognitive restraint (P=.017), implying less attempts to restrict and control food intake. Whereas strong sweet taste preference was linked to a personality style in obesity, strong fat preference could be more an aspect of eating behavior. A psychobiological stress model is discussed in relation to the results on sweet preference and hampered personality functioning.

Associations between the home environment and children's sweet beverage consumption at 2-year follow-up: the 'Be active, eat right' study.

PubMed

van Grieken, A; Renders, C M; van de Gaar, V M; Hirasing, R A; Raat, H

2015-04-01

This study evaluates the association between home environmental characteristics and sweet beverage consumption (i.e. beverages that contain sugar) of 7-year-old children. The population for analysis consisted of n = 2047 parents and their children from the population-based 'Be active, eat right' study. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, parental beliefs, parenting practices and child's sweet beverage consumption were obtained by parental report with questionnaires. We performed linear and multinomial regression analyses evaluating associations between characteristics at age 5 years and (i) consumption at 7 years and (ii) consumption patterns between age 5 and 7 years with reference category 'low consumption'. Based on the report from their parents, 5-year-old children drank on average 3.0 (SD:1.4) sweet beverage per day. Children consumed less sweet beverages at age 7 years (beta -0.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] -0.24 to -0.09) when there were less sweet beverages available at home. The multinomial regression model showed that children with parents who discouraged sweet beverage consumption were more likely to decrease their sweet beverage consumption over the study period (odds ratio: 1.24, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.43). Moreover, when there were less sweet beverages available at home, children were less likely to increase their consumption or have a high consumption over the study period (odds ratio: 0.70, 95% CI 0.59 to 0.83 and 0.61, 95% CI 0.54 to 0.70, respectively). The results showed that characteristics of the home environment are associated with the consumption of sweet beverages among children. Specifically, the availability of sweet beverages at home is associated with the child's sweet beverage consumption. © 2014 The Authors. Pediatric Obesity © 2014 World Obesity.

Genome-wide analysis of the R2R3-MYB transcription factor gene family in sweet orange (Citrus sinensis).

PubMed

Liu, Chaoyang; Wang, Xia; Xu, Yuantao; Deng, Xiuxin; Xu, Qiang

2014-10-01

MYB transcription factor represents one of the largest gene families in plant genomes. Sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) is one of the most important fruit crops worldwide, and recently the genome has been sequenced. This provides an opportunity to investigate the organization and evolutionary characteristics of sweet orange MYB genes from whole genome view. In the present study, we identified 100 R2R3-MYB genes in the sweet orange genome. A comprehensive analysis of this gene family was performed, including the phylogeny, gene structure, chromosomal localization and expression pattern analyses. The 100 genes were divided into 29 subfamilies based on the sequence similarity and phylogeny, and the classification was also well supported by the highly conserved exon/intron structures and motif composition. The phylogenomic comparison of MYB gene family among sweet orange and related plant species, Arabidopsis, cacao and papaya suggested the existence of functional divergence during evolution. Expression profiling indicated that sweet orange R2R3-MYB genes exhibited distinct temporal and spatial expression patterns. Our analysis suggested that the sweet orange MYB genes may play important roles in different plant biological processes, some of which may be potentially involved in citrus fruit quality. These results will be useful for future functional analysis of the MYB gene family in sweet orange.

Process for Biotransformation of Androsta-4-ene-3, 17-Dione (4-AD) to Androsta-1,4-Diene-3,17-Dione (ADD).

PubMed

Prakash, Surya; Bajaj, Abhay

2017-01-01

Androsta-1,4-diene-3,17-dione (androstadienedione, ADD) is key intermediate for the organic synthesis of a variety of female sex hormones such as estrone, estradiol, estriol and other related derivatives. De novo synthesis of this molecule is not yet reported in any form of living system, i.e., microbial, plant, and animal. The structural complexities due to presence of several chiral carbon centers create significant hurdles in chemical synthesis of such molecules. Microbe-mediated biotransformation offer a highly reliable, cost-effective, and relatively non hazardous way for commercial manufacturing of steroidal key intermediates. Currently microbial biotransformations are extensively being exploited for large-scale production of basic intermediates such as androstenedione (AD), ADD, and several types of hydroxylated derivatives of androstane compounds. In this chapter several aspects of microbial biotransformation process of AD to ADD are discussed.

Personal Variation in Preference for Sweetness: Effects of Age and Obesity.

PubMed

Bobowski, Nuala; Mennella, Julie A

2017-10-01

Use of nonnutritive sweeteners (NNSs), which provide sweet taste with few to no calories, has increased, but data on whether children's hedonic responses to NNSs differ from nutritive sugars or from adults' hedonic responses are limited. Most preferred levels of sucrose and the NNS sucralose were determined via a forced-choice tracking procedure in 48 children, 7-14 years (mean = 10 years), and 34 adults. Each participant also rated the liking of these taste stimuli, as well as varying concentrations of aspartame on 3- and 5-point facial hedonic scales. Anthropometric measures were obtained, and motives for palatable food intake were assessed with the Palatable Eating Motives Scale (PEMS, adults) and Kids PEMS. While use of the 3-point scale showed no age-related differences in liking of sweeteners, the 5-point scale showed that more children than adults liked higher concentrations of sucrose, sucralose, and aspartame, and the tracking procedure showed that children most preferred higher concentrations of sucrose and sucralose than adults. Regardless of age, sweet preference did not differ between obese and nonobese participants and showed no association with motives for eating palatable foods. Children's body mass index z-scores were positively associated with social and conformity motive scores for eating palatable foods. Research should move beyond measures of variation in sweet taste hedonics to include identifying motives, and the physiological and psychological consequences of eating sweets, to shed light on what children are more vulnerable to develop unfavorable eating habits, increasing risk for obesity, and other diseases.

Growth, Yield, and Nutritional Responses of Chamber-Grown Sweet Potato to Elevated Carbon Dioxide Levels Expected Across the Next 200 Years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czeck, B. C.; Jahren, H.; Deenik, J. L.; Crow, S. E.; Schubert, B.; Stewart, M.

2012-12-01

Understanding the effects of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations on crops will be critical to assuring that sufficient food is available to the world's growing population. Previous work has shown that slightly elevated CO2 levels (CO2 = 550-700 ppm) increase the economic yield of most crops by ~33%, on average. The majority of these studies have focused on rice, wheat, and soybean; however, climate change is expected to have greatest impact on regions of the world that rely heavily on root crops, such as sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas). Sweet potato is cultivated in more than 100 developing countries; it is ranked seventh in world crop statistics and can produce more edible energy per hectare and per day than wheat, rice or cassava. In order to quantify the effect that rising CO2 levels will have on sweet potato, we grew a total of 64 sweet potato plants to maturity in large controlled growth chambers at ambient, 760, 1,140, and 1,520-ppm CO2 levels. At planting, initial measurements (of mass, length, and number of nodes) for each plant were recorded. Throughout the duration of the experiment (90 days) measurements (of stem length, and number of leaves) were recorded every 7 to 14 days. To ensure optimum growing conditions moisture content was monitored using soil tensiometers; temperature, relative humidity and CO2 concentrations were recorded every ten minutes. Half the plants were supplemented with an inorganic fertilizer and the other half with an organic fertilizer to test the effect of nutrient availability on biomass production under elevated CO2 levels. After 3 months of growth, we measured fresh and dry biomass of all above- and below-ground tissues. Results showed a substantial increase in both above- and below-ground biomass at elevated levels of CO2. For the organic treatment, a 43% increase in aboveground dry biomass at the highest CO2 concentration (1520ppm) was found; the inorganic treatment showed a 31% increase. The

Continuous conversion of sweet sorghum juice to ethanol using immobilized yeast cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mohite, U.; SivaRaman, H.

1984-01-01

While extensive work has been reported on sugarcane and sugarcane molasses for ethanol production, relatively few reports are available on ethanol production from sweet sorghum juice. With the advent of immobilized cell technology, an attempt has been made to utilize this technology for the production of ethanol from sweet sorghum juice. The species was Sorghum bicolar (Moench). The maximum productivity obtained at 30/sup 0/C with Saccharomyces uvarum cells immobilized in gelatin was 168 g/L h at an ethanol concentration of 2.4 g (w/v) using sweet sorghum juice having 11.5% fermentable sugars. The calculated value for full conversion was 86 g/Lmore » at an ethanol concentration of 5.5 g (w/v). The low concentration of total sugars in the juice, however, would make ethanol recovery expensive unless a uniformly high concentration of 16% or more of total sugars can be obtained.« less

Nutritional status alters saccharin intake and sweet receptor mRNA expression in rat taste buds.

PubMed

Chen, Ke; Yan, Jianqun; Suo, Yi; Li, Jinrong; Wang, Qian; Lv, Bo

2010-04-14

Sweet taste usually signifies the presence of caloric food. It is commonly accepted that a close association exists among sweet taste perception, preference, and nutritional status. However, the mechanisms involved remain unknown. To investigate whether nutritional status affects the preference for palatable solutions and alters sweet taste receptor gene expression in rats, we measured saccharin intake and preference using a two-bottle preference test, and changes in body weight, plasma leptin levels, and gene expression for the sweet taste receptor in taste buds in high-fat diet-induced obese rats and chronically diet-restricted rats. We found that the consumption and preference ratios for 0.01 and 0.04 M saccharin were significantly lower in the high-fat diet-induced obese rats than in the normal diet rats, while the serum leptin levels were markedly increased in obese rats. Consistent with the changes in saccharin intake, the gene expression level of the sweet taste receptor T1R3 was significantly decreased in the high-fat diet-induced obese rats compared with the control rats. By contrast, the chronically diet-restricted rats showed remarkably enhanced consumption and preference for 0.04 M saccharin. The serum leptin concentration was decreased, and the gene expression of the leptin receptor was markedly increased in the taste buds. In conclusion, our results suggest that nutritional status alters saccharin preference and the expression of T1R3 in taste buds. These processes may be involved in the mechanisms underlying the modulation of peripheral sweet taste sensitivity, in which leptin plays a role. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Selecting odorant compounds to enhance sweet flavor perception by gas chromatography/olfactometry-associated taste (GC/O-AT).

