{"id":16880,"date":"2023-10-05T08:24:22","date_gmt":"2023-10-05T15:24:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=16880"},"modified":"2024-12-17T18:30:40","modified_gmt":"2024-12-18T02:30:40","slug":"the-sixth-taste","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/","title":{"rendered":"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  role=\"none\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  The popular Scandinavian candy salty licorice strikes a familiar receptor on the tongue. (Composite: Letty Avila. Image source: iStock.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=science-and-technology\">Science and Technology<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, a new study suggests the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Darrin S. Joy<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">October 5, 2023<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 0 1.5167124.60096154 2.9475732 1.68841575 4.0350274 1.058837 1.0874543 2.51831502 1.6884158 4.03502747 1.6884158 1.44087681 0 2.80427251-.5423678 3.86936601-1.5289606l.1656615-.1594552 2.2321428-2.2321428-1.6311813-1.6311813-2.2321429 2.26076c-.6581959.658196-1.5167124 1.0016026-2.43246332 1.0016026s-1.7742674-.3434066-2.43246337-1.0016026c-.65819597-.6581959-1.00160257-1.5167124-1.00160257-2.4324633 0-.8547009.2991453-1.6595442.87416905-2.2981957l.12743352-.1342677 2.23214286-2.2321429zm6.88661855-.40736607-5.26116068 5.26116075 1.61881868 1.6188186 5.2611607-5.2611607zm1.3837569-5.54501488c-1.4408768 0-2.8042725.54236779-3.869366 1.52896062l-.1656615.15945513-2.23214282 2.23214286 1.63118132 1.63118132 2.2321429-2.23214286c.6581959-.65819597 1.5167124-1.00160256 2.4324633-1.00160256s1.7742674.34340659 2.4324634 1.00160256 1.0016026 1.51671246 1.0016026 2.43246337c0 .85470089-.2991453 1.65954419-.8741691 2.29819559l-.1274335.1342678-2.2321429 2.2321428 1.5739469 1.5739469 2.2321429-2.2321428c1.0874542-1.058837 1.6884157-2.5183151 1.6884157-4.03502751 0-1.51671245-.6009615-2.94757326-1.6884157-4.03502747-1.058837-1.08745421-2.518315-1.68841575-4.0350275-1.68841575z\" transform=\"translate(-3 -3)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Copy Link<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#facebook\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Facebook\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_facebook\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m23.9512 6h-16.9024c-.57923625 0-1.0488.46956375-1.0488 1.0488v16.9024c0 .5792362.46956375 1.0488 1.0488 1.0488h9.10024v-7.34768h-2.46772v-2.87584h2.46772v-2.11508c0-2.45404 1.49872-3.79012 3.68828-3.79012.7389668-.00263323 1.4775241.03516995 2.21236.11324v2.56348h-1.51392c-1.18788 0-1.4174.56544-1.4174 1.39612v1.8316h2.84772l-.37088 2.87584h-2.47684v7.34844h4.83284c.5792362 0 1.0488-.4695638 1.0488-1.0488v-16.9024c0-.57923625-.4695638-1.0488-1.0488-1.0488z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Facebook<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#twitter\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"X\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_twitter\">\n              <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\"\n\t y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 30 30\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 30 30\" xml:space=\"preserve\" width=\"19\" height=\"19\">\n<path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M14.5,16.2l-0.8-1.1l-6.3-9h2.7l5.1,7.3l0.8,1.1\n\tl6.6,9.4h-2.7L14.5,16.2L14.5,16.2z M16.9,13.4l7.4-8.7h-1.8l-6.5,7.5L11,4.8H5l7.8,11.4L5,25.2h1.8l6.8-7.9l5.5,7.9h6L16.9,13.4\n\tL16.9,13.4z\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">X<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_linkedin\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#linkedin\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Linkedin\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_linkedin\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m25 21.4220779c0 1.974026-1.6038961 3.5779221-3.5779221 3.5779221h-11.84415582c-1.97402598 0-3.57792208-1.6038961-3.57792208-3.5779221v-11.84415582c0-1.97402598 1.6038961-3.57792208 3.57792208-3.57792208h11.84415582c1.974026 0 3.5779221 1.6038961 3.5779221 3.57792208zm-14.5584416-12.21428569c-.98701295 0-1.60389606.61688311-1.60389606 1.48051949-.12337663.8636364.49350649 1.4805195 1.48051946 1.4805195.987013 0 1.6038961-.6168831 1.6038961-1.4805195 0-.86363638-.6168831-1.48051949-1.4805195-1.48051949zm1.3571429 12.70779219v-8.6363636h-2.83766234v8.6363636zm10.2402597 0v-4.9350649c0-2.5909091-1.3571428-3.8246753-3.3311688-3.8246753-1.4805195 0-2.0974026.8636363-2.4675325 1.4805194v-1.2337662h-2.8376623v8.6363636h2.8376623v-4.9350649c0-.2467532 0-.4935065.1233767-.7402597.1233766-.4935065.6168831-.987013 1.4805194-.987013.987013 0 1.4805195.7402597 1.4805195 1.974026v4.564935z\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">LinkedIn<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_bluesky\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#bluesky\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Bluesky\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_bluesky\">\n              <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\">\n                <path fill=\"#00000\" d=\"M12 10.8c-1.087-2.114-4.046-6.053-6.798-7.995C2.566.944 1.561 1.266.902 1.565C.139 1.908 0 3.08 0 3.768c0 .69.378 5.65.624 6.479c.815 2.736 3.713 3.66 6.383 3.364c.136-.02.275-.039.415-.056c-.138.022-.276.04-.415.056c-3.912.58-7.387 2.005-2.83 7.078c5.013 5.19 6.87-1.113 7.823-4.308c.953 3.195 2.05 9.271 7.733 4.308c4.267-4.308 1.172-6.498-2.74-7.078a8.741 8.741 0 0 1-.415-.056c.14.017.279.036.415.056c2.67.297 5.568-.628 6.383-3.364c.246-.828.624-5.79.624-6.478c0-.69-.139-1.861-.902-2.206c-.659-.298-1.664-.62-4.3 1.24C16.046 4.748 13.087 8.687 12 10.8\"  fill-rule=\"evenodd\" \/>\n              <\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Bluesky<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_email\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#email\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"E-mail\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_print\">\n              <svg height=\"12\" viewBox=\"0 0 18 12\" width=\"18\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-highlights \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-highlights\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Key points:\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n      <ul>\n              <li><p>USC Dornsife scholars have discovered evidence of a sixth basic taste.