Oral saliva controls the taste

Oral Salivary Enzyme controls the taste and texture of foods in the mouth

The tongue senses the nature of food. People can perceive the nature of food in the mouth very differently. Whether a food tastes tender, chewy or mushy depends essentially on the composition of the saliva. The enzyme "amylase" plays a key role in this, according to scientists from the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia.

Have you ever noticed? One person likes a dish „creamy“, the other one experiences it rather than „squishy“. How one perceives the nature of food depends essentially on how the genetic composition of one's own salivary enzyme is. A special role is played by the enzyme “amylase“ on. This protein determines how someone subjectively perceives the nature of the food. That can sometimes be very different. For the amount and activity of the enzyme is very probably genetically predetermined. So the composition of the enzyme may decide whether you like a dish or not.

To measure this connection, the researchers around Abigail Mandel of „Monell Chemical Senses Center“ In a study in Philadelphia, saliva samples were taken from 73 subjects. First, the researchers mixed the saliva with starch in the experimental set-up, and then analyzed how the consistency of the added starch alters the enzymatic degradation. On the other hand, the researchers in the different saliva samples examined the content and activity of the enzyme amylase, which breaks down the starch into its components. During the study, study participants should describe how they experience their mouthfeel by keeping the starch in their mouth for exactly 60 seconds. The experiment showed that the perceptions of the subjects were quite different. The reason for this is that all had a different amount of the named enzyme. „What one perceives as a viscous mass, feels in the mouth of the other noticeably thin“, explains study author Paul Breslin.

Following this observation, the researchers studied the genetic influence on the activity and amount of the salivary enzyme to provide appropriate scientific evidence. This was the genetic material of 62 subjects on the amylase gene „AMY1“ examined. From previous studies, researchers were aware that the number of this gene in humans varies between two and fifteen. This revealed that the number of copies of the gene is directly related to the activity and amount of the amylase enzyme. If a human has more copies in the genome, the number and activity of the amylase enzyme in the saliva is also higher.

Now, the US researchers want to go one step further and examine the amount of these copies in the context of starchy food preferences. Starchy foods include rice, potatoes, bread or rolls. In addition, it will now be investigated whether the amount and activity of the enzyme in saliva also has an effect on the digestion and absorption of carbohydrates in the body. Thus, it could be that a high proportion of amylase enzyme influences insulin resistance and thus diabetes. (sb, 14.10.2010)

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Picture: Renate Tröße