PubMed

Barba, Carmen; Beno, Noelle; Guichard, Elisabeth; Thomas-Danguin, Thierry

2018-08-15

Gas chromatography/olfactometry-associated taste (GC/O-AT) analysis combined with mass spectrometry allowed identification of odorant compounds associated with taste attributes (sweet, salty, bitter and sour) in a multi-fruit juice. Nine compounds were selected for their odor-associated sweetness enhancement in a multi-fruit juice odor context using Olfactoscan and for their odor-induced sweet taste enhancement in sucrose solution and sugar-reduced fruit juice through sensory tests. Sweetness of the fruit juice odor was significantly enhanced by methyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl butanoate, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate and linalool; sweet perception was significantly enhanced in 7% sucrose solution by ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, furaneol and γ-decalactone, and in 32% sugar-reduced fruit juice by ethyl 2-methylbutanoate. GC/O-AT analysis is a novel, efficient approach to select odorants associated with a given taste. The further screening of taste-associated odorants by Olfactoscan helps to identify the most efficient odorants to enhance a target taste perception and may be used to find new ways to modulate taste perception in foods and beverages. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Examination of the perception of sweet- and bitter-like taste qualities in sucralose preferring and avoiding rats.

PubMed

Torregrossa, A-M; Loney, G C; Smith, J C; Eckel, L A

2015-03-01

Sucralose avoiding rats detect a bitter-like taste quality in concentrations of sucralose that are strongly preferred over water by sucralose preferring rats. Here, we investigated whether sucralose preferrers (SP) also detect a bitter-like quality in sucralose that may be masked by an increased perception of sucralose's sweet-like quality. A microstructural analysis of sucralose intake revealed that, at concentrations they avoided in preference tests, sucralose avoiders (SA) consumed smaller and fewer bouts of sucralose than SP. Interestingly, the concentration-dependent increase in sucralose preference in SP was not associated with larger bouts or increased lick rate, two measures that are expected to increase with increasing perceived sweetness. This suggests that SP can detect an aversive quality in sucralose, but this perception of a presumably bitter-like quality may be masked by increased salience of a sweet-like quality that sustains high levels of intake in SP. Further evidence for increased sweet-taste perception in SP, relative to SA, was obtained in a second study in which SP consumed more of a palatable sweet-milk diet than SA. These are the first data to suggest that SP are not blind to the bitter-like quality in sucralose, and that there may be differences in sweet-taste perception between SP and SA. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sweet Taste Perception and Dental Caries in 13- to 15-Year-Olds: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study.

PubMed

Ashi, H; Lara-Capi, C; Campus, G; Klingberg, G; Lingström, P

2017-01-01

Dietary habits and, in particular, the intake frequency of sucrose are of major importance for the development of dental caries. The perception of sweet taste is believed to have an influence on sucrose intake and therefore affects the predisposition to dental caries. The aim was to study the caries experience and sweet taste perception and to further analyze the possible relationship between the 2 tested variables in 13- to 15-year-old children from 3 different geographical areas. A cross-sectional survey comprising 669 children (220 Italian, 224 Mexican, and 225 Saudi Arabian) was conducted. The children were examined in their school setting. A sweet taste perception level was determined by the sweet taste threshold (TT) and sweet taste preference (TP). The sweet test was performed with sucrose solutions varying in concentration from 1.63 to 821.52 g/L. The International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) and DMFS indices were used to diagnose caries. The highest mean value for TT was found for Italian children followed by Saudi and Mexican. Saudi schoolchildren showed the highest mean values for TP and DMFS, followed by Italian and Mexican. A statistically significant difference for TP, TT, DMFS, and initial caries was found between the 3 countries. A weak yet positive correlation was found between taste perception (TT and TP) versus DMFS and manifest caries in all 3 countries (r = 0.137-0.313). The findings of the present study showed a variation in sweet taste perception between the 3 countries, which may influence the caries outcome of the children in the individual countries. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

The effect of alpha amylase enzyme on quality of sweet sorghum juice for chrystal sugar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marwati, T.; Cahyaningrum, N.; Widodo, S.; Astiati, U. T.; Budiyanto, A.; Wahyudiono; Arif, A. B.; Richana, N.

2018-01-01

Sweet sorghum juice (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) has characteristics similar to sugar cane juice and potentially used for sugar substitutes that can support food security. Nevertheless the sweet sorghum juicecontain starch which impede sorghum sugar crystallization. Therefore, research on the enzymatic process is needed to convert starch into reducing sugar. The experimental design used was the Factorial Randomized Design with the first factor was alpha amylase enzyme concentration (0, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120 μL/100 mL) and second factor was incubation time (0, 30, 60, 90 minute) at temperature 100°C. The experiment was conducted on fresh sweet sorghum. The results showed that the addition of the alpha amylase enzyme increased the content of reducing sugar and decreased levels of starch. Elevating concentration of alpha amylase enzyme will increase the reducing sugar content in sweet sorghum juice. The optimum alpha amylase enzyme concentration to produce the highest total sugar was 80 μL/100 mL of sweet sorghum juice with the optimum incubation time was 90 minutes. The results of this study are expected to create a new sweetener for sugar substitution. From the economic prospective aspect, sorghum is a potential crop and can be relied upon to support the success of the food diversification program which further leads to the world food security

Effects of sweet flavorings and nicotine on the appeal and sensory properties of e-cigarettes among young adult vapers: Application of a novel methodology.

PubMed

Goldenson, Nicholas I; Kirkpatrick, Matthew G; Barrington-Trimis, Jessica L; Pang, Raina D; McBeth, Julia F; Pentz, Mary Ann; Samet, Jonathan M; Leventhal, Adam M

2016-11-01

Product characteristics that impact e-cigarette appeal by altering the sensory experience of vaping need to be identified to formulate evidence-based regulatory policies. While products that contain sweet flavorings and produce a "throat hit" (i.e., desirable airway irritation putatively caused by nicotine) are anecdotally cited as desirable reasons for vaping among young adults, experimental evidence of their impact on user appeal is lacking. This experiment applied a novel laboratory protocol to assess whether: (1) sweet flavorings and nicotine affect e-cigarette appeal; (2) sweet flavorings increase perceived sweetness; (3) nicotine increases throat hit; and (4) perceived sweetness and throat hit are associated with appeal. Young adult vapers (N=20; age 19-34) self-administered 20 standardized doses of aerosolized e-cigarette solutions varied according to a 3 flavor (sweet [e.g., cotton candy] vs. non-sweet [e.g., tobacco-flavored] vs. flavorless)×2 nicotine (6mg/mL nicotine vs. 0mg/mL [placebo]) double-blind, cross-over design. Participants rated appeal (liking, willingness to use again and perceived monetary value), perceived sweetness and throat hit strength after each administration. Sweet-flavored (vs. non-sweet and flavorless) solutions produced greater appeal and perceived sweetness ratings. Nicotine produced greater throat hit ratings than placebo, but did not significantly increase appeal nor interact with flavor effects on appeal. Controlling for flavor and nicotine, perceived sweetness was positively associated with appeal ratings; throat hit was not positively associated with appeal. Further identification of compounds in e-cigarette solutions that enhance sensory perceptions of sweetness, appeal, and utilization of e-cigarettes are warranted to inform evidence-based regulatory policies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Sweet Flavorings and Nicotine on the Appeal and Sensory Properties of e-Cigarettes Among Young Adult Vapers: Application of a Novel Methodology*

PubMed Central

Goldenson, Nicholas I.; Kirkpatrick, Matthew G.; Barrington-Trimis, Jessica L.; Pang, Raina D.; McBeth, Julia F.; Pentz, Mary Ann; Samet, Jonathan M.; Leventhal, Adam M.

2016-01-01

Introduction Product characteristics that impact e-cigarette appeal by altering the sensory experience of vaping need to be identified to formulate evidence-based regulatory policies. While products that contain sweet flavorings and produce a “throat hit” (i.e., desirable airway irritation putatively caused by nicotine) are anecdotally cited as desirable reasons for vaping among young adults, experimental evidence of their impact on user appeal is lacking. This experiment applied a novel laboratory protocol to assess whether: (1) sweet flavorings and nicotine affect e-cigarette appeal; (2) sweet flavorings increase perceived sweetness; (3) nicotine increases throat hit; and (4) perceived sweetness and throat hit are associated with appeal. Methods Young adult vapers (N=20; age 19–34) self-administered 20 standardized doses of aerosolized e-cigarette solutions varied according to a 3 flavor (sweet [e.g., cotton candy] vs. non-sweet [e.g., tobacco-flavored] vs. flavorless) × 2 nicotine (6 mg/mL nicotine vs. 0 mg/mL [placebo]) double-blind, cross-over design. Participants rated appeal (liking, willingness to use again and perceived monetary value), perceived sweetness and throat hit strength after each administration. Results Sweet-flavored (vs. non-sweet and flavorless) solutions produced greater appeal and perceived sweetness ratings. Nicotine produced greater throat hit ratings than placebo, but did not significantly increase appeal nor interact with flavor effects on appeal. Controlling for flavor and nicotine, perceived sweetness was positively associated with appeal ratings; throat hit was not positively associated with appeal. Conclusions Further identification of compounds in e-cigarette solutions that enhance sensory perceptions of sweetness, appeal, and utilization of e-cigarettes are warranted to inform evidence-based regulatory policies. PMID:27676583

