Evaluation of monosodium glutamate, disodium inosinate and guanylate umami taste by an electronic tongue Original Research Article

An electronic tongue (e-Tongue) was used to evaluate umami taste and compare different flavor enhancers (concentration and manufacture). Monosodium glutamate and three kinds of disodium inosinate and guanylate (I + G) were analyzed. The obtained data were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA). The first principal component represented the intensity of umami taste. Based on Euclidean distance between ‘I + G’ samples and MSG (0.5%) on the PCA score plot, the umami intensity of all samples was ranked. The ‘I + G’ samples produced by three manufactures were successfully discriminated on the second principal component with a high discrimination index (82.26). Besides, the drift phenomenon of sensor was discussed and finishing sensor analyses in a continuous time could help avoid the drift. This study showed that e-Tongue was useful in analyzing the umami taste and might be a complementary tool in evaluation of flavor enhancer.