SWEET carbohydrate modeling

An alternative view (123) is that no single model can adequately explain why any given compound is sweet. This hypothesis derives from several features. First, there is the observation that all carbohydrates having a critical ratio of OH to C are sweet tasting. In other words, there are no stmctural constraints to the sweetness of carbohydrates. Second, not all sweeteners can be fit to the same SAR model. Rather, some fit one, others fit another. Third, studies on the transduction mechanisms of sweetness suggest more than a single mechanism for sweet taste, implying multiple receptors for sweeteners. 

The binding specificity of d-[ C]glucose by the taste-papillae membranes, compared to that of control membranes isolated from epithelial tissue, has been confirmed in two studies. One inherent problem in the approach is that the stimuli, primarily carbohydrate sweeteners, are not ideal model compounds to use, as they are not active at low concentrations and do not show sufficiently high binding-constants. The use of other stimulus compounds that are at least several hundred times sweeter than sucrose, such as saccharin, dihydrochalcone sweeteners, dipeptide sweeteners, stevioside, perillartine and other sweet oximes, the 2-substituted 5-nitroanilines, and... 

The apparent molal volumes and molal compressibilities of several monosaccharides, disaccharides and methyl pyranosides in dilute aqueous solution have been studied at 5, 15, and 25°C. The results were discussed in the light of solute-solvent interactions and a model for the hydration of galactose and lactose was proposed.The molal volumes of small carbohydrate molecules have been measured in an attempt at elucidating the relationship between molecular properties and sweetness. Molal volumes reflect fine differences in structure fe.q., axial or equatorial disposition of particular hydroxy groups) which are in turn related to differences in taste. In order to interpret differences in sweetness the viscosimetric constants and the heats of dilution of three monosaccharides, three disaccharides and the very sweet chlorinated sugar (21) have been determined, and their i.r. and Raman spectra have been recorded. The osmotic... 

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