Add-on unidirectional elastic metamaterial plate cloak

PubMed Central

Lee, Min Kyung; Kim, Yoon Young

2016-01-01

Metamaterial cloaks control the propagation of waves to make an object invisible or insensible. To manipulate elastic waves in space, a metamaterial cloak is typically embedded in a base system that includes or surrounds a target object. The embedding is undesirable because it structurally weakens or permanently alters the base system. In this study, we propose a new add-on metamaterial elastic cloak that can be placed over and mechanically coupled with a base structure without embedding. We designed an add-on type annular metamaterial plate cloak through conformal mapping, fabricated it and performed cloaking experiments in a thin-plate with a hole. Experiments were performed in a thin plate by using the lowest symmetric Lamb wave centered at 100 kHz. As a means to check the cloaking performance of the add-on elastic plate cloak, possibly as a temporary stress reliever or a so-called “stress bandage”, the degree of stress concentration mitigation and the recovery from the perturbed wave field due to a hole were investigated. PMID:26860896

Add-on unidirectional elastic metamaterial plate cloak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Min Kyung; Kim, Yoon Young

2016-02-01

Metamaterial cloaks control the propagation of waves to make an object invisible or insensible. To manipulate elastic waves in space, a metamaterial cloak is typically embedded in a base system that includes or surrounds a target object. The embedding is undesirable because it structurally weakens or permanently alters the base system. In this study, we propose a new add-on metamaterial elastic cloak that can be placed over and mechanically coupled with a base structure without embedding. We designed an add-on type annular metamaterial plate cloak through conformal mapping, fabricated it and performed cloaking experiments in a thin-plate with a hole. Experiments were performed in a thin plate by using the lowest symmetric Lamb wave centered at 100 kHz. As a means to check the cloaking performance of the add-on elastic plate cloak, possibly as a temporary stress reliever or a so-called “stress bandage”, the degree of stress concentration mitigation and the recovery from the perturbed wave field due to a hole were investigated.

The draft genome of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis).

PubMed

Xu, Qiang; Chen, Ling-Ling; Ruan, Xiaoan; Chen, Dijun; Zhu, Andan; Chen, Chunli; Bertrand, Denis; Jiao, Wen-Biao; Hao, Bao-Hai; Lyon, Matthew P; Chen, Jiongjiong; Gao, Song; Xing, Feng; Lan, Hong; Chang, Ji-Wei; Ge, Xianhong; Lei, Yang; Hu, Qun; Miao, Yin; Wang, Lun; Xiao, Shixin; Biswas, Manosh Kumar; Zeng, Wenfang; Guo, Fei; Cao, Hongbo; Yang, Xiaoming; Xu, Xi-Wen; Cheng, Yun-Jiang; Xu, Juan; Liu, Ji-Hong; Luo, Oscar Junhong; Tang, Zhonghui; Guo, Wen-Wu; Kuang, Hanhui; Zhang, Hong-Yu; Roose, Mikeal L; Nagarajan, Niranjan; Deng, Xiu-Xin; Ruan, Yijun

2013-01-01

Oranges are an important nutritional source for human health and have immense economic value. Here we present a comprehensive analysis of the draft genome of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis). The assembled sequence covers 87.3% of the estimated orange genome, which is relatively compact, as 20% is composed of repetitive elements. We predicted 29,445 protein-coding genes, half of which are in the heterozygous state. With additional sequencing of two more citrus species and comparative analyses of seven citrus genomes, we present evidence to suggest that sweet orange originated from a backcross hybrid between pummelo and mandarin. Focused analysis on genes involved in vitamin C metabolism showed that GalUR, encoding the rate-limiting enzyme of the galacturonate pathway, is significantly upregulated in orange fruit, and the recent expansion of this gene family may provide a genomic basis. This draft genome represents a valuable resource for understanding and improving many important citrus traits in the future.

Deep Sequencing Reveals the Complete Genome Sequence of Sweet potato virus G from East Timor

PubMed Central

Maina, Solomon; Edwards, Owain R.; Barbetti, Martin J.; de Almeida, Luis; Ximenes, Abel

2016-01-01

We present the first complete Sweet potato virus G (SPVG) genome from sweet potato in East Timor and compare it with seven complete SPVG genomes from South Korea (three), Taiwan (two), Argentina (one), and the United States (one). It most resembles the genomes from the United States and South Korea. PMID:27609925

How the quality and processing attributes of commercial sweet sorghum hybrids and cultivar compare for biorefining

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Quality and processing attributes of sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) biomass are critical to the development of a large-scale industry for the manufacture of bioproducts. Two commercial sweet sorghum hybrids 105 and 106, later and earlier maturing, respectively, were compared to inbred, l...

75 FR 31663 - Sweet Cherries Grown in Designated Counties in Washington; Change in the Handling Regulation

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-04

... that a premium packed cherry must meet. In addition, to help stabilize the negative pricing pressure... cherries and other lightly-colored sweet cherry varieties that are designated as ``premium'' when handled... lightly-colored sweet cherry varieties that are designated as ``premium'' when marketed. Under this...

Problems, control, and opportunity of starch in the large scale processing of sugarcane and sweet sorghum

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Both sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) and sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) crops are members of the grass (Poaceae) family, and consist of stalks rich in soluble sugars. The extracted juice from both of these crops contains insoluble starch, with much greater quantities occurring in sweet sorghum. ...

Analyzing and Comparing Biomass Feedstock Supply Systems in China: Corn Stover and Sweet Sorghum Case Studies

DOE PAGES

Ren, Lantian; Cafferty, Kara; Roni, Mohammad; ...

2015-06-11

This paper analyzes the rural Chinese biomass supply system and models supply chain operations according to U.S. concepts of logistical unit operations: harvest and collection, storage, transportation, preprocessing, and handling and queuing. In this paper, we quantify the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum in China under different scenarios. We analyze three scenarios of corn stover logistics from northeast China and three scenarios of sweet sorghum stalks logistics from Inner Mongolia in China. The case study estimates that the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk to be $52.95/dry metric ton and $52.64/dry metric ton, respectively,more » for the current labor-based biomass logistics system. However, if the feedstock logistics operation is mechanized, the cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk decreases to $36.01/dry metric ton and $35.76/dry metric ton, respectively. The study also includes a sensitivity analysis to identify the cost factors that cause logistics cost variation. Results of the sensitivity analysis show that labor price has the most influence on the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk, with a variation of $6 to $12/dry metric ton.« less

Analyzing and Comparing Biomass Feedstock Supply Systems in China: Corn Stover and Sweet Sorghum Case Studies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ren, Lantian; Cafferty, Kara; Roni, Mohammad

This paper analyzes the rural Chinese biomass supply system and models supply chain operations according to U.S. concepts of logistical unit operations: harvest and collection, storage, transportation, preprocessing, and handling and queuing. In this paper, we quantify the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum in China under different scenarios. We analyze three scenarios of corn stover logistics from northeast China and three scenarios of sweet sorghum stalks logistics from Inner Mongolia in China. The case study estimates that the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk to be $52.95/dry metric ton and $52.64/dry metric ton, respectively,more » for the current labor-based biomass logistics system. However, if the feedstock logistics operation is mechanized, the cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk decreases to $36.01/dry metric ton and $35.76/dry metric ton, respectively. The study also includes a sensitivity analysis to identify the cost factors that cause logistics cost variation. Results of the sensitivity analysis show that labor price has the most influence on the logistics cost of corn stover and sweet sorghum stalk, with a variation of $6 to $12/dry metric ton.« less

Preferences for Salty and Sweet Tastes Are Elevated and Related to Each Other during Childhood

PubMed Central

Mennella, Julie A.; Finkbeiner, Susana; Lipchock, Sarah V.; Hwang, Liang-Dar; Reed, Danielle R.

2014-01-01

Background The present study aimed to determine if salty and sweet taste preferences in children are related to each other, to markers of growth, and to genetic differences. Methods We conducted a 2-day, single-blind experimental study using the Monell two-series, forced-choice, paired-comparison tracking method to determine taste preferences. The volunteer sample consisted of a racially/ethnically diverse group of children, 5–10 years of age (n = 108), and their mothers (n = 83). After excluding those mothers who did not meet eligibility and children who did not understand or comply with study procedures, the final sample was 101 children and 76 adults. The main outcome measures were most preferred concentration of salt in broth and crackers; most preferred concentration of sucrose in water and jelly; reported dietary intake of salty and sweet foods; levels of a bone growth marker; anthropometric measurements such as height, weight, and percent body fat; and TAS1R3 (sweet taste receptor) genotype. Results Children preferred higher concentrations of salt in broth and sucrose in water than did adults, and for both groups, salty and sweet taste preferences were significantly and positively correlated. In children, preference measures were related to reported intake of sodium but not of added sugars. Children who were tall for their age preferred sweeter solutions than did those that were shorter and percent body fat was correlated with salt preference. In mothers but not in children, sweet preference correlated with TAS1R3 genotype. Conclusions and Relevance For children, sweet and salty taste preferences were positively correlated and related to some aspects of real-world food intake. Complying with recommendations to reduce added sugars and salt may be more difficult for some children, which emphasizes the need for new strategies to improve children's diets. PMID:24637844

Preferences for salty and sweet tastes are elevated and related to each other during childhood.

