Structuring sweetness: What makes Stevia so sweet?
Washington University in St. LouisNew research from Washington University in St. Louis reveals the molecular machinery behind the high-intensity sweetness of the stevia plant. The results could be used to engineer new non-caloric products without the aftertaste that many associate with the sweetener marketed as Stevia.Although the genes and proteins in the biochemical pathway responsible for stevia synthesis are almost completely known, this is the first time that the 3D structure of the proteins that make rebaudioside A — or RebA, the major ingredient in the product Stevia —has been published, according to the authors of a new paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.