Pentadin, a sweet-tasting

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...

, was discovered and isolated in 1989, in the fruit of

Oubli ''Pentadiplandra brazzeana'' is an evergreen shrub or liana that is the only species assigned to the genus ''Pentadiplandra'', and has been placed in a family of its own called Pentadiplandraceae. It produces large red berries, sometimes mottled ...

(''

Pentadiplandra brazzeana ''Pentadiplandra brazzeana'' is an evergreen shrub or liana that is the only species assigned to the genus ''Pentadiplandra'', and has been placed in a family of its own called Pentadiplandraceae. It produces large red berries, sometimes mottled ...

'' ), a climbing shrub growing in some tropical countries of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. The fruit has been consumed by the apes and the natives for a long time. The berries of the plant were incredibly sweet African locals call them "j'oublie" (French for "I forget") because their taste helps nursing infants forget their mothers' milk. Pentadin, with

brazzein Brazzein is a sweet-tasting protein extracted from the West African fruit of the climbing plant Oubli (''Pentadiplandra brazzeana'' Henri Ernest Baillon, Baillon). It was first isolated by the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1994. Brazzein ...

discovered in 1994, are the 2 sweet-tasting proteins discovered in this African fruit. Pentadin molecular weight estimated to be 12

kDa The dalton or unified atomic mass unit (symbols: Da or u) is a non-SI unit of mass widely used in physics and chemistry. It is defined as of the mass of an unbound neutral atom of carbon-12 in its nuclear and electronic ground state and at ...

. It is reported to be 500 times sweeter than

sucrose Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula . For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and refined ...

on a weight basis, with its sweetness having a slow onset and decline similar to

monellin Monellin, a sweet protein, was discovered in 1969 in the fruit of the West African shrub known as serendipity berry (''Dioscoreophyllum cumminsii''); it was first reported as a carbohydrate.GE Inglett, JF May. Serendipity berries - Source of a n ...

and

thaumatin Thaumatin (also known as talin) is a low-calorie sweetener and flavor modifier. The protein is often used primarily for its flavor-modifying properties and not exclusively as a sweetener. The thaumatins were first found as a mixture of protein ...

. However, pentadin's sweetness profile is closer to monellin than to thaumatin. There are six sweet-tasting proteins - pentadin, thaumatin, monellin, mabinlin, brazzein, and curculin - that are all from isolated plants in tropical forests. They show no similarities in a structural or homologous sequence aspect.

Uses

The six sweet-tasting proteins can be used as a natural low-calorie sweetener to replace certain sugars. They are also good for the response of insulin in people who are diabetic.

References

Sugar substitutes Proteins {{protein-stub

Uses

See also

References