Can non-volatile tastants be smelled during food oral processing?

Chem Senses. 2023 Aug 17:bjad028. doi: 10.1093/chemse/bjad028. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTWhile accumulating evidence implied the involvement of retro-nasal sensation in the consumption of non-volatile taste compounds, it is still unclear whether it was caused by the taste compounds themselves, and if so, how can they migrate from the oral to nasal cavity. At first, we proposed aerosol particles as an alternative oral-nasal mass transfer mechanism. The high-speed camera approved that aerosol particles could be generated by the typical oral and pharynx actions during food oral processing; while the narrow-band imaging of nasal cleft and mass spectrometry of nostril-exhaled air approved the migration of aerosol within the oral-nasal route. Then, the "smelling" of taste compounds within the aerosol particles was testified. The four forced-alternative choices (4AFC) approved that the potential volatile residues or contaminants within the headspace air of pure taste solution cannot arouse significant smell, while the taste compounds embedded in the in-vitro prepared aerosol particles can be "smelled" via the ortho route. The "smell" of sucrose is very different from its taste and the "smell" of quinine, implying its actual olfaction. The sweetness intensity of sucrose solution was also reduced when the volunteers' noses were clipped, indicating the involvement of retro-nasal sensation during its drinking. At last, the efficiency of aerosol as a mechanism of oral-nasal mass tran...

Source: Chemical Senses - August 17, 2023 Category: Biochemistry Authors: Yue He Jianshe Chen Weiyao Shi Jingang Shi Tian Ma Xinmiao Wang Source Type: research