PubMed

Mennella, Julie A; Finkbeiner, Susana; Lipchock, Sarah V; Hwang, Liang-Dar; Reed, Danielle R

2014-01-01

The present study aimed to determine if salty and sweet taste preferences in children are related to each other, to markers of growth, and to genetic differences. We conducted a 2-day, single-blind experimental study using the Monell two-series, forced-choice, paired-comparison tracking method to determine taste preferences. The volunteer sample consisted of a racially/ethnically diverse group of children, 5-10 years of age (n = 108), and their mothers (n = 83). After excluding those mothers who did not meet eligibility and children who did not understand or comply with study procedures, the final sample was 101 children and 76 adults. The main outcome measures were most preferred concentration of salt in broth and crackers; most preferred concentration of sucrose in water and jelly; reported dietary intake of salty and sweet foods; levels of a bone growth marker; anthropometric measurements such as height, weight, and percent body fat; and TAS1R3 (sweet taste receptor) genotype. Children preferred higher concentrations of salt in broth and sucrose in water than did adults, and for both groups, salty and sweet taste preferences were significantly and positively correlated. In children, preference measures were related to reported intake of sodium but not of added sugars. Children who were tall for their age preferred sweeter solutions than did those that were shorter and percent body fat was correlated with salt preference. In mothers but not in children, sweet preference correlated with TAS1R3 genotype. For children, sweet and salty taste preferences were positively correlated and related to some aspects of real-world food intake. Complying with recommendations to reduce added sugars and salt may be more difficult for some children, which emphasizes the need for new strategies to improve children's diets.

Historical collections reveal patterns of diffusion of sweet potato in Oceania obscured by modern plant movements and recombination

PubMed Central

Roullier, Caroline; Benoit, Laure; McKey, Doyle B.; Lebot, Vincent

2013-01-01

The history of sweet potato in the Pacific has long been an enigma. Archaeological, linguistic, and ethnobotanical data suggest that prehistoric human-mediated dispersal events contributed to the distribution in Oceania of this American domesticate. According to the “tripartite hypothesis,” sweet potato was introduced into Oceania from South America in pre-Columbian times and was then later newly introduced, and diffused widely across the Pacific, by Europeans via two historically documented routes from Mexico and the Caribbean. Although sweet potato is the most convincing example of putative pre-Columbian connections between human occupants of Polynesia and South America, the search for genetic evidence of pre-Columbian dispersal of sweet potato into Oceania has been inconclusive. Our study attempts to fill this gap. Using complementary sets of markers (chloroplast and nuclear microsatellites) and both modern and herbarium samples, we test the tripartite hypothesis. Our results provide strong support for prehistoric transfer(s) of sweet potato from South America (Peru-Ecuador region) into Polynesia. Our results also document a temporal shift in the pattern of distribution of genetic variation in sweet potato in Oceania. Later reintroductions, accompanied by recombination between distinct sweet potato gene pools, have reshuffled the crop’s initial genetic base, obscuring primary patterns of diffusion and, at the same time, giving rise to an impressive number of local variants. Moreover, our study shows that phenotypes, names, and neutral genes do not necessarily share completely parallel evolutionary histories. Multidisciplinary approaches, thus, appear necessary for accurate reconstruction of the intertwined histories of plants and humans. PMID:23341603

Positive Charges on the Surface of Thaumatin Are Crucial for the Multi-Point Interaction with the Sweet Receptor.

PubMed

Masuda, Tetsuya; Kigo, Satomi; Mitsumoto, Mayuko; Ohta, Keisuke; Suzuki, Mamoru; Mikami, Bunzo; Kitabatake, Naofumi; Tani, Fumito

2018-01-01

Thaumatin, an intensely sweet-tasting protein, elicits sweet taste with a threshold of only 50 nM. Previous studies from our laboratory suggested that the complex model between the T1R2-T1R3 sweet receptor and thaumatin depends critically on the complementarity of electrostatic potentials. In order to further validate this model, we focused on three lysine residues (Lys78, Lys106, and Lys137), which were expected to be part of the interaction sites. Three thaumatin mutants (K78A, K106A, and K137A) were prepared and their threshold values of sweetness were examined. The results showed that the sweetness of K106A was reduced by about three times and those of K78A and K137A were reduced by about five times when compared to wild-type thaumatin. The three-dimensional structures of these mutants were also determined by X-ray crystallographic analyses at atomic resolutions. The overall structures of mutant proteins were similar to that of wild-type but the electrostatic potentials around the mutated sites became more negative. Since the three lysine residues are located in 20-40 Å apart each other on the surface of thaumatin molecule, these results suggest the positive charges on the surface of thaumatin play a crucial role in the interaction with the sweet receptor, and are consistent with a large surface is required for interaction with the sweet receptor, as proposed by the multipoint interaction model named wedge model.

Sweet potato growth parameters, yield components and nutritive value for CELSS applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Loretan, P. A.; Bonsi, C. K.; Hill, W. A.; Ogbuehi, C. R.; Mortley, D. G.

1989-01-01

Sweet potatoes have been grown hydroponically using the nutrient film technique (NFT) to provide a potential food source for long-term manned space missions. Experiments in both sand and NFT cultivars have produced up to 1790 g/plant of fresh storage root with an edible biomass index ranging from 60-89 percent and edible biomass linear growth rates of 39-66 g/sq m day in 105 to 130 days. Experiments with different cultivars, nutrient solution compositions, application rates, air and root temperatures, photoperiods, and light intensities indicate good potential for sweet potatoes in CELSS.

Preharvest application of oxalic acid increased fruit size, bioactive compounds, and antioxidant capacity in sweet cherry cultivars (Prunus avium L.).

PubMed

Martínez-Esplá, Alejandra; Zapata, Pedro Javier; Valero, Daniel; García-Viguera, Cristina; Castillo, Salvador; Serrano, María

2014-04-16

Trees of 'Sweet Heart' and 'Sweet Late' sweet cherry cultivars (Prunus avium L.) were treated with oxalic acid (OA) at 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mM at 98, 112, and 126 days after full blossom. Results showed that all treatments increased fruit size at harvest, manifested by higher fruit volume and weight in cherries from treated trees than from controls, the higher effect being found with 2.0 mM OA (18 and 30% higher weight for 'Sweet Heart' and 'Sweet Late', respectively). Other quality parameters, such as color and firmness, were also increased by OA treatments, although no significant differences were found in total soluble solids or total acidity, showing that OA treatments did not affect the on-tree ripening process of sweet cherry. However, the increases in total anthocyanins, total phenolics, and antioxidant activity associated with the ripening process were higher in treated than in control cherries, leading to fruit with high bioactive compounds and antioxidant potential at commercial harvest (≅45% more anthocyanins and ≅20% more total phenolics). In addition, individual anthocyanins, flavonols, and chlorogenic acid derivatives were also increased by OA treatment. Thus, OA preharvest treatments could be an efficient and natural way to increase the quality and functional properties of sweet cherries.

SWEET CubeSat - Water detection and water quality monitoring for the 21st century

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antonini, Kelly; Langer, Martin; Farid, Ahmed; Walter, Ulrich

2017-11-01

Water scarcity and contamination of clean water have been identified as major challenges of the 21st century, in particular for developing countries. According to the International Water Management Institute, about 30% of the world's population does not have reliable access to clean water. Consequently, contaminated water contributes to the death of about 3 million people every year, mostly children. Access to potable water has been proven to boost education, equality and health, reduce hunger, as well as help the economy of the developing world. Currently used in-situ water monitoring techniques are sparse, and often difficult to execute. Space-based instruments will help to overcome these challenges by providing means for water level and water quality monitoring of medium-to-large sweet (fresh) water reservoirs. Data from hyperspectral imaging instruments on past and present governmental missions, such as Envisat and Aqua, has been used for this purpose. However, the high cost of large multi-purpose space vessels, and the lack of dedicated missions limits the continuous monitoring of inland and coastal water quality. The proposed CubeSat mission SWEET (Sweet Water Earth Education Technologies) will try to fill this gap. The SWEET concept is a joint effort between the Technical University of Munich, the German Space Operations Center and the African Steering Committee of the IAF. By using a novel Fabry-Perot interferometer-based hyperspectral imager, the mission will deliver critical data directly to national water resource centers in Africa with an unmatched cost per pixel ratio and high temporal resolution. Additionally, SWEET will incorporate education of students in CubeSat design and water management. Although the aim of the mission is to deliver local water quality and water level data to African countries, further coverage could be achieved with subsequent satellites. Finally, a constellation of SWEET-like CubeSats would extend the coverage to the whole

Improving flavour and quality of tomatoes by expression of synthetic gene encoding sweet protein monellin.

PubMed

Reddy, Chinreddy Subramanyam; Vijayalakshmi, Muvva; Kaul, Tanushri; Islam, Tahmina; Reddy, Malireddy K

2015-05-01

Monellin a sweet-tasting protein exists naturally as a heterodimer of two non-covalently linked subunits chain A and B, which loses its sweetness on denaturation. In this study, we validated the expression of a synthetic monellin gene encoding a single polypeptide chain covalently linking the two subunits under T7 and fruit-ripening-specific promoters in Escherichia coli and tomato fruits, respectively. Purified recombinant monellin protein retained its sweet flavour at 70 °C and pH 2. We developed 15 transgenic T0 tomato plants overexpressing monellin, which were devoid of any growth penalty or phenotypic abnormalities during greenhouse conditions. T-DNA integration and fruit-specific heterologous expression of monellin had occurred in these transgenic tomato lines. ELISA revealed that expression of monellin was 4.5% of the total soluble fruit protein. Functional analyses of transgenic tomatoes of T2-5 and T2-14 lines revealed distinctly strong sweetness compared with wild type. Monellin a potential non-carbohydrate sweetener, if expressed in high amounts in fruits and vegetables, would enhance their flavour and quality.

A morel improved growth and suppressed Fusarium infection in sweet corn.