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>The tongue responds to ammonium chloride, a popular ingredient in some Scandinavian candies.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>The OTOP1 protein receptor, previously linked to sour taste, is activated by ammonium chloride.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>The ability to taste ammonium chloride may have evolved to help organisms avoid harmful substances.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n          <\/ul>\n  <\/div>\n  \n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Japanese scientist Kikunae Ikeda first proposed umami as a basic taste \u2014 in addition to sweet, sour, salty and bitter \u2014 in the early 1900s. About eight decades later, the scientific community officially agreed with him.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, scientists led by researchers at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences have evidence of a sixth basic taste.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In research published Oct. 5 in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-023-41637-4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Nature Communications<\/em>,<\/a> USC Dornsife neuroscientist <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/limanlab\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Emily Liman<\/a> and her team found that the tongue responds to ammonium chloride through the same protein receptor that signals sour taste.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_16881\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16881\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-16881\" src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_instoryb-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_instoryb-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_instoryb-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_instoryb-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_instoryb.jpg 980w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-16881\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Salty licorice contains the alkaline salt ammonium chloride, giving the candy a unique flavor. (Photo: Maxine Eschger.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIf you live in a Scandinavian country, you will be familiar with and may like this taste,\u201d says Liman, professor of biological sciences. In some northern European countries, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2018\/10\/24\/magazine\/candy-salty-licorice-finland-happiness.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">salt licorice<\/a> has been a popular candy at least since the early 20th century. The treat counts among its ingredients salmiak salt, or ammonium chloride.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scientists have for decades recognized that the tongue responds strongly to ammonium chloride, but they weren\u2019t sure which receptors were responsible. Liman and the research team \u2014 which includes scientists from the University of Colorado Medical School \u2014 thought they might have an answer.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In recent years, they <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/new-study-shows-how-sour-flavors-are-tasted\/\">identified a protein<\/a>, OTOP1, that detects sour taste. They hypothesized that this protein might also respond to ammonium chloride because of its impact on acid levels in cells.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To test this, they introduced the Otop1 gene into lab-grown human cells then exposed some of them to acid or to ammonium chloride. The results showed that ammonium chloride activated the OTOP1 receptor just as effectively as acid.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further tests on mice confirmed that those with the OTOP1 gene avoided ammonium chloride, while those without it didn\u2019t mind the taste.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Liman speculates that the ability to taste ammonium chloride might have evolved to help organisms avoid harmful substances.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAmmonium is somewhat toxic,\u201d she explained, \u201cso it makes sense we evolved taste mechanisms to detect it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The team also found that the sensitivity to ammonium chloride varies among species, possibly due to their different environments.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The researchers plan to further explore the OTOP1 receptor&#8217;s response to ammonium chloride, hoping to uncover more about its evolutionary significance.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And who knows? Perhaps ammonium chloride will join the other five basic tastes, bringing the official count to six.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>About the study<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In addition to Liman, authors of the study include PhD student Ziyu Liang (first author) at USC Dornsife; Courtney Wilson and Sue Kinnamon of the University of Colorado Medical School; and Bochuan Teng, a former PhD student at USC Dornsife who is now at Caltech.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The study was supported by National Institutes of Health grants R01GM131234 and R01DC013741.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Related Articles\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/childhood-illness-drives-usc-dornsife-graduates-pursuit-of-medicine\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >How early health challenges fueled two graduating seniors\u2019 passion for medicine<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/can-we-prevent-ai-from-acting-like-a-sociopath\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Can we prevent AI from acting like a sociopath?<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/in-memoriam-william-mcclure-scientist-developed-uscs-neurosciences-programs\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >In Memoriam: William McClure, scientist who developed USC\u2019s neurosciences programs<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, ammonium chloride may also be a basic taste, according to a new study by USC Dornsife neuroscientists.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":16882,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[117,1920,96,106],"class_list":["post-16880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science-and-technology","tag-biology","tag-bisc","tag-natural-sciences","tag-neuroscience"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A sixth basic taste for the tongue?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"USC Dornsife News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1150\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Michael Liu\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Michael Liu\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447\"},\"headline\":\"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\"},\"wordCount\":9,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"biology\",\"bisc\",\"natural sciences\",\"neuroscience\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Science and Technology\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\",\"name\":\"A sixth basic taste for the tongue?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00\",\"description\":\"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg\",\"width\":2000,\"height\":1150},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\",\"name\":\"USC Dornsife News\",\"description\":\"USC Dornsife news and events\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\",\"name\":\"USC Dornsife News\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":330,\"caption\":\"USC Dornsife News\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/uscdornsife\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uscdornsife\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/USCCollege\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/uscdornsife\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447\",\"name\":\"Michael Liu\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Michael Liu\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/author\/liumk\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is","description":"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"A sixth basic taste for the tongue?","og_description":"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists","og_url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/","og_site_name":"USC Dornsife News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife","article_published_time":"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2000,"height":1150,"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Michael Liu","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@uscdornsife","twitter_site":"@uscdornsife","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/"},"author":{"name":"Michael Liu","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447"},"headline":"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is","datePublished":"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00","dateModified":"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/"},"wordCount":9,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg","keywords":["biology","bisc","natural sciences","neuroscience"],"articleSection":["Science and Technology"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/","name":"A sixth basic taste for the tongue?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg","datePublished":"2023-10-05T15:24:22+00:00","dateModified":"2024-12-18T02:30:40+00:00","description":"In addition to sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami, the tongue might also detect ammonium chloride as a basic taste, say neuroscientists","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/09\/liman_taste_top.jpg","width":2000,"height":1150},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/the-sixth-taste\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"And then there were 6 \u2014 kinds of taste, that is"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/","name":"USC Dornsife News","description":"USC Dornsife news and events","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization","name":"USC Dornsife News","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg","width":1000,"height":330,"caption":"USC Dornsife News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife","https:\/\/x.com\/uscdornsife","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uscdornsife\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/USCCollege","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/uscdornsife"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447","name":"Michael Liu","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Michael Liu"},"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/author\/liumk\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16880"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17615,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16880\/revisions\/17615"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}