Current Flavor Programs
Flavor Ingredient Programs
We are currently pursuing the discovery and development of new flavor ingredients in the savory, sweet, salt, and cool taste areas, as well as ingredients that block bitter taste. S52617 (S-617) S6821, S7958
Senomyx Flavor Programs Glossary:
To be consistent with industry usage and key global flavor regulatory authorities, Senomyx refers to flavor ingredients that modify other flavors or other dietary components as “modifiers.”
Savory Taste Program
S336,S807, S263, S976, S9229, S5456
Savory Flavors - Intended to reduce or replace added monosodium glutamate (MSG) in foods and beverages; also used to create new savory blends
Sweet Taste Program
S2383
Sucralose Modifier - Enables up to 75% reduction of the high-intensity sweetener sucralose in foods & beverages
S6973
Sucrose Modifier – Enables up to 50% reduction of sugar in foods & specified beverages
S9632
Sucrose Modifier - Enables up to 50% reduction of sugar in foods & a broad range of beverages
Sweet Taste Modifier – Enables a very meaningful reduction of both high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and sucrose in taste tests with product prototypes
Bitter Blocker Program
Bitter Blockers - Demonstrated activity against bitter tasting foods and beverages, e.g., soy & whey proteins, menthol, caffeine, cocoa, Rebaudioside A (stevia)
Cooling Taste Program
Cooling Agents – Senomyx and Firmenich are evaluating new cooling agents with the goal of identifying one or more that demonstrate advantageous properties compared to commonly used agents
Savory Taste Program
The primary applications of the Company's Savory Flavors are to reduce or replace monosodium glutamate (MSG) and to combine our Savory Flavors with other ingredients to create unique new savory blends. Using our high-throughput savory receptor-based_assay_system, Senomyx has identified six novel Savory Flavors that amplify the taste of naturally occurring glutamate and may be used to reduce or replace added MSG and inosine monophosphate, or IMP, an expensive enhancer of MSG taste.
All of Senomyx's Savory Flavors have GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) regulatory_approval, which allows commercialization in the U.S. and other countries. Some also have approval in additional countries including the European Union and China, the world's largest MSG market. Nestlé SA, the world's largest food company, and another Senomyx collaborator are currently marketing new and reformulated products that incorporate a Senomyx Savory Flavor in approximately 25 countries within Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and North America. These products have been launched into the retail, industrial, and food service channels in selected countries.
Sweet Taste Program
The primary goal for Senomyx’s Sweet Taste Program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a significant reduction of sweeteners in food and beverage products while maintaining the desired sweet taste. Senomyx has two partners for this program – PepsiCo, the world’s second-largest food and beverage business, and Firmenich SA, a global leader in providing ingredients and flavor systems to major consumer companies.
Using our high-throughput sweet receptor-based assay system, Senomyx discovered S2383, a novel sweet taste modifier that enables up to a 75% reduction of the high-intensity sweetener sucralose in products without decreasing the sweet intensity or producing off-tastes. In addition, S2383 may result in an improved taste compared to sucralose alone when incorporated into a flavor system. Sucralose is used in a wide variety of beverages and foods such as confectionaries, baked goods, desserts, and dairy products, as well as over-the-counter (OTC) healthcare products and dietary supplements. S2383 has been granted a GRAS regulatory designation that allows commercialization in the U.S. and other countries, as well as approval in the European Union and a positive determination from JECFA, which is recognized by additional countries. Firmenich, a Senomyx partner, has exclusive worldwide rights to market S2383, and commercialization is currently underway in North America and Latin America.
Senomyx has also discovered S6973, a modifier of sucrose (table sugar) that enables up to 50% reduction of sugar in numerous product types while retaining the natural taste. Reducing the quantity of sucrose in products could be advantageous for consumers seeking to limit sugar in their diets and for manufacturers that would like to offer products with improved nutritional profiles without compromising on taste. Senomyx received a GRAS designation for S6973 in October 2009. The GRAS designation allows usage of S6973 in baked goods, cereals, gum, condiments and relishes, confectioneries and frostings, frozen dairy offerings, fruit ices, gelatins and puddings, hard and soft candy, jams and jellies, milk products, and sauces. During the first quarter of 2010, the GRAS status for S6973 was extended to instant coffee and tea, and imitation dairy products. S6973 received JECFA approval in the third quarter of 2012.
