Correlation Between Phenylthiocarbamide Taster Status and Quinine Sensitivity IntroductionEach person has unique preferences for certain tastes and types of food. Some of these preferences are due to environmental factors, while others have genetic components (Yeomans 2010). One such genetically influenced trait is the ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC). PTC was discovered by accident in 1931 by colleagues Arthur Fox and CR Noller. While working in the lab, dust from the PTC bottle flew around and Noller complained of the bitter taste while Fox noticed nothing. The two then tried the crystals and observed a clear difference in their ability to taste PTC. Fox continued to investigate this phenomenon and determined that he had found both tasters and non-tasters within various groups of individuals (Fox 1932). Since then, PTC has been a topic of broad interest in fields as diverse as genetics, psychophysiology, ecology, evolution, nutrition, and science education (Wooding 2006). Since the phenotype is almost impossible to guess until explicitly tested, but once tested is quite surprising, it has often been used to spice up educational lessons (Wooding 2006). Aside from the pedagogical implications of such a surprising phenotype, many pioneering studies relating to the PTC and the taster/non-taster phenotype have been conducted since its discovery (Wooding 2006). Soon after Fox presented his findings to the National Academy of Sciences, Blakeslee also presented his large-scale study of PTC inheritance within families and saw a similar phenomenon of taster and non-taster phenotypes. Furthermore, Blakeslee classified tasters according to their gustatory acuity using dilutions at which the bitte... half the paper... and the high sensitivity to quinine hydrochloride of non-tasters in Japanese." Chemical Senses 22.5 (1997): 547 -551. Print.Smutzer, Gregory, et al. "Validation of Edible Taste Strips to Assess PROP Taste Perception" 38.6 (2013): 529-539. Science 74 (1931): 151-152. Print.Turnbull, Bianca and Elizabeth Matisoo-Smith. “Taste sensitivity to 6-n-propylthiouracil predicts acceptance of bitter-tasting spinach in 3- to 6-year-old children.” The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 76.5 (2002): 1101. Print.Wooding, Stephen. “Phenylthiocarbamide: a 75-year adventure in genetics and natural selection.” Genetics 174.4 (2006): 2015. Print.Yeomans, Martin R. “Understanding Individual Differences in Acquired Flavor Preference in Humans.".