Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Could unlocking the secrets of flavor help us make healthy food tastier?
Taste and smell are known as the “chemical senses.” But they are difficult processes to study at the molecular level, so biochemists need to get creative about exploring the “how” and “why” of odorant-receptor and tastant-receptor interactions. Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D., a Research Professor of Bioinformatics at Texas Tech University, and his former student collaborator, Sona Sara Thomas, explain how they used a computational approach to analyze molecules from spices with certain flavor profiles.
This video was part of ACS Program-in-a-Box, a hybrid event presented free of charge to ACS member communities on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025 during National Chemistry Week. The 2025 theme was "The Hidden Life of Spices," and the program featured presentations like this one, live Q&A with the experts, interactive trivia, and a box full of giveaways.
Learn how you can bring ACS Program-in-a-Box to your member community (and watch the full event recording) at acs.org/pib.
Credits:
Written by Anne Hylden, Vangie Koonce, and Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D.
Edited and animated by Chris Mattle
Produced by Anne Hylden, Andrew Sobey, and Jefferson Beck
Executive produced by Matt Radcliff and Russel Silber
Appearances by Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D. and Sona Sara Thomas
Also shown: Gayathri Lakamsani, Abhinav Gupta, Rashmi Basniwal, and Neeraj Gajjela
Film production by Production Outfitters
Produced by the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of the world’s largest scientific societies. ACS is a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals, and scientific conferences.
Join the #AmericanChemicalSociety! bit.ly/Join_ACS
#smellgood #spices #chemistry
Could unlocking the secrets of flavor help us make healthy food tastier?
Taste and smell are known as the “chemical senses.” But they are difficult processes to study at the molecular level, so biochemists need to get creative about exploring the “how” and “why” of odorant-receptor and tastant-receptor interactions. Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D., a Research Professor of Bioinformatics at Texas Tech University, and his former student collaborator, Sona Sara Thomas, explain how they used a computational approach to analyze molecules from spices with certain flavor profiles.
This video was part of ACS Program-in-a-Box, a hybrid event presented free of charge to ACS member communities on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025 during National Chemistry Week. The 2025 theme was "The Hidden Life of Spices," and the program featured presentations like this one, live Q&A with the experts, interactive trivia, and a box full of giveaways.
Learn how you can bring ACS Program-in-a-Box to your member community (and watch the full event recording) at acs.org/pib.
Credits:
Written by Anne Hylden, Vangie Koonce, and Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D.
Edited and animated by Chris Mattle
Produced by Anne Hylden, Andrew Sobey, and Jefferson Beck
Executive produced by Matt Radcliff and Russel Silber
Appearances by Chiquito Crasto, Ph.D. and Sona Sara Thomas
Also shown: Gayathri Lakamsani, Abhinav Gupta, Rashmi Basniwal, and Neeraj Gajjela
Film production by Production Outfitters
Produced by the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of the world’s largest scientific societies. ACS is a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals, and scientific conferences.
Join the #AmericanChemicalSociety! bit.ly/Join_ACS
#smellgood #spices #chemistry