PubMed

Yu, Dan; Bu, Fangfang; Hou, Jiaojiao; Kang, Yongxiang; Yu, Zhongdong

2016-12-01

A post-fire morel collected from Populus simonii stands in Mt. Qingling was identified as Morchella crassipes Mes-20 by using nuclear ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer phylogeny. It was inoculated into sweet corn to observe colonized roots in purified culture and in greenhouse experiments. The elongation and maturation zones of sweet corn were remarkably colonized at the cortex intercellular and intracellular cells, vessel cells, and around the Casparian strip, forming ectendomycorrhiza-like structures. Colonization was also observed in the zone of cell division proximal to the root cap. Greenhouse assays with sweet corn showed that this morel stimulated the development of the root system and significantly increased the dry root biomass. M. crassipes also significantly reduced the incidence of Fusarium verticillioides in the kernels of mature ears when inoculated into young ears before Fusarium inoculation and prevented Fusarium infection in corn ears compared with that of the control in the greenhouse. When grown under axenic conditions, M. crassipes produced the phytohormones abscisic acid, indole-3-acetic acid, and salicylic acid. The benefits to plants elicited by M. crassipes may result from these phytohormones which may improve the drought resistance, biomass growth and resistance to Fusarium.

A sweet taste receptor‐dependent mechanism of glucosensing in hypothalamic tanycytes

PubMed Central

Benford, Heather; Bolborea, Matei; Pollatzek, Eric; Lossow, Kristina; Hermans‐Borgmeyer, Irm; Liu, Beihui; Meyerhof, Wolfgang; Kasparov, Sergey

2017-01-01

Abstract Hypothalamic tanycytes are glial‐like glucosensitive cells that contact the cerebrospinal fluid of the third ventricle, and send processes into the hypothalamic nuclei that control food intake and body weight. The mechanism of tanycyte glucosensing remains undetermined. While tanycytes express the components associated with the glucosensing of the pancreatic β cell, they respond to nonmetabolisable glucose analogues via an ATP receptor‐dependent mechanism. Here, we show that tanycytes in rodents respond to non‐nutritive sweeteners known to be ligands of the sweet taste (Tas1r2/Tas1r3) receptor. The initial sweet tastant‐evoked response, which requires the presence of extracellular Ca2+, leads to release of ATP and a larger propagating Ca2+ response mediated by P2Y1 receptors. In Tas1r2 null mice the proportion of glucose nonresponsive tanycytes was greatly increased in these mice, but a subset of tanycytes retained an undiminished sensitivity to glucose. Our data demonstrate that the sweet taste receptor mediates glucosensing in about 60% of glucosensitive tanycytes while the remaining 40% of glucosensitive tanycytes use some other, as yet unknown mechanism. PMID:28205335

Quantitation of sweet steviol glycosides by means of a HILIC-MS/MS-SIDA approach.

PubMed

Well, Caroline; Frank, Oliver; Hofmann, Thomas

2013-11-27

Meeting the rising consumer demand for natural food ingredients, steviol glycosides, the sweet principle of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni (Bertoni), have recently been approved as food additives in the European Union. As regulatory constraints require sensitive methods to analyze the sweet-tasting steviol glycosides in foods and beverages, a HILIC-MS/MS method was developed enabling the accurate and reliable quantitation of the major steviol glycosides stevioside, rebaudiosides A-F, steviolbioside, rubusoside, and dulcoside A by using the corresponding deuterated 16,17-dihydrosteviol glycosides as suitable internal standards. This quantitation not only enables the analysis of the individual steviol glycosides in foods and beverages but also can support the optimization of breeding and postharvest downstream processing of Stevia plants to produce preferentially sweet and least bitter tasting Stevia extracts.

Effect of processing techniques on color and active components amount of sweet potato (Ipomoea Batatas l) flakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahmawati, Y.; Mahmudatussa'adah, A.; Yogha, S.

2016-04-01

Sweet potato processing is limited, such as flour, snacks, cystic, or chips. Flakes as pre-cooked meals are made through the stages of making pasta and drying. The purpose of this study was to optimize the production of sweet potato flakes at the stage of making pasta and drying. Making the pasta is done through techniques steamed or baked. Pasta drying using tools a drum dryer or cabinet dryer. As an indicator of optimization is the total of monomeric anthocyanins, β-carotene and color the resulting flakes. The results showed that the amount of anthocyanin monomeric flakes by using steam, and drum dryer (3.83 ± 0.03 mg CYE/g db), flakes by the technique of steam, and cabinet dryer (3.03 ± 0.02 mg CYE/g db), flakes with techniques bake, drum dryer (2.49 ± 0.05 CYE mg/g db), flakes with bake technique, cabinet dryer (1.98 ± 0.03 mg CYE/g db). The Color of purple sweet potato flakes produced through steamed techniques bright purple, while the color purple sweet potato flakes produced through techniques roast give a brownish purple color. The amount of β-carotene yellow flakes sweet potato with stages of cooking steamed, drum dryer (152±0.5 mg/Kg db), grilled drum dryer (136±0.4 mg/Kg db), flakes of yellow sweet potato with stages of roasted and cabinet dryer (140±0.8 mg/Kg db), and grilled stage with cabinet dryer (122±0.3 mg/Kg db). In conclusion sweet potato flakes production techniques through the stages of steam process, and used drum dryers have a number of anthocyanins or β-carotene bigger and brighter colors than the baked flakes techniques and used cabinet dryer.

Short- and long-term modulation of the lutein epoxide and violaxanthin cycles in two species of the Lauraceae: sweet bay laurel (Laurus nobilis L.) and avocado (Persea americana Mill.).

PubMed

Esteban, R; Jiménez, M S; Morales, D; Jiménez, E T; Hormaetxe, K; Becerril, J M; Osmond, B; García-Plazaola, J I

2008-05-01

Short- and long-term responses of the violaxanthin (V) and lutein epoxide (Lx) cycles were studied in two species of Lauraceae: sweet bay laurel (Laurus nobilis L.) and avocado (Persea americana L.). The Lx content exceeded the V content in shade leaves of both species. Both Lx and V were de-epoxidised on illumination, but only V was fully restored by epoxidation in low light. Violaxanthin was preferentially de-epoxidised in low light in L. nobilis. This suggests that Lx accumulates with leaf ageing, partly because its conversion to lutein is limited in shade. After exposure to strong light, shade leaves of avocado readjusted the total pools of alpha- and beta-xanthophyll cycles by de novo synthesis of antheraxanthin, zeaxanthin and lutein. This occurred in parallel with a sustained depression of F(v)/F(m). In Persea indica, a closely related but low Lx species, F(v)/F(m) recovered faster after a similar light treatment, suggesting the involvement of the Lx cycle in sustained energy dissipation. Furthermore, the seasonal correlation between non-reversible Lx and V photoconversions and pre-dawn F(v)/F(m) in sun leaves of sweet bay supported the conclusion that the Lx cycle is involved in a slowly reversible downregulation of photosynthesis analogous to the V cycle.

Discovering Focus: Helping Students with ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valkenburg, Jim

2012-01-01

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a neurological disorder which effects learning and that has a confusing set of diagnostic symptoms and an even more confusing set of remedies ranging from medication to meditation to nothing at all. Current neurological research suggests, however, that there are strategies that the individual with ADD can use to…

Alternative Fuels Data Center: Ozinga Adds 14 Natural Gas Concrete Mixers

Science.gov Websites

to Its Fleet Ozinga Adds 14 Natural Gas Concrete Mixers to Its Fleet to someone by E-mail Share Alternative Fuels Data Center: Ozinga Adds 14 Natural Gas Concrete Mixers to Its Fleet on Facebook Tweet about Alternative Fuels Data Center: Ozinga Adds 14 Natural Gas Concrete Mixers to Its Fleet on Twitter Bookmark

[Determination of acacetin in Xiangjuganmao Keli (no sweet) by HPLC].

PubMed

Bian, Jia-Hong; Qian, Kun; Xu, Xiang; Shen, Jun

2006-11-01

To establish a method for the determination of acacetin in Xiangjuganmao Keli (no sweet). Acacetin in powdered herb was extracted by ultrasonator with methanol and was hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid. Separation was accomplished on an ODS reversed phase column (5 microm, 4.6 x 250 mm) with a mobile phase of methanol-water-acetic acid(350: 150: 2). The detective wavelength was at 340 nm. The method was accurate, the results were stable and reproducible. The linear range of calibration cure was within the concentration of 2.00 - 10.00 microg/ml (r = 0.9998). The average extraction recovery was 99.9% (n = 6), RSD = 0.41% (n = 6). The method is simple, convenient, sensitive, and reproducible for quality control of Xiangjuganmao Keli (no sweet).

Escaping Slavery: "Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Sue Ann

This lesson uses the picture book "Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt" by Deborah Hopkinson and an interactive website to enhance third- through fifth-grade students' understanding of the Underground Railroad and slavery, development of reading comprehension skills, and application of mapping skills. During three 45-60 minute lessons,…

Fats, Oils, and Sweets. The Food Guide Pyramid.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frost, Helen

This booklet for young children is part of a series that supports national science standards related to physical health and nutrition, describing and illustrating the importance of using the Food Guide Pyramid and avoiding excesses of fats, oils, and sweets. It presents appealing alternatives to these unhealthy foods. Colorful photographs support…

Characterization of aircraft deicer and anti-icer components and toxicity in airport snowbanks and snowmelt runoff.

PubMed

Corsi, Steven R; Geis, Steven W; Loyo-Rosales, Jorge E; Rice, Clifford P; Sheesley, Rebecca I; Failey, Greg G; Cancilla, Devon A

2006-05-15

Snowbank samples were collected from snowbanks within a medium-sized airport for four years to characterize aircraft deicer and anti-icer (ADAF) components and toxicity. Concentrations of ADAF components varied with median glycol concentrations from individual sampling periods ranging from 65 to 5940 mg/L. Glycol content in snowbanks ranged from 0.17 to 11.4% of that applied to aircraft. Glycol, a freezing point depressant, was selectively removed during melt periods before snow and ice resulting in lower glycol concentrations after melt periods. Concentrations of ADAF components in airport runoff were similar during periods of snowmelt as compared to active ADAF application periods; however, due to the long duration of snowmelt events, greater masses of glycol were transported during snowmelt events. Alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEO), selected APEO degradation products, and 4- and 5-methyl-1H-benzotriazole were detected in snowbank samples and airport snowmelt. Concentrations of APEO parent products were greater in snowbank samples than in runoff samples. Relative abundance of APEO degradation products increased in the downstream direction from the snowbank to the outfalls and the receiving stream with respect to APEO parent compounds and glycol. Toxicity in Microtox assays remained in snowbanks after most glycol had been removed during melt periods. Increased toxicity in airport snowbanks as compared to other urban snowbanks was not explained by additional combustion or fuel contribution in airport snow. Organic markers suggest ADAF additives as a possible explanation for this increased toxicity. Results indicate that glycol cannot be used as a surrogate for fate and transport of other ADAF components.

