Quantitative estimation of the bitter taste intensity of oxyphenonium bromide reduced by cyclodextrins from electromotive force measurements

The bitter taste of oxyphenonium bromide, an antiacetylcholine drug, is suppressed by cyclodextrins. The extent of the suppression can be predicted from the electromotive force measurements with an oxyphenonium bromide-selective electrode. The relationship between the bitter taste intensity and the electromotive force holds true, regardless of the kind and concentration of natural and modified cyclodextrins. This result is explicable on the basis of the observation that both the bitter taste and the electric potential are determined by the concentration of free oxyphenonium bromide. Some implications and limitations of the present approach are discussed.