Understand What the Umami Taste Is—It Might Be on Your Exam | Press

State University of Campinas (Unicamp) included the fifth basic taste of the human palate in its Natural Sciences exam.

A different word appeared on the entrance exam of one of Brazil’s most competitive universities in 2013. The State University of Campinas (Unicamp) addressed Umami—the fifth basic taste of the human palate—on its Natural Sciences test.

Discovered in 1908 by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda, the Umami taste was only recognized by the scientific community in the 2000s, when researchers at the University of Miami identified specific receptors for the new taste on the human tongue.

The amino acid glutamate and the nucleotides inosinate and guanylate are the main substances that provide Umami. Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, mushrooms, and meats in general are foods that contain these substances in large amounts and therefore present the fifth taste more intensely. It is a rich, harmonious, and lingering taste that remains even after swallowing the food.

The question asked candidates to describe the formula of glutamate, the main amino acid that provides the fifth basic taste. However, although the question only mentioned Umami once, it may reappear in other sections of the exam. As Hellen Maluly, a professor of bromatology and Umami specialist, explains: “Other areas of knowledge, such as Biology, may also be interested in the taste and its substances in questions about the body’s senses or even related to protein synthesis.”

Umami is a timely topic of great importance to society and increasingly present in the media, which may have contributed to its inclusion on the exam.

Another curiosity

A second topic that may appear in upcoming entrance exams, according to Hellen Maluly, is the debunking of the tongue map. “Contrary to what we were taught, the tongue does not have specific areas that separately identify each of the five tastes,” Hellen explains.

The article supporting this thesis was published in the supplement Taste: Making sense of flavour, featured in the British journal Nature, one of the world’s most renowned scientific publications. According to the article, the entire surface of the tongue is capable of identifying the five tastes, regardless of location. This is because the tongue has receptors present in the taste buds, which are spread across the whole tongue.

“The myth of the tongue map began in the early 20th century, but this notion has been considered obsolete since 1931, when American chemist Arthur Fox, at DuPont, and geneticist Lawrance H. Snyder conducted experiments and found that individuals can perceive the five tastes—each in their own way—depending on their genetic makeup,” clarifies Hellen Maluly.

UMAMI TASTE

Umami is the fifth basic taste of the human palate and was discovered in 1908 by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda. It was only recognized by the scientific community in 2000, when researchers at the University of Miami found specific receptors on the taste buds. The amino acid glutamate and the nucleotides inosinate and guanylate are the main substances that provide Umami. Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, mushrooms, and meats in general are foods that contain these substances in large proportion and therefore display the fifth taste more intensely. The two main characteristics of Umami are increased salivation and the persistence of the taste for a few minutes after eating.