How mammalian olfactory receptors bind aldehydes-common odorant molecules in foo

Question

How mammalian olfactory receptors bind aldehydes-common odorant molecules in foods and fragrances-is something ofa mystery. But now scientists have sniffed out one important detail: Some odorant recep- tors recognize an aldehyde via its hydrated, double hydroxyl form (ACS Chem. Biol. 2014, DOI: 10.1021/cb400290u). In water, such as in a moist nasal environment, an odorous aldehyde equilibrates between its carbonyl form and its double hydroxyl form, otherwise known as a geminal diol. So Kevin Ryan of the City College of New York wondered if any of the numerous known aldehyde receptors detected the hydrated form. He and his col- leagues decided to look at octanal, a citrusy aldehyde found in butter, oranges, and rice. They made a fluorinated version, 2,2-difluoro- octanal, which strongly favors the diol form when in water.Then they tested the fluori nated compound on cells expressing one of 24 odorant receptors activated onlybyalde- hydes. About 40% of those receptors respond ed to 2,2-difluorooctanal, demonstrating that some olfactory receptors can bindgem-diols. The finding will help chemists build better computational models of these protein-ligand interactions, says Hanns Hatt of Ruhr Univer-

Explanation / Answer

True statements

- There will be more geminal double hydroxyl from tha carbonyl

- The hydrate form is favoured over the carbonyl

- The carbonyl carbon is more activated formation in ths fluorinated derivative compared to non fluorinated analog

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