Abstract:

Using sodium alginate-starch gel as a fixing agent, taste-bud tissues of pigs were fixed between two nuclear
microporous membranes to make a sandwich-type sensing membrane, which was then fixed to a glassy carbon electrode
to make a biosensor electrode. By using electrochemical workstation, the current produced when sucrose octaacetate,
denatonium and quercetin stimulated their corresponding receptors were tested. The results showed that the lowest limit of
detection of this biosensor for sucrose octaacetate, denatonium and quercetin were 1 × 10-14, 1 × 10-13 and 1 × 10-14 mol/L
and the maximum rate of change of the current was found at concentration levels of 1 × 10-8, 1 × 10-6 and 1 × 10-9 mol/L,
respectively, indicating that their receptors are saturated. It was demonstrated that the interaction curves of sucrose
octaacetate, denatonium and quercetin with their respective receptors exhibited high correlation (R2 = 0.957 3, 0.987 3 and
0.996 4) in the concentration ranges of 1 × 10-14 –1 × 10-11 mol/L, 1 × 10-13–1 × 10-7 mol/L and 1 × 10-14 –1 × 10-9 mol/L,
respectively. This study not only quantitatively determined the interaction of the taste receptor and bitter substances with
a new biosensor, but also provided a simple approach for monitoring bitter substances and investigating the mechanism of
ligand-receptor interaction.

Key words: taste biosensor, sucrose octaacetate, denatonium, quercetin