plants that give flavour

Question 1

what are the 5 different tastes?

Answer 1

• sweet - slaty - bitter - sour - umami

Question 2

sweet taste comes from …

Answer 2

simple carbs

Question 3

salty taste comes from …

Answer 3

sodium and a few other cations

Question 4

sour taste comes from …

Answer 4

acids

Question 5

bitter tastes comes from ….

Answer 5

toxic compounds

Question 6

umami taste comes from …

Answer 6

glutamate, aspartate, some RNAs

Question 7

the number of compounds that elicits bitter taste are by far the …. and most ….

Answer 7

largest and most structurally diverse (all alkaloids are bitter)

Question 8

what are T2Rs

Answer 8

bitter taste receptor genes

Question 9

how often are taste receptors cells replaced?

Answer 9

taste receptor cells are continuously replaced in the bud every 9 to 15 days

Question 10

why are taste receptors continuously replaced?

Answer 10

to compensate for mechanical, thermal, or toxin-induced damage

Question 11

bitter flavour is caused by which compounds? (6)

Answer 11

alkaloids, 
phenols, 
flavonoids, 
isoflavones, 
terpenes and 
glucosinolates

Question 12

why are nutrients in plants ALWAYS associated with bitter

Answer 12

potential toxic phytochemical AND/OR indicates medicinal qualities (quinine)

Question 13

… alters taste responses

Answer 13

pregnancy

Question 14

… is the response to sensitivity to bitter stimuli

Answer 14

nausea

Question 15

why are we more sensitive to bitter during pregnancy?

Answer 15

protective response at a time when major fetal organs are first forming and are HIGHLY sensitive to low levels of toxins

Question 16

which species can taste umami?

Answer 16

early hominids and modern humans

Question 17

where is umami obvious?

Answer 17

in aged or cooked meats

Question 18

humans have developed a taste for …, …., and … taste as markers of easily digestible proteins

Answer 18

glutamate, ribonucleotides, and umami taste

Question 19

fermented foods are also high in glutamate, what is that marker used for?

Answer 19

marker of improved nutrition and probiotic bacteria

Question 20

all mammals produce …….. but only great apes and some rodents have …….

Answer 20

pancreatic alpha-amylase

salivary alpha-amylase

Question 21

how are humans unique when it comes to evolution of sweet?

Answer 21

we have large-scale copy number polymorphism of salivary amylase gene AMY1

Question 22

acids may indicate the presence of ….

Answer 22

vitamin C

Question 23

mixture of …. with …. enables the identification of fruit ripeness

Answer 23

acids with sugars

Question 24

difference between carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores when it comes to salt ingestion

Answer 24

carnivores: ingest salt with every meal
herbivores: can easily become salt depleted
omnivores: moderate concentrations of are highly attractive

Question 25

how do humans lose salt?

Answer 25

through sweating

Question 26

terpenes are naturally occurring compounds derives from ….

Answer 26

isoprene

Question 27

terpenes contain multiples of … carbon atoms

Answer 27

5