New taste discovery after 5 flavors including sweet and salty

New taste discovery after 5 flavors including sweet and salty

The way our tongue perceives ammonium chloride should be considered our sixth taste, research suggests.

Los Angeles: Until now we knew there were only five types of taste (sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami). But now it's time to add another flavor to the list.

Scientists at the University of Southern California in the US have claimed that the way our tongue perceives ammonium chloride should be counted as our sixth taste.

For decades, scientists have known that our tongue reacts to ammonium chloride, but until now the reason behind this was not clear.

A protein called OTOP1 is responsible for the sour taste, and in the research the team tried to find out whether ammonium chloride could also be responsible for OTOP1.

To test this, the scientists inserted the OTOP1 gene into human cells grown in the lab so that the cells could make the OTOP1 protein. They then exposed these cells to acid or ammonium chloride and then measured their response.

According to Professor Lyman, the research showed that ammonium chloride may be the main activator of the OTOP1 channel. It can activate this channel as well or better than acid.

Further experiments in mice confirmed that those with the OTPO1 gene avoided ammonium chloride, while those without the gene were unaffected by the taste.

Professor Lyman added that the research suggests that the OTOP1 channel is important for behavioral responses to ammonium.