Characterization of aircraft deicer and anti-icer components and toxicity in airport snowbanks and snowmelt runoff

USGS Publications Warehouse

Corsi, S.R.; Geis, S.W.; Loyo-Rosales, J. E.; Rice, C.P.; Sheesley, R.J.; Failey, G.G.; Cancilla, Devon A.

2006-01-01

Snowbank samples were collected from snowbanks within a medium-sized airport for four years to characterize aircraft deicer and anti-icer (ADAF) components and toxicity. Concentrations of ADAF components varied with median glycol concentrations from individual sampling periods ranging from 65 to 5940 mg/L. Glycol content in snowbanks ranged from 0.17 to 11.4% of that applied to aircraft. Glycol, a freezing point depressant, was selectively removed during melt periods before snow and ice resulting in lower glycol concentrations after melt periods. Concentrations of ADAF components in airport runoff were similar during periods of snowmelt as compared to active ADAF application periods; however, due to the long duration of snowmelt events, greater masses of glycol were transported during snowmelt events. Alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEO), selected APEO degradation products, and 4- and 5-methyl-1H-benzotriazole were detected in snowbank samples and airport snowmelt. Concentrations of APEO parent products were greater in snowbank samples than in runoff samples. Relative abundance of APEO degradation products increased in the downstream direction from the snowbank to the outfalls and the receiving stream with respect to APEO parent compounds and glycol. Toxicity in Microtox assays remained in snowbanks after most glycol had been removed during melt periods. Increased toxicity in airport snowbanks as compared to other urban snowbanks was not explained by additional combustion or fuel contribution in airport snow. Organic markers suggest ADAF additives as a possible explanation for this increased toxicity. Results indicate that glycol cannot be used as a surrogate for fate and transport of other ADAF components. ?? 2006 American Chemical Society.

Sweet cherry softening accompanied with moisture migration and loss during low-temperature storage.

PubMed

Zhu, Danshi; Liang, Jieyu; Liu, He; Cao, Xuehui; Ge, Yonghong; Li, Jianrong

2018-08-01

Hardness is one of the important qualities influencing consumer appeal and marketing of fresh sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.). Moisture loss is one of the main causative factors of cherry softening. In this work, moisture loss and softening process of sweet cherry during postharvest storage at 0 and 4 °C were studied. In addition, low-field 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) was used to analyze water distribution and migration in sweet cherry during storage at 4 °C. Moisture content correlated significantly (p < 0.01) with both skin and flesh hardness of cherry fruit at the two storage temperatures. According to the transverse relaxation curve, relaxation time, as T 21 (0.01-10 ms), T 22 (10-150 ms), and T 23 (150-1000 ms) were ascribed to cell wall protons, cytoplasmic water, and vacuolar water respectively. Contents of cytoplasmic (p < 0.05) and vacuolar water (p < 0.01) changed significantly with storage time. Magnetic resonance imaging results illustrated that water distributes uniformly in fresh tissue. With prolonged storage time, free water content increased gradually, and then internal damage occurred. Sweet cherry softening closely correlated with moisture loss during low-temperature storage. LF-NMR is a useful technique to investigate moisture migration of fruits and vegetables. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Glucose Content and In Vitro Bioaccessibility in Sweet Potato and Winter Squash Varieties during Storage

PubMed Central

Zaccari, Fernanda; Cabrera, María Cristina; Saadoun, Ali

2017-01-01

Glucose content and in vitro bioaccessibility were determined in raw and cooked pulp of Arapey, Cuabé, and Beauregard sweet potato varieties, as well as Maravilla del Mercado and Atlas winter squash, after zero, two, four, and six months of storage (14 °C, 80% relative humidity (RH)). The total glucose content in 100 g of raw pulp was, for Arapey, 17.7 g; Beauregard, 13.2 g; Cuabé, 12.6 g; Atlas, 4.0 g; and in Maravilla del Mercado, 4.1 g. These contents were reduced by cooking process and storage time, 1.1 to 1.5 times, respectively, depending on the sweet potato variety. In winter squash varieties, the total glucose content was not modified by cooking, while the storage increased glucose content 2.8 times in the second month. After in vitro digestion, the glucose content released was 7.0 times higher in sweet potato (6.4 g) than in winter squash (0.91 g) varieties. Glucose released by in vitro digestion for sweet potato stored for six months did not change, but in winter squashes, stored Atlas released glucose content increased 1.6 times. In conclusion, in sweet potato and winter squash, the glucose content and the released glucose during digestive simulation depends on the variety and the storage time. These factors strongly affect the supply of glucose for human nutrition and should be taken into account for adjusting a diet according to consumer needs. PMID:28665302

Glucose Content and In Vitro Bioaccessibility in Sweet Potato and Winter Squash Varieties during Storage.

PubMed

Zaccari, Fernanda; Cabrera, María Cristina; Saadoun, Ali

2017-06-30

Glucose content and in vitro bioaccessibility were determined in raw and cooked pulp of Arapey, Cuabé, and Beauregard sweet potato varieties, as well as Maravilla del Mercado and Atlas winter squash, after zero, two, four, and six months of storage (14 °C, 80% relative humidity (RH)). The total glucose content in 100 g of raw pulp was, for Arapey, 17.7 g; Beauregard, 13.2 g; Cuabé, 12.6 g; Atlas, 4.0 g; and in Maravilla del Mercado, 4.1 g. These contents were reduced by cooking process and storage time, 1.1 to 1.5 times, respectively, depending on the sweet potato variety. In winter squash varieties, the total glucose content was not modified by cooking, while the storage increased glucose content 2.8 times in the second month. After in vitro digestion, the glucose content released was 7.0 times higher in sweet potato (6.4 g) than in winter squash (0.91 g) varieties. Glucose released by in vitro digestion for sweet potato stored for six months did not change, but in winter squashes, stored Atlas released glucose content increased 1.6 times. In conclusion, in sweet potato and winter squash, the glucose content and the released glucose during digestive simulation depends on the variety and the storage time. These factors strongly affect the supply of glucose for human nutrition and should be taken into account for adjusting a diet according to consumer needs.

Evolutionary diversification of protein-protein interactions by interface add-ons.

PubMed

Plach, Maximilian G; Semmelmann, Florian; Busch, Florian; Busch, Markus; Heizinger, Leonhard; Wysocki, Vicki H; Merkl, Rainer; Sterner, Reinhard

2017-10-03

Cells contain a multitude of protein complexes whose subunits interact with high specificity. However, the number of different protein folds and interface geometries found in nature is limited. This raises the question of how protein-protein interaction specificity is achieved on the structural level and how the formation of nonphysiological complexes is avoided. Here, we describe structural elements called interface add-ons that fulfill this function and elucidate their role for the diversification of protein-protein interactions during evolution. We identified interface add-ons in 10% of a representative set of bacterial, heteromeric protein complexes. The importance of interface add-ons for protein-protein interaction specificity is demonstrated by an exemplary experimental characterization of over 30 cognate and hybrid glutamine amidotransferase complexes in combination with comprehensive genetic profiling and protein design. Moreover, growth experiments showed that the lack of interface add-ons can lead to physiologically harmful cross-talk between essential biosynthetic pathways. In sum, our complementary in silico, in vitro, and in vivo analysis argues that interface add-ons are a practical and widespread evolutionary strategy to prevent the formation of nonphysiological complexes by specializing protein-protein interactions.

Evolutionary diversification of protein–protein interactions by interface add-ons

PubMed Central

Plach, Maximilian G.; Semmelmann, Florian; Busch, Florian; Busch, Markus; Heizinger, Leonhard; Wysocki, Vicki H.; Sterner, Reinhard

2017-01-01

Cells contain a multitude of protein complexes whose subunits interact with high specificity. However, the number of different protein folds and interface geometries found in nature is limited. This raises the question of how protein–protein interaction specificity is achieved on the structural level and how the formation of nonphysiological complexes is avoided. Here, we describe structural elements called interface add-ons that fulfill this function and elucidate their role for the diversification of protein–protein interactions during evolution. We identified interface add-ons in 10% of a representative set of bacterial, heteromeric protein complexes. The importance of interface add-ons for protein–protein interaction specificity is demonstrated by an exemplary experimental characterization of over 30 cognate and hybrid glutamine amidotransferase complexes in combination with comprehensive genetic profiling and protein design. Moreover, growth experiments showed that the lack of interface add-ons can lead to physiologically harmful cross-talk between essential biosynthetic pathways. In sum, our complementary in silico, in vitro, and in vivo analysis argues that interface add-ons are a practical and widespread evolutionary strategy to prevent the formation of nonphysiological complexes by specializing protein–protein interactions. PMID:28923934

Establishment and molecular characterization of a sweet potato germplasm bank of the highlands of Paraná State, Brazil.

