Latest TAS2R38 Stories
Long the bane of picky eaters everywhere, broccoli’s taste is not just a matter of having a cultured palate; some people can easily taste a bitter compound in the vegetable that others have difficulty detecting. Now a team of Penn researchers has helped uncover the evolutionary history of one of the genes responsible for this trait. Beyond showing the ancient origins of the gene, the researchers discovered something unexpected: something other than taste must have driven its evolution....
There's an existential crisis that often happens at dinner tables across the country: why won't kids eat their vegetables? Research has found that one reason could be a sensitivity to bitterness, fairly common among children – about 70 percent have it. But a new study led by Jennifer Orlet Fisher, director of the Family Eating Laboratory at Temple's Center for Obesity Research and Education, has found that adding a small amount of dip to a serving of vegetables helped bitter sensitive...
Scientists say that DNA analysis of ancient remains suggests that Neanderthals and modern humans shared the gene that give us the ability to taste bitter flavors, BBC News reportedA chemical called PTC is considered very bitter to most people, but 25 percent cannot taste it at all, because certain people have different taste receptors on their tongues.But the genetic variation responsible for this difference also existed in Neanderthals, according to recent analysis of a 48,000 year-old...
By Amy NortonNEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Preschoolers who are sensitive to bitter flavors may be especially likely to turn their noses up at vegetables, a new study shows.In an experiment with 65 preschool children, researchers found that those whose taste buds were particularly attuned to detecting bitterness were less likely to eat their veggies. In some cases, they balked at eating not only bitter vegetables, like broccoli and olives, but also sweeter fare like carrots and red peppers.The...
Bitter-tasting foods a tough, but necessary, sell for these youngstersHealthDay News -- If you couldn't get enough of sweets when you were young, chances are your child will share your palate's passion.That's because your taste preferences are, at least in part, influenced by your genes. However, age and culture can eventually override this genetic influence, a new study finds.And that means kids who steer clear of vegetables may warm to them in a few years.Building off the recent discovery...
