NovelSweets Project Develops Protein-Based Sweetener 10,000 Times Sweeter Than Table Sugar
Researchers at Fraunhofer IME have partnered with metaX Institut für Diätetik GmbH and candidum GmbH to develop a new type of protein-based sweetener. Called NovelSweets, the project is supporting the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture in its efforts to reduce the sugar content of ready-made foods and beverages. The new sweetener is made from sweet-tasting proteins, molecules that occur naturally in some plants and bind readily to taste receptors for sweet flavors on the tongue. Brazzein, found in the African plant Pentadiplandra brazzeana, is one of the best-known sweet proteins; however, it is difficult to extract from the plant. Instead, the NovelSweets project is developing new protein varieties based on the protein sequence of brazzein. This process involves the use of biotechnology and …