Spices and perfumes – driving forces of humans

Spices and perfumes – driving forces of humans
In ancient Near Eastern cultures fragrances and spices were used to
preserve meat, which later included human corpses mummification
Egyptian girls used fragrant perfume cones (animal grease) for a sure shortdistance
effect on the Old Egyptian male. Together with the dress it devastated.

Discovery of resins as preservatives of meat
(volatiles + solids in some resins repel insects, fungi,
bacteria) leads Egyptian priests (!!!) to invent
….mummification?? Highly profitable, blame it on
Anubis!

Spices– one of the secret driving forces of history
Pliny complained that Romans spent too much gold on spices. Modern people
use 1 kg spice per year. Geopolitical events like the Mongol expansion into
China & Arabia interrupted the old trade routes and started a rediscovery of the
world by the European powers. See routes to India, China, Japan, America,
Australia and Antarctica,
408 the Visigoths under
Alaric I for the first time in
almost 800 years laid
siege to Rome. The
Senate negotiated a deal
5,000 pounds of gold,
30,000 pounds of silver,
& 100 sacs of pepper

Spices = plants of the gods but desired by humans
crucial factor in history of colonization
3000 BC Assyrian (Nineveh) clay tablets mention sesame wine &
philosophy: evil things smell bad (devil smells of sulfur!), sweet smells
signify purity fumigation of spice to clean the air for gods + humans
2000BC EGYPT: in Harris papyrus spices are the plants of the gods!
In Ebers papyrus 1552 BC : coriander, caraway, sesame, saffron, onions
Spice trade was accomplished first by the
Phoenicians, than massively by Romans by
ship trough Alexandria and snail mail via
silk road, Persia; had access to Indian &
Chinese spices, replaced by Venice
May 21 st 1498 Vasco da Gama reached Calicut (Calcutta), Venice out
Columbus tried reach India going westwards, found pepper island Cuba
1595 Van Houtman reached Sumatra, Madagascar, Borneo
1780 spice war between Holland & England ceased Ceylon, India

Spices like all herbs have mythical lore
2500 BC Egyptian expedition to land of Punt acquired spices & incense
950 BC visit of Queen of Sheba (Ethiopia) to Solomon (Israel) was to
encourage spice trade
500 BC Greeks grew caraway, cardamom, anise, mustard, fennel. Import
pepper,cinnamon, ginger from China via silk road or Phoenician sailors:
“cinnamon grows in African swamps guarded by bat-like vampires”
0-1700 AC Arabs dominate spice trade “ cinnamon is gathered from the
nest of gigantic birds that need to be fed donkey meat to get to it.”
6. Pigeons were fed
caraway seeds to secure
their return
Warming quality qualified spices to be
suspected aphrodisiacs:
1. Chewing caraway seeds makes attractive
2. aniseed, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, & ginger
3. Coriander seed & dill seed drunk together
4. Cumin, dill & salt carried by German brides .
. during wedding guaranteed their faithfulness
5. Indian brides painted with turmeric for luck

Spices are defense compounds turned from weapons to pleasure
Spices are plant-derived combinations of substances that in their
pure form and concentration are potent insect and herbivore
repellents:
Chew on a leaf of bay or oregano, a clove or a peppercorn and even
a vanilla fruit and you will realize it.
Humans have two options insects do not have!
1.Dilute the repellants (toxicity is matter of
concentration; Paracelsus)
2.Mix with ingredients that neutralize their repellent
action.
Aromatic volatiles will repel without contact (superior) while others
like mustard oils (cabbages), sulfur compounds of Allium and
others activate only after the herbivore has bitten.

What are spices?

Families of good spices
Spices are a cultural achievement of humans like music,
dance and writing. Drive for spices was the memory of diversity
tasted as gatherers before the monotony of crop feeding.

