Thaumatin

• UniProt: P02883

• CAS Number: 53850-34-3

Thaumatin ( E 957 ) is a naturally occurring sweetener. He is a 2000 - to 3000 - times as sweet as sugar. It is a mixture of six proteins in the berries of the West African Katamfe plant ( Thaumatococcus daniellii, locals also call it Ndebion ). Thaumatin has a licorice -like taste, and is used also as a flavor enhancer. The main components Thaumatin I and II have been identified in 1972 by Unilever chemists. Thaumatin has been approved since the beginning of 1996 by the EC Sweeteners.

It belongs to a family of plant proteins, which occur in many plants and are generally produced in response to stress. These so-called thaumatins are also referred to as pathogenesis - related group 5 ( PR5 ). Many of these proteins accumulate in the particular plant in response to infection and have fungicidal activity. Many of the thaumatins cause allergies in humans.

Occurrence and extraction

Thaumatin accumulates in vesicle-like organelles of the plant. However, the yield is very low, from 1 kg of can be only 6 grams of thaumatin isolate.

2012 succeeded at TUM to produce genetically modified yeasts that produce thaumatin.

Properties

Thaumatin is a mixture of the six proteins, wherein the different components of thaumatin I, II, III, a, b ​​and c by the amino acid sequence (all of exactly 207 amino acids). The spatial structures of the individual proteins differ only slightly from each other. In Thaumatin is an odorless, sweet-tasting, yellowish powder. The sweetening power of the individual Thaumatinbestandteile differs slightly. It is very soluble in water but insoluble in acetone. The molar mass of about 22.3 kDa.

Use

Thaumatin is used in confectionery (often in such a Cocoa-or dried-fruit- based ). , Dietary and nutritional supplements and chewing gum The breakthrough in the mass market did not make it. Due to the low occurrence in the plant and the high cost of the required high degree of purity for food thaumatin is not priced competitively. Moreover, it is not boiling stable and the licorice flavor limits the usability an addition.

Thaumatin is classified as a health hazard. It, like all proteins, completely digested in the stomach and small intestine. There was no defined allowable daily dose. It is used by the locals in Africa for a long time.