In this study, amygdalin contents in the seeds of ten different bitter or sweet apricot cultivars were determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for two years. The seeds of apricot cultivars were obtained from the Malatya Fruit Research Institute in Turkey. The results indicated that genetic variation was found among the cultivars. The amygdalin contents of bitter cultivars we...

Intraoral infusions of bitter tastants activate expression of the immediate-early gene c-Fos in neurons located in the medial third of the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract (rNST). The distribution of these neurons is distinct from that activated by sour or sweet stimuli. Bitter stimuli are also distinctive because of their potency for eliciting gaping, an oral reflex that functions to acti...

Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) is an important vegetable and medicinal plant in tropical and subtropical regions globally. In this study, the draft genome sequence of a monoecious bitter gourd inbred line, OHB3-1, was analyzed. Through Illumina sequencing and de novo assembly, scaffolds of 285.5 Mb in length were generated, corresponding to ∼84% of the estimated genome size of bitter gourd ...

In flies and humans, bitter chemicals are known to inhibit sugar detection, but the adaptive role of this inhibition is often overlooked. At best, this inhibition is described as contributing to the rejection of potentially toxic food, but no studies have addressed the relative importance of the direct pathway that involves activating bitter-sensitive cells versus the indirect pathway represent...

"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 neur...

The bitter and sweet forms of a plant species differing with alkaloid contents may provide a model system for investigation of alkaloid biosynthesis at a molecular level. The pattern and concentration of quinolizidine alkaloids were determined by capillary GC-MS in bitter and sweet plants of Lupinus angustifolius. Bitter plant contained lupanine, 13alpha-hydroxylupanine, angustifoline, alpha-is...

CONTEXT During swallowing, boluses stimulate sensory receptors of the oral, pharyngeal, laryngeal, and esophageal regions. Sweet and tasteless foods are more acceptable for swallowing than bitter foods. A bitter bolus is unpleasant for most subjects. Our hypothesis was that the ingestion of a bitter bolus might alter the oral behavior, pharyngeal and esophageal transit when compared to a sweet ...

Caffeine, generally known as a stimulant of gastric acid secretion (GAS), is a bitter-tasting compound that activates several taste type 2 bitter receptors (TAS2Rs). TAS2Rs are expressed in the mouth and in several extraoral sites, e.g., in the gastrointestinal tract, in which their functional role still needs to be clarified. We hypothesized that caffeine evokes effects on GAS by activation of...

Sensitivity to the bitter taste of 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) is an inherited trait. Although some people find PROP to be extremely bitter, others cannot distinguish PROP solutions from plain water. In a series of studies, greater PROP sensitivity was linked with lower acceptability of other bitter compounds and with lower reported liking for some bitter foods. Women, identified as "super-tast...

The antidiabetic activities of bitter melon powders produced with lyophilization/superfine grinding and hot air drying/normal grinding were investigated in vivo for selecting a suitable bitter melon processing procedure. After a five-week treatment, bitter melon lyophilized superfine grinding powder (BLSP) had a higher antidiabetic activity with reducing fasting blood glucose levels from 21.40...