Background and Aims: Flavor is the simultaneous stimulation of the human senses, odor and taste and is triggered by distinct molecules occurring in our daily foods. Although the consumer acceptance of foods is strongly influenced by aroma-active volatiles, non-volatile, taste-active compounds, as well as somatosensory sensations, flavor research in the last decades was focused mainly on these individual aspects rather than on the interaction between taste, smell and somatosensation. The aim of our group is, therefore, to understand the mechanisms of the interactions between different flavor molecules.
Examples: rutin-induced bitterness amplification of caffeine (Figure), influence of protein structure on its ability to bind bitter and astringent taste compounds, taste enhancement systems, etc.

  • Human psychobiological studies
  • Quantitative binding studies
  • 1H NMR titration experiments

Figure. Chemical structure of a rutin-caffeine complex