Firmenich has exclusive rights to commercialize S6973 worldwide in virtually all food product categories, as well as specific beverage applications and over-the-counter pharmaceutical products. Firmenich initiated commercialization of S6973 in the second quarter of 2011. Commercialization activities with S6973 are ongoing in the Americas, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Australia.
S9632 , a new sucrose modifier, was granted a GRAS designation in September 2012. S9632 can enable reduction of up to 50% of the sugar in numerous product types without diminishing taste, providing a solution for manufacturers seeking to create new offerings that have significantly lower sugar and calories, but retain the sugar taste consumers enjoy. Like the S6973 sucrose modifier, S9632 can be used in a variety of foods, including dairy products, confectioneries, snack foods, and sauces. In addition, S9632 is applicable for a broad range of non-alcoholic beverages including powdered and concentrated beverages, along with ready-to-drink and powdered forms of dairy, coffee and tea products, as well as alcoholic beverages.
Firmenich, has exclusive rights to commercialize S9632 for food product categories and shares co-exclusive rights in the powdered beverage category with the Company. Senomyx maintains exclusive rights for all other non-alcoholic beverages and is currently evaluating various commercialization strategies for S9632 in those categories.
Most recently, Senomyx advanced S52617 (S617) , a new modifier for both high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and sucrose, into the preliminary development phase. High fructose corn syrup is a widely used sweetener, especially in North America. It is used in products such as baked goods, yogurts, sauces and condiments, beverages and concentrates, granola and energy bars, and canned and frozen fruits. The utility of S617 with both HFCS and sucrose could allow manufacturers that use these sweeteners to focus their internal efforts on a single sweet taste modifier, thereby potentially increasing efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Senomyx also has an initiative to discover and develop natural high-potency sweeteners. This effort involves building a targeted natural-source library and using the Company’s proprietary technologies to identify potential new natural sweeteners and sweet flavor ingredients. Senomyx’s approach was validated with the identification of a natural compound that provided a sweet taste, an important taste-proof-of-concept for the program.
Bitter Blockers Program
The primary goals of Senomyx's Bitter Blocker Program are to reduce or block bitter taste and to improve the overall taste characteristics of foods, beverages, and ingredients. Reducing bitterness would be valuable for the many manufacturers who want to improve the taste characteristics of foods, beverages, healthcare items, and other products.
Senomyx received GRAS regulatory designations for two Bitter Blockers, S6821 and S7958, in the fourth quarter of 2010, and positive JECFA determinations in the third quarter of 2012. S6821 has demonstrated activity against bitter tasting foods and beverages that include soy and whey proteins, menthol, caffeine, cocoa, and Rebaudioside A (stevia). S7958, a related bitter blocker with similar functionality, has alternative desirable physical properties that may be useful for these or other product applications. In addition, Senomyx continues to evaluate and develop potential new bitter blockers. A Senomyx partner has initiated market launch of a retail product incorporating S6821 in a country in Southeast Asia.
Salt Taste Program
The goal of our Salt Taste Program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a significant reduction of sodium in foods and beverages yet maintain the salty taste desirable to consumers. This program is an important research focus for Senomyx’s longer-term pipeline. Current activities include targeted analytical approaches to discover specific proteins that could be viable candidates for the receptors or co-factors responsible for salt taste. The Company has assembled a proprietary database of proteins found in taste buds and progress is being made exploring the role of a number of these proteins that may be involved in salt taste perception. Senomyx has identified a novel blocker of salt taste that could be a tool to help discover the receptor involved with salt taste perception.
Cooling Taste Program
The goal of Senomyx's Cooling Flavors Program is to identify novel cooling flavor ingredients that do not have the limitations of currently available agents, which include weak cooling characteristics, bitter off-tastes, limited solubility, and non-proprietary status. Senomyx and our partner for this program, Firmenich, are evaluating new cooling agents discovered by Senomyx in order to identify one or more that demonstrate advantageous properties compared to commonly used agents such as greater potency, longer cooling duration, or lack of aroma.