PubMed

Camargo, L K P; Mógor, A F; Resende, J T V; Da-Silva, P R

2013-11-18

The sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is a crop of great importance in developing countries, as a food staple, for animal feed, and potentially for biofuel. Development of cultivars adapted to specific regions within these countries would be useful. To start a breeding program, the first step is the establishment of a germplasm bank. We initiated a sweet potato germplasm bank with accessions collected from the highlands of Paraná State, Brazil. To establish this germplasm bank, we carried out numerous sweet potato-collecting expeditions in regions with an altitude above 700 meters in this region; 116 genotypes currently comprise this collection. The genetic diversity of this germplasm bank was estimated using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers. Polymorphic information content (PIC), marker index (MI), and resolving power (RP) were calculated to determine the viability of ISSR markers for use in sweet potato genetic studies. The correlation between PIC and MI (r(2) = 0.81) and between MI and RP (r(2) = 0.97) were positive and significant, indicating that ISSR markers are robust for sweet potato identification. Two ISSR primers, 807 and 808, gave the best results for all attributes, and thus could be used as representative ISSR primers for the genetic analysis of sweet potato. Cluster analysis and principal component analysis indicated high genetic variability (0.51 of similarity among all genotypes); genotypes collected from different counties grouped together.

Evolution of salt and hydrocarbon migration: Sweet Lake area, Cameron Parish, Louisiana

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Spencer, J.A.; Sharpe, C.L.

The interpretation of seismic, gravity, and well data in northern Cameron Parish, Louisiana suggest that lateral salt flow has influenced the area`s structural evolution, depositional patterns, and hydrocarbon migration. Sweet Lake Field has produced over 46 MMBO and 15 BCFG from Middle Miocene deltaic sands. The structural closure is a downthrown anticline on a fault controlled by the underlying salt feature. Sweet Lake Field overlies an allochthonous salt mass that was probably once part of an ancestral salt ridge extending from Hackberry to Big Lake fields. Nine wells encountering top of salt and several seismic lines define a detached saltmore » feature underlying over twenty square miles at depths from 8500-18,000 ft. Salt withdrawal in the East Hackberry-Big Lake area influenced the depositional patterns of the Oligocene lower Hackberry channel systems. Progradation of thick Middle Oligocene Camerina (A) and Miogypsinoides sands into the area caused salt thinning and withdrawal resulting in the development and orientation of the large Marginulina-Miogypsinoides growth fault northwest of Sweet Lake. Additional evidence for the southeast trend of the salt is a well approximately two miles southeast of Sweet Lake which encountered salt at approximately 19,800 ft. High quality 2-D and 3-D seismic data will continue to enhance the regional understanding of the evolving salt structures in the onshore Gulf Coast and the local understanding of hydrocarbon migration. Additional examples of lateral salt flow will be recognized and some may prove to have subsalt hydrocarbon potential.« less

Frequent consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and sweets starts at early age.

PubMed

Laitala, Marja-Liisa; Vehkalahti, Miira M; Virtanen, Jorma I

2018-03-01

We aimed to investigate the habitual consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and sweets in relation to mothers' behaviours and practices with their infants. We targeted mothers with children 1-24 months (N = 200) visiting Public Child Health clinics in Finland. During routine visits mothers (N = 179) volunteered to complete a self-administered anonymous questionnaire about their child's health-related behaviours (consumption of sweets and SSBs, tooth brushing frequency). The questionnaires also included questions about the mothers' background (age, education) and health-related behaviours (consumption of sweets, tooth brushing frequency and smoking habits). The children were categorised by age, and Chi-squared tests, Fischer's exact test, ANOVA and correlation coefficient served for the statistical analyses. Of those under 6 months, almost half (44%) received SSBs, and 45% of them more than once a week. Their use gradually increased by age such that by 19-24 months, all received SSBs at least sometimes, and 56%, frequently. Fewer than half of the mothers (33-43%) gave sweets to their children between the ages of 10-15 months, but 92% by the age of 2 years. Children's twice-a-day tooth brushing increased from 14% to 33%. The child's age and tooth brushing frequency correlated with the consumption of sugar-sweetened products (r = 0.458). Infants frequent consumption of sugar-sweetened products begins early in childhood. Thus, tackling these common risk factors in the first years of life is essential and calls for health-promoting actions in multiple areas that target primarily the parents of infants.

Electrochemical evaluation of sweet sorghum fermentable sugar bioenergy feedstock

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Redox active constituents of sorghum, e.g., anthocyanin, flavonoids, and aconitic acid, putatively contribute to its pest resistance. Electrochemical reactivity of sweet sorghum stem juice was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) for five male (Atlas, Chinese, Dale, Isidomba, N98) and three fema...

Identification, characterization and expression analysis of lineage-specific genes within sweet orange (Citrus sinensis).

PubMed

Xu, Yuantao; Wu, Guizhi; Hao, Baohai; Chen, Lingling; Deng, Xiuxin; Xu, Qiang

2015-11-23

With the availability of rapidly increasing number of genome and transcriptome sequences, lineage-specific genes (LSGs) can be identified and characterized. Like other conserved functional genes, LSGs play important roles in biological evolution and functions. Two set of citrus LSGs, 296 citrus-specific genes (CSGs) and 1039 orphan genes specific to sweet orange, were identified by comparative analysis between the sweet orange genome sequences and 41 genomes and 273 transcriptomes. With the two sets of genes, gene structure and gene expression pattern were investigated. On average, both the CSGs and orphan genes have fewer exons, shorter gene length and higher GC content when compared with those evolutionarily conserved genes (ECs). Expression profiling indicated that most of the LSGs expressed in various tissues of sweet orange and some of them exhibited distinct temporal and spatial expression patterns. Particularly, the orphan genes were preferentially expressed in callus, which is an important pluripotent tissue of citrus. Besides, part of the CSGs and orphan genes expressed responsive to abiotic stress, indicating their potential functions during interaction with environment. This study identified and characterized two sets of LSGs in citrus, dissected their sequence features and expression patterns, and provided valuable clues for future functional analysis of the LSGs in sweet orange.

Complete Genome Sequences of the Potyvirus Sweet potato virus 2 from East Timor and Australia

PubMed Central

Maina, Solomon; Edwards, Owain R.; de Almeida, Luis; Ximenes, Abel

2016-01-01

We present here the first complete genome sequences of Sweet potato virus 2 (SPV2) from sweet potato in Australia and East Timor, and compare these with five complete SPV2 genome sequences from South Korea and one each from Spain and the United States. Both were closely related to SPV2 genomes from South Korea, Spain, and the United States. PMID:27257208

Perception of sugar reduction, nutrition education, and frequency of snacking in children by the self-perceived sweet dietary habits of mothers in Busan.

PubMed

Yeon, Jee-Young; Lee, Soon-Kyu

2016-10-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the perception of sugar reduction, nutrition education, and frequency of snacking in children according to the self-perceived dietary preferences for sweet taste by mothers in Busan. A total of 277 mothers were surveyed, and their perceptions of sugar reduction and the frequency of snacking in children were assessed using a questionnaire. The subjects were classified into either a sweet (n = 91) or an unsweet (n = 186) group according to their self-perceived preferences for a sweet taste. In the sweet group, the results for sweet products were sweetened ice (86.8%), confectionery (74.7%), processed milk (73.6%), carbonated beverages (71.4%), and fermented milk (53.9%). In the unsweet group, the results were sweetened ice (88.7%), carbonated beverages (78.5%), processed milk (75.8%), confectionery (69.4%), and fermented milk (50.5%). The necessity of sugar intake reduction was high in both groups (sweet = 89.0%, unsweet = 82.8%). Beverage purchases after identifying the nutrition labeling was significantly lower in the sweet group than in the unsweet group ( P < 0.05). The reasons for the beverage purchases instead of water were "habitually" (50.5%) and "like sweet taste" (25.3%) in the sweet group ( P < 0.01). Snacking in children was significantly higher in the sweet group based on the increased frequencies of carbonated drinks ( P < 0.01), fast food ( P < 0.001), candy and chocolate ( P < 0.05), crackers ( P < 0.01), ramen ( P < 0.01), and fish paste/hotdogs ( P < 0.01). The frequency of purchase education after identifying the nutrition labeling was significantly lower in the sweet group than in the unsweet group ( P < 0.01). These findings suggest that a perception of sugar reduction and practical nutrition education aimed at reducing the sugar intake are necessary to improve dietary habits.

Evaluation of whorl damage by fall armyworm (Lepidoptera:Noctuidae) on field and greenhouse grown sweet sorghum plants

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The fall armyworm [Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)] is an economically important pest of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench]. However, resistance to fall armyworm in sweet sorghum has not been extensively studied. A collection of primarily sweet sorghum accessions were evaluated in t...

Sweet's mechanism in the solar wind

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burlaga, L. F.; Scudder, J. D.

1974-01-01

Sweet's mechanism occurs in the solar wind, at D-sheets near 1 AU. Conductivities on the order of 10,000 esu are obtained, which is on the order of the local plasma frequency. This implies that the effective collision frequency is on the order of the plasma frequency. The lateral extent of D-sheets is approximately 0.01 AU to 0.001 AU. Hundreds of such D-sheets are probably present between the orbits of Venus and Earth at any instant.

Sweet's syndrome mimicking alkali burn: a clinical conundrum.