Silphion –extinct aphrodisiac & spice
The Town of Cyrene in the N African
province of Cyrenaica obtained its wealth
from selling this tall member of the
Apiaeceae , now extinct & perhaps related
to recent Ferula asa-foetida (Persia,
Afgh.) – the stinking asant or the devil’s dirt
Cut in upper part of
perennial root releases
latex that concentrates in 3
days to resin-like lumps.
These are used as spicy
food add., aphrodisiacs &
also was pop.
contraceptive
The shape of the
silphion seeds was
like shown on this
ancient coin.
Surprisingly, we do
not find anything like
that in nature, but in
the ancient myths – a
symbol of the heart

Spices: Sylphium
Movie “Dune: “He who has the spice, rules the universe!”
645 BC Greeks founded city Cyrene on the North
African coast that was in reach of silphium country
Theophrastus “ Study of Plants” described this plant’s anatomy, use,
harvest etc as rather similar to today’s Ferula assa-foetida, a variant of
the giant fennel. Resin collectors tapped the thick root, added flour that
causes it to reddish color and be stable when shipped to Athens in
barrels. This plant was truly a wild plant since it avoided cultivated land.
Uses: 1. As a spice together with roasted meat or boiled pork belly
marinated in cumin, silphium and sharp vinegar. Also Italian Greeks
liked salted tuna with cheese and silphium sprinkled over it (pizza?)
Roman Pliny described the end of Silphium: Land was overgrazed by sheep &
last remaining Silphium plant sent to Emperor Nero. The Sahara expanded ….
Alexander the Great had discovered a silphium-like plant in the Hindu Kush
mountains of Afghanistan: Ferula assa-foetida, not the same

Asafoetida – the ersatz Silphium of Greek antiquity
Asafoetida = Europe’s forgotten spice?
from Iran – a repulsively smelling resin
from the Iranian Fennel Ferula asafoetida
often adulterated with F. persica
& F. galbanum – all tall stout umbellifers
The secret of it was first discovered by
German botanist Engelbert Kaempfer
who travelled in Iran & Turkey under
cover and wrote 1712 “Five studies of
exotic wonders, political,
scientific and medical”

Spices have health effects like herbs

Spices acting like herbs: Cayenne pepper
A few cloves steeped in boiling water remedy nausea & vomiting
Cayenne is a vasodilator (causes blood vessels to open) &
rubefacient. Common powder from a grocery store shaker
can thus cause near instant warming of the hands & feet on
cold days or in people with reduced circulation.
Cayenne contains a pungent resin-like substance
known as capsaicin –which is active ingredient of
pepper spray, Irony: relieves pain and itching by
neurotransmitter release & depletion. Without the
neurotransmitters, pain signals can no longer be sent.

Spices acting like herbs; warm is just a feeling
Cayenne is a vasodilator (causes blood
vessels to open) & rubefacient. Common
powder from a grocery store shaker can thus
cause instant warming of the hands & feet on
cold days & in people with reduced circulation
The niacin flush is a sign of vasodilation that you
can experience easily. It is harmless but often severe
enough that people stop taking the vitamin. Niacin
opens blood vessels wider. People with high
cholesterol levels can lower them with niacin.
Cayenne contains a pungent resin-like
substance known as capsaicin –which is active
ingredient of pepper spray, Irony: relieves
pain and itching by neurotransmitter release &
depletion. Without the neurotransmitters, pain
signals can no longer be sent.

Are you a masochist?
Bitterness is one of the most crushing problems in a person’s
life. Alternatively, it is a taste that is acrid or unpleasant.

Niacin – how to fake blushing
Niacin is B-3, one of the water-soluble Bcomplex
vitamins
Dilates blood vessels creating sensation of
warmth and redness of skin as in “face flushing”
do not exceed 25 mg/ session
helps you to naturally relax & induce sleep.
reduces harmful cholesterol levels in the blood
reduces anxiety and depression
A rubefacient is a substance for that produces redness of the skin e.g. by
causing dilation of the capillaries and an increase in blood circulation.
Common medicinal rubefacients include: Capsaicin (derived from Cayenne,
Capsicum minimum), Salicylates (such as Oil of Wintergreen, Methyl Salicylate),
Nicotinate esters = Niacin , Rubbing alcohol
Common herbal rubefacients include: Cloves (Eugenia caryphyllus), Garlic (Allium
sativum), Horseradish (Cochlearia armoracia), Mustard (Brassica alba or B. nigra),
Ginger (Zingiber officinale),Nettle (Urtica dioica), Rosemary Oil (Rosmarinus
officinalis),Rue (Ruta graveolens)

Piper nigrum
Spices acting like herbs
Black Pepper corns are
dried fruits, white pepper
corns are clean seeds
piperine
pungency of capsaicin and piperine is caused by activation of heat and
acidity sensing TRPV ion channel TRPV1 on nociceptors (pain sensing
nerve cells).
Piperine inhibits metabolism & transport of various drugs & so
increases the bioavailability of other compounds like curcumin by
2000% in humans. Also forVit B, which is important for older
people having restricted uptake of it. “Old people! Spice it up.”

