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Updated: Mar 28, 2026

Taste Exam: A Brief and Validated Test
Published on: August 17, 2018
On the connection between nonmonotonic taste behavior and molecular conformation in solution: The case of
Prashant D Chopade1, Bipul Sarma1, Erik E Santiso1
1Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, 66-568, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
Abstract:
The diterpene steviol glycoside, rebaudioside A, is a natural high potency non-caloric sweetener extracted from the leaves of Stevia rebaudiana. This compound shows a parabolic change in sweet taste intensity with temperature which contrasts with the general finding for other synthetic or natural sweeteners whose sweet taste increases with temperature. The nonmonotonic taste behavior was determined by sensory analysis using large taste panels. The conformational landscape of rebaudioside A was established at a range of temperatures by means of nuclear magnetic resonance and molecular dynamics simulation. The relationship between various conformations and the observed sweetness of rebaudioside A is described.
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