PubMed

O'Halloran, E; Stewart, N; Vetrichevvel, T P; Rea, S; Wood, F

2013-06-01

Sweet's syndrome or acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis presents most commonly on the hands, upper extremities and face. The disease is of clinical relevance to surgeons as it could mimic an infective aetiology but debridement negates such wounds. A 34-year-old man was referred from a peripheral hospital with suspected infected alkali burn to the hands. A builder by profession, he had been working outdoors with possible exposure to cement-concrete mix, 5 days previously. At presentation, the dorsal aspect of the thenar eminence appeared erythematous and oedematous, with pustules and blisters with central ulcerations. Haematological investigation revealed a neutrophilic leucocytosis and raised CRP. On the second day of admission the patient became febrile. He was treated with analgesia, IV Tazocin (Pipperacillin and Tazobactam) and the wounds were surgically debrided and covered using autologous cell therapy via the Recell kit. Two days following surgery, microbiology of wound swabs, tissue samples and blood cultures yielded no growth. The wound was noted to be extending beyond the zone of injury and a new area of erythema was evident on the neck. A diagnosis of idiopathic acral Sweet's syndrome was confirmed when histopathological investigation showed a moderate inflammatory cell infiltrate in the dermis. A rapid response to oral corticosteroids was clinically evident after 48 h and the lesions were completely healed at 4 weeks follow-up. We recommend thorough clinical history and examination, systematic wound review, tissue biopsy and culture in conjunction with dermatology opinion in cases of suspected Sweet's syndrome. Surgical debridement should be avoided as it has the potential to negate such wounds secondary to pathergy phenomenon. Copyright © 2012 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Conversion of sweet sorghum bagasse into value-added biochar

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sweet sorghum bagasse is an untapped resourceful carbon-rich material that can be thermochemically converted into value-added biochars. These biochars can be applied to the field as soil amendment for soil health enhancement, improved soil carbon content, water holding capacity, soil drainage and a...

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of Genes Involved in Anthocyanin Biosynthesis in the Red and Yellow Fruits of Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.)

PubMed Central

Wei, Hairong; Chen, Xin; Zong, Xiaojuan; Shu, Huairui; Gao, Dongsheng; Liu, Qingzhong

2015-01-01

Background Fruit color is one of the most important economic traits of the sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.). The red coloration of sweet cherry fruit is mainly attributed to anthocyanins. However, limited information is available regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying anthocyanin biosynthesis and its regulation in sweet cherry. Methodology/Principal Findings In this study, a reference transcriptome of P. avium L. was sequenced and annotated to identify the transcriptional determinants of fruit color. Normalized cDNA libraries from red and yellow fruits were sequenced using the next-generation Illumina/Solexa sequencing platform and de novo assembly. Over 66 million high-quality reads were assembled into 43,128 unigenes using a combined assembly strategy. Then a total of 22,452 unigenes were compared to public databases using homology searches, and 20,095 of these unigenes were annotated in the Nr protein database. Furthermore, transcriptome differences between the four stages of fruit ripening were analyzed using Illumina digital gene expression (DGE) profiling. Biological pathway analysis revealed that 72 unigenes were involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis. The expression patterns of unigenes encoding phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), 4-coumarate-CoA ligase (4CL), chalcone synthase (CHS), chalcone isomerase (CHI), flavanone 3-hydroxylase (F3H), flavanone 3’-hydroxylase (F3’H), dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (DFR), anthocyanidin synthase (ANS) and UDP glucose: flavonol 3-O-glucosyltransferase (UFGT) during fruit ripening differed between red and yellow fruit. In addition, we identified some transcription factor families (such as MYB, bHLH and WD40) that may control anthocyanin biosynthesis. We confirmed the altered expression levels of eighteen unigenes that encode anthocyanin biosynthetic enzymes and transcription factors using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Conclusions/Significance The obtained sweet cherry transcriptome and DGE profiling data

Patients' costs and cost-effectiveness of tuberculosis treatment in DOTS and non-DOTS facilities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

PubMed

Steffen, Ricardo; Menzies, Dick; Oxlade, Olivia; Pinto, Marcia; de Castro, Analia Zuleika; Monteiro, Paula; Trajman, Anete

2010-11-17

Costs of tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment may represent a significant burden for the poor and for the health system in resource-poor countries. The aim of this study was to analyze patients' costs of tuberculosis care and to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of the directly observed treatment (DOT) strategy per completed treatment in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We interviewed 218 adult patients with bacteriologically confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis. Information on direct (out-of-pocket expenses) and indirect (hours lost) costs, loss in income and costs with extra help were gathered through a questionnaire. Healthcare system additional costs due to supervision of pill-intake were calculated considering staff salaries. Effectiveness was measured by treatment completion rate. The ICER of DOT compared to self-administered therapy (SAT) was calculated. DOT increased costs during the treatment phase, while SAT increased costs in the pre-diagnostic phase, for both the patient and the health system. Treatment completion rates were 71% in SAT facilities and 79% in DOT facilities. Costs per completed treatment were US$ 194 for patients and U$ 189 for the health system in SAT facilities, compared to US$ 336 and US$ 726 in DOT facilities. The ICER was US$ 6,616 per completed DOT treatment compared to SAT. Costs incurred by TB patients are high in Rio de Janeiro, especially for those under DOT. The DOT strategy doubles patients' costs and increases by fourfold the health system costs per completed treatment. The additional costs for DOT may be one of the contributing factors to the completion rates below the targeted 85% recommended by WHO.

Complete Genome Sequences of the Carlavirus Sweet potato chlorotic fleck virus from East Timor and Australia

PubMed Central

Maina, Solomon; Edwards, Owain R.; de Almeida, Luis; Ximenes, Abel

2016-01-01

We present here the first complete genome sequences of Sweet potato chlorotic fleck virus (SPCFV) from sweet potato in Australia and East Timor, and we compare these with four complete SPCFV genomes from South Korea and one from Uganda. The Australian, East Timorese, South Korean, and Ugandan genomes differed considerably from each other. PMID:27231359

Antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of bitter and sweet apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) kernels.

PubMed

Yiğit, D; Yiğit, N; Mavi, A

2009-04-01

The present study describes the in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of methanol and water extracts of sweet and bitter apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) kernels. The antioxidant properties of apricot kernels were evaluated by determining radical scavenging power, lipid peroxidation inhibition activity and total phenol content measured with a DPPH test, the thiocyanate method and the Folin method, respectively. In contrast to extracts of the bitter kernels, both the water and methanol extracts of sweet kernels have antioxidant potential. The highest percent inhibition of lipid peroxidation (69%) and total phenolic content (7.9 +/- 0.2 microg/mL) were detected in the methanol extract of sweet kernels (Hasanbey) and in the water extract of the same cultivar, respectively. The antimicrobial activities of the above extracts were also tested against human pathogenic microorganisms using a disc-diffusion method, and the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of each active extract were determined. The most effective antibacterial activity was observed in the methanol and water extracts of bitter kernels and in the methanol extract of sweet kernels against the Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. Additionally, the methanol extracts of the bitter kernels were very potent against the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli (0.312 mg/mL MIC value). Significant anti-candida activity was also observed with the methanol extract of bitter apricot kernels against Candida albicans, consisting of a 14 mm in diameter of inhibition zone and a 0.625 mg/mL MIC value.

Distribution and progression of add power among people in need of near correction.

PubMed

Han, Xiaotong; Lee, Pei Ying; Liu, Chi; He, Mingguang

2018-04-16

This study helps to better understand the need and trend in presbyopic add power in the aging society. Distribution and progression of presbyopic add power in East Asian population is largely unknown. Prospective cohort study. About 303 participants from a population-based study of residents aged 35 years and older in Guangzhou, China. Visual acuity (VA) test and non-cycloplegic automated refraction were performed at baseline in 2008 and the 6-year follow-up per standardized protocol. Participants with presenting near VA ≤ 20/40 underwent distance subjective refraction and add power measurement by increasing plus lens at a standard distance of 40 cm at each visit. Add power at baseline and follow-ups. Mean (standard deviation) age of the study participants was 57.6 (11.1) years and 50.2% were female. The mean add power at baseline was 1.43, 1.73, 2.03 and 2.20 diopters (D) for individuals in the age groups of 35-44, 45-54, 55-64 and 65+ years, respectively. Participants with older age and lower educational level had significantly higher add power requirements (P < 0.001). The overall 6-year increase in add power was 0.15D (95% CI: 0.06 to 0.25), and was smaller in myopic subjects (P = 0.03). Baseline age and add power, but not changes in biometric factors, were associated with longitudinal change in add power (P < 0.001). Distribution and progression of add power in Chinese was different from that previously suggested by Caucasian studies. More studies are needed to establish up-to-date age-related add power prescription norms for population of different ethnicities. © 2018 Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists.

Genome characterization and genetic diversity of sweet potato symptomless virus 1: a mastrevirus with an unusual nonanucleotide

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Complete genomic sequences of nine isolates of sweet potato symptomless virus 1 (SPSMV-1), a virus of genus Mastrevirus in the family Geminiviridae, was determined to be 2,559-2,602 nucleotides from sweet potato accessions from different countries. These isolates shared genomic sequence identities o...

Novel value-added uses for sweet potato juice and flour in polyphenol- and protein-enriched functional food ingredients.

PubMed

Grace, Mary H; Truong, An N; Truong, Van-Den; Raskin, Ilya; Lila, Mary Ann

2015-09-01

Blackcurrant, blueberry, and muscadine grape juices were efficiently sorbed, concentrated, and stabilized into dry granular ingredient matrices which combined anti-inflammatory and antioxidant fruit polyphenols with sweet potato functional constituents (carotenoids, vitamins, polyphenols, fibers). Total phenolics were highest in blackcurrant-orange sweet potato ingredient matrices (34.03 mg/g), and lowest in muscadine grape-yellow sweet potato matrices (10.56 mg/g). Similarly, anthocyanins were most concentrated in blackcurrant-fortified orange and yellow sweet potato matrices (5.40 and 6.54 mg/g, respectively). Alternatively, other protein-rich edible matrices (defatted soy flour, light roasted peanut flour, and rice protein concentrate) efficiently captured polyphenols (6.09-9.46 mg/g) and anthocyanins (0.77-1.27 mg/g) from purple-fleshed sweet potato juice, with comparable efficiency. Antioxidant activity correlated well with total phenolic content. All formulated ingredient matrices stabilized and preserved polyphenols for up to 24 weeks, even when stored at 37°C. Complexation with juice-derived polyphenols did not significantly alter protein or carbohydrate profiles of the matrices. Sensory evaluation of the ingredient matrices suggested potential uses for a wide range of functional food products.