Curcuma longa
Ginger family
Spices acting like each others company
cucurmine
Cucurmin is the principal component of the Indian
curry spice + yellow mustard powders. It is a
polyphenol giving yellow color to the turmeric
rhizome. With boric acid it gives a characteristic
red color indicating the formation of rosocyanine.
Curcumin acts as a free radical scavenger and
antioxidant, inhibiting lipid peroxidation ] and
oxidative DNA damage. Curcuminoids induce
glutathione S-transferase and are potent inhibitors of
cytochrome P450. Curcumin inhibits the transcription
of the viral DNA. Needs supplementation with
piperine to be taken up in sufficient quantity!!!
rhizomes

Allium sativum
Spices acting like herbs
allicine
Allicin reduces atherosclerosis and fat
deposition; normalizes the lipoprotein balance,
& decreases blood pressure. has antithrombotic
and anti-inflammatory activities.
Overuse can damage intestinal cells.
Onions contain chemical compounds believed to have antiinflammatory,
anticholesterol, anticancer such as quercetin.
they may act as an anti-inflammatory or bacteriostatic [14]
can improve collagen organization & keep your beauty
Sliced onion cells release alliinases to convert amino acid
sulphoxides into volatile sulphenic acids & then synpropanethial-S-oxide.
Reaching the eye, they form a diluted
solution of sulphuric acid, which irritates the nerve endings &
produce tears to flush out the irritant.
Allium cepa
Sulphenic
acid

Thiols & Allium plants
Plants of the genus Allium (cepa onion & sativum garlic
etc.) have sulfur-containing compounds. Crushing or chewing
releases allinases (C-S-lyase) variety of S-compounds like
diallyl sulfide
diallyl disulfide. Is
converted to diallyl sulfoxide &
diallyl sulfone which are compet.
Inhibitors of Cyt P450 increase
cell proliferation & polyamine
synthesis.
alliinase
Allicin. from garlic antibacterial &
anti-fungal is rapidly destroyed by
cooking. Allicin is responsible for
hot, burning flavor of fresh
garlic.
It is not present in natural state.
When damaged, the enzyme
alliinase converts alliin into
allicin. Alliin is a non-proteinogenic
amino acid Alliinase irreversibly
deactivated below a pH of 3;
fresh and powdered garlic not a
good antibiotic. Allicin fights arterio
sclerosis, dissolve fats,

Sulfides, e.g. garlic Allium sativum
Sulfides (except for AA cysteine, methionine) restricted to few families
characterized by obnoxious odor, simple HC sulfides in Allium species
including lachrymators, in Brassica, radish, onions glucosinolates or
mustard oils, thiophenes in Asteracea in association with polyacetylens.
6000 a ago Egypt, garlic produces lots of sulfur-containing volatiles that
repel insects & other herbivores. Inside the vacuoles there is a
colorless, odorless compound called alliin. The cytosolic enzyme
allinase converts alliin into sulfenic acid + ammonia. Two sulfenic
acid molecules combine to allicin – smelly & fiery tasting compound
that breaks down to diallyl disulfide –smelly & a powerful insecticide!!!!
In
vacuole
1
=
.
3
2 4
.
=

