Evaluation on taste-masking effect of Andrographis Herba by electronic tongue / 中草药

ABSTRACT

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of taste-masking by electronic (E)-tongue and provide a reference for the drug taste-masking study. Methods: Andrographis Herba was used as the carrier of bitter Chinese materia medica (CMM), sodium acetate (NaAc), sodium cyclamate (SC), adenosine-5′-monophosphatedisodiumalt (AMP), and 2, 4-dihydroxyhenzoic acid (DA) as the taste-masking agents. The data obtained by the E-tongue were analyzed through principal component analysis (PCA), and Euclidean distance in the data space of different dimensions was calculated. Regarding the distance of bitterness (D) as the evaluation index, then whether the data analyzed by the E-tongue and volunteers were the same or were not investigated. Results: The evaluation results of the taste-masking agents by E-tongue were similar to the taste by volunteers except NaAc, suggesting that some conditions should be required to evaluate the effect of CMM taste-masking. Conclusion: This study shows that E-tongue could be used for evaluating the effect of CMM taste-masking under certain conditions. To evaluate the gustation information by E-tongue, we should use the professional knowledge of pharmacy, chemical and other related disciplines to analyze and improve this evaluation method and model gradually.