Award details

Bitter reception and bitter-salt interactions

Reference	BBS/E/F/03017045
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Professor Ian Connerton
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	Quadram Institute Bioscience
Department	Quadram Institute Bioscience Department
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	75,747
Status	Completed
Type	Institute Project
Start date	01/04/1997
End date	31/03/2000
Duration	36 months

Abstract

Although orphan receptors have been cloned from gustatory tissue, little is known about their specific role in flavour perception. The main aim of this project is therefore to clone and characterise human gustatory receptors which bind specifically to a series of bitter tasting ligands. This will involve construction of a human cDNA library from the region of the tongue most strongly associated with bitter taste. This library will be expressed in a mammalian cell line, and then screened by binding fluorescently tagged bitter tasting compounds. These fluorescent probes are vital for the identification and isolation of specific receptor expressing cells, and are not commercially available. A major component of the proposed study will therefore involve the synthesis of tagged ligands. Once specific cells, and ultimately receptor cDNAs have been isolated, they will be sequenced and characterised. Bitter receptors may then be functionally expressed in a model yeast system to further study for the binding and receptor activation of individual and mixtures of bitter compounds, with particular reference to their interaction with salt.

Summary

unavailable

Committee	Closed Committee - Agri-food (AF)
Research Topics	X – not assigned to a current Research Topic
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	X - not in an Initiative
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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