Lab exercise: something to behold for the eye: onion
When onions are sliced or eaten, cells are
broken, allowing the enzyme alliinase to break
down amino acid sulphoxides and generate
sulphenic acids.
A specific sulfenic acid, 1-propenesulfenic
acid, is rapidly rearranged by a second enzyme,
to syn-propanethial-S-oxide, a volatile gas
known as the onion lachrymatory factor or
LF.The gas diffuses through the air and
eventually reaches the eye, where it activates
sensory neurons, creating a stinging sensation.
Tear glands produce tears to dilute and flush
out the irritant. Similar Chemicals are known as
lachrymatory agents
cutting onions under running water or
submerged in a basin of water. Another way to
reduce irritation is by freezing, or by not cutting
off the root of the onion which has a higher
concentration of enzymes
Task1:
1. Cut onion while partner holds a
large sheeth of pH (or yellow red
beet) paper to catch flares of sulfenic
acid.
2. Test for active lachrimatory
factor by cutting an onion + bringing
it near your partner’s head
3. Cut onion under slightly alkaline
water pH 9-10 and test again.

Mustard, Cabbages, Crucifers, Brassicas
Mustard is a condiment made from the seeds of a mustard
plant (white mustard, Sinapis hirta; brown or Indian mustard,
Brassica juncea; or black mustard, Brassica nigra).

ITC against cancer.
Although glucosinolates have
goitrogenic effect ( which is
bad) but seem to inhibit some
tumors (colon, toungue & liver)
and sponsor others
(pancreatic & skin) while being
ineffective to lung tumors
Sinigrin (R= allyl) from
Sinapis alba = the white, tame
mustard
Glucobrassican (R= indolyl)
in cabbage, cauliflower,
brusselspr + turnips form
indole-3-carbinol
Isothiocyanates & glucosinolates
ITCs or mustard oils are generated when tissues of
Cruciferarae are wounded or chewed mixes the enzyme
myrosinase with glucosinolates hydrolytic release of ITC
with biting taste

Flavor of sulfur compounds glucosinolates
The acrid flavor of Brassica s is due to glucosinolate-derived volatiles =
the so-called mustard oils. The bitterness in brussel sprouts due to
sinigrin & progoitrin. Both acridity & bitterness are herbi repellents;
For cabbage butterfly & aphids sinigrin is a major attractant; humans
consumers, however, like it only at low trace concentrations.
1. Isothiocyanates cause biting taste of mustard oils
a mixture between pungent allyl isothiocyanate
with hot p-hydroxybenzyl isothiocyanate
2. goitrogenic effect
due to competition of thiocyanate ions
with iodine for thyroid receptor

Spices: Ginger
Bitterness is one of the most crushing problems in a person’s
life. Alternatively, it is a taste that is acrid or unpleasant.

Saffron, has for decades been the
world's most expensive
spice,derived from the 3 dried
stigmas of the flower of the
saffron crocus (Crocus sativus).
Stigmas are dried & used in
cooking as a seasoning and
coloring agent.
Crocin – a carotenoidal glycoside
Saffron has a bitter taste & haylike
fragrance; It also contains a
carotenoid dye, crocin, that gives
food a rich golden-yellow hue.
Saffron also has medicinal
applications.
Saffron - Crocus sativus

The Curry Tree & the Curry plant
The curry tree (Murraya koenigii) is a
tropical tree in the Rutaceae, which is native
to India.
The leaves are fragrant and used used in
curries ("curry leaves“ or "sweet neem
leaves." as unavoidable content of curries
in South India,
Not related to Curry Plant, Helichrysum ital.
Helichrysum italicum – the curry plant is a
flowering plant of the daisy family
Asteraceae native to the Mediterranean.
It is called the curry plant because of the
strong thyme-like smell of its leaves.
It has nothing whatsoever to do with the
mixture of spices used in Indian cooking, nor
with the curry tree (Murraya koenigii).

Phenols as flavors
4% of the
beans
catechins

Cilantro, Coriander, Coriandrum sativum
Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) is an annual
herb in the Apiaceae. Coriander is native to
southern Europe & North Africa.

