Dihydrochalcone sweeteners. A study of the atypical temporal phenomena.

Neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (NHDHC), known since 1963 as an intensely sweet compound, is determined to be 340 +/- 60 (p less than 0.05) times more potent than sucrose. The unusual temporal properties of this material are hypothesized as being due to the effects of metabolism, conformation, chelation, or hydrophobicity. Forty-four analogues are synthesized to test the four hypotheses, none of which are strongly supported. A method of quantitation of temporal characteristics of tastant molecules is developed so as to allow comparison of taste appearance time (AT) and extinction time (ET) of experimental compounds. Four of the new compounds, 40 and 43-45, exhibit high sweetness potencies, ranging from 280 and 440 times sucrose, and may be useful in selected food systems. The temporal taste characteristics remain unimproved over NHDHC, however.