Ever set off too many of the bitter taste receptors on your tongue? You probably spat out whatever it was in your mouth, and that's our best guess for why we even have them: to stop us from ingesting ...

Ever bitten into a hot pie, yelped "Hothothot!" then had your taste buds go on strike for the next week? Taste buds are a ...

The bitter bracket fungus, Amaropostia stiptica, is probably not available at your local farmer's market, and if you didn't get the hint from its name, it's because it tastes really, really terrible.

The bitter taste receptors we have on our tongues are also found in other organs, including the gut. A new study has identified two specific receptors in the large intestine that are associated with ...

Scientists have identified the most bitter-tasting substance ever discovered—a potent chemical compound found in a "bitter bracket" mushroom. The discovery comes from a collaborative project between ...

A new study describes an exciting discovery that changes the way we understand human bitter taste receptors. The research has revealed a hidden "pocket" inside one of the body's bitter taste receptors ...

Bitter taste receptors are specialised proteins that enable us to detect substances with a bitter taste. They are found mainly in the taste buds of the tongue, but also in the intestine, lungs and ...

Bitter taste receptors inside cancer cells have been found to be activated in the presence of anti-cancer drugs. Shutting these receptors down could make the cells more susceptible to drug treatment ...

Receptor proteins, expressed on the cell surface or within the cell, bind to different signaling molecules, known as ligands, initiating cellular responses. Taste receptors, expressed in oral tissues, ...

Ever bite into something so bitter that you had to spit it out? An ages-old genetic mutation helps you and other animals perceive bitterness and thus avoid toxins associated with it. But while most ...