Spices and perfumes – Apiacea or carrot/parsley family
Umbelliferae: umbel as inflorescense; flat-topped clusters of flowers
Parsley (Petrosselinum crispum) leaf; dill (Anethum graveolens) leaf; cilantro
(Coriandrum sativum) leaf and fruit (coriander spice)

The volatiles of the Apiaceae
The volatiles and hence smell of carrot family plants is a complex
mixture of terpenes & phenols. Apiol is a diuretic & the major
constituent of the oil of parley seeds Petrosillium , trans-Anethole
determines smell & taste of of anise seeds Pimpinella anisum. Phenyl
propanoids are water-insoluble phenolics with three-carbon side chains;
anethole and myristicin are determining the semll of nutmeg.
Eugenol is a dental analgesic from oil of cloves but occurs in many
plants. Caffeic & coumaric acid give aroma to coffea beans, raw or
roasted.
Monoterpenes: Carvone is major component of Caraway Carum carvi,
linalool is principle const of coriander Coriandrum sativum

Celery
The use of celery seed in pills for relieving
pain was described by Aulus Cornelius Celsus
around 30 AD.[13] Celery seeds contain a
compound, 3-N-butyl-phthalide, that has been
demonstrated to lower blood pressure in rats.
Androsterone (ADT) is a steroid hormone with
weak androgenic activity. It has been shown to
naturally occur in pine pollen. Celery actually
contains androstenone. Both substances are
weak male steroids like testerone.
Bergapten (5-methoxypsoralen) - a psoralen (also
known as furocoumarins) in the seeds - can
increase photosensitivity, celery in bright
sunshine should be avoided. Bergapten occurs
also in other members of the Parsley family, citrus
oils, & grapefruit juice.

Men! Eating celery can make you more sexy!
The authors of a new health book and also the
newsreel “Asylum” claim that eating celery
boosts the pheromone levels in a man’s sweat,
making him more appealing to the fairer sex.
That’s because celery contains androstenone, a
naturally occurring steroid. Eating means
upping your concentration of it and this should
increase pheromone secretion.
Androstenone is a
steroid found also in
humans; i.e. in both male
and female sweat and urine.
It is reported to be an
unpleasant, sweaty, urinous
smell, a woody smell, or
even a pleasant floral smell.

French Men! Eating truffles can make you more sexy!
The truffles prized by French
gourmets as aphrodisiacs are a fungi
that has an odor nearly identical to
androstenol, a sex attractant for pigs
A truffle is the fruiting body of an
underground ectomycorrhizal mushroom
usually found in close association with
oak and hazelnut trees. Spore dispersal is
accomplished through animals.
Androstenone is a steroid found. in both male
and female sweat and urine. It has an
unpleasant, sweaty, urinous or woody, or even a
pleasant floral smell.
It is thought that the smell of the truffles
resembles the smell of androstenone.

Spice oils are used in perfumes as well
Cloves Syzgium aromaticum (old Eugenia caryophyllata), Indo-
Malayan archipelago, undeveloped flower buds of a large tree,
major ingredient is eugenol., clove-bud oil sweet spicy note adds
richness to rose perfumes
Cinnamon oil (Cassia zeylandicum) Sri Lanka Taiwan inner
bark has eugenol, easily converted into vanillin. Ingredient of
oriental perfumes, related to camphor Cinnamomum camphora
Nutmeg oil Myristica fragrans pale yellow oil with warm
Muskat odor distilled from seeds & used in men’s colognes
Pepper Piper nigrum –extracted with ethanol or
distilled for a warm, dry woody note
Ginger oil Zingiber officinalis distilled from tuberous rhizomes
spicy note in men’s aftershaves ,
Cardamon oils Elletaria cardamomum in
the ginger family extracted form seed
capsules. Oil has pleasant, fresh spiciness

Sensations - bitterness
Bitterness is one of the most crushing problems in a person’s
life. Alternatively, it is a taste that is acrid or unpleasant.

Cucurbitacin - a bitter triterpenoid
Colocynth Citrullus fruits are lemon-sized, yellowish, green-mottled,
spongy, and extremely bitter, is a powerful hepatic stimulant

Quinine – a bitter but fluorescing alkaloids
Bitterness is one of the most crushing problems in a person’s
life. Alternatively, it is a taste that is acrid or unpleasant.

Quinine
Quinine is a white crystalline alkaloid that is
extracted from the bark of cinchona trees od the
SAm tropics. Its typical bitter taste is a repellent
property & familiar from tonic water causing it to
fluoresce (drink it in a UV disko). It