Do you have it too?
Researchers claim to have discovered the sixth sense of taste
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So far we have assumed that people can distinguish between five basic tastes. Maybe we can now relearn: A research team from California claims to have proven a sixth sense.
Sour, sweet, salty, bitter and umami – these are the five basic tastes that most people can perceive and know and that are currently recognized. A few years ago there were discussions as to whether we should add a sixth element to the palette, “greasy”, but apparently the key scientists spoke more against it than for it and so far it has remained with the five mentioned. Researchers at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles are now making a new attempt to establish a sixth sense of taste: in a In a study published in the journal Nature Communications, they claim to have proven that we have taste receptors for Ammonium chloride have – we can simplify this somewhat as: Liquorice flavor describe.
How do we taste?
Our taste receptors are components of the sensory cells in our taste buds, which are primarily located in our oral cavity and especially on our tongue. These are molecules that react with certain substances from our food or other things with which they come into contact and then trigger the sending of a signal to our brain, for example: “The bitter receptors on the tip of the tongue report an alarm. ” We have different taste sensory cells, each with receptors for a specific taste quality, and our taste buds contain the different specialized cells.
Using our sense of taste, we can distinguish what is spoiled or poisonous (tends to be bitter) from what is nourishing (such as sweet and umami), and we can avoid foods that we can only tolerate in moderation (such as salty foods). It is therefore essential for our survival.
According to recent findings, in addition to our oral cavity, taste receptors can be found on numerous cells throughout our body, from the upper respiratory tract to our digestive organs and even our bones. Scientists suspect that they have an influence on our immune system and metabolism, but how big and what exactly it consists of is not yet entirely clear.
What speaks for “salmiac” as the sixth flavor?
The fact that we perceive ammonium chloride or “ammonium licorice”, which we can best describe as salty-bitter-sour, has long been beyond question. However, it was not yet known which receptor in our taste system is responsible for this. The team from Los Angeles now wants to have identified it: Apparently the molecule that reacts to “sour” is also our licorice receptor. This has been shown both in experiments on a material level and with mice: While animals with the receptor spurned water containing ammonium chloride, those that lacked the receptor drank it as if it were conventional water. Without a “sour” receptor, they apparently couldn’t taste ammonium chloride.
Chemically speaking, ammonium chloride is a salt that is inherently non-toxic to our body. However, if we consume it in higher doses, it can cause organ damage – being able to recognize it and distinguish it from “sweet”, “sour” or “umami” would be beneficial for our survival. And recognizing it as the sixth quality of taste would not seem completely out of the blue, especially after the recent findings of the US research team.
For now, it officially sticks with the five familiar flavors and ammonium chloride as a hot contender for number six in that lineup. Until “umami” was recognized in 1985, almost 80 years had passed since the first discovery; the discussion about “fatty” spanned more than a decade, but has not yet been concluded for all times and participants. So it may take some time for scientists to reach a verdict in the ammonia trial. And since licorice is known to divide people, it wouldn’t be surprising if this process turned out to be an exciting one.
Sources used: sueddeutsche.de, spektrum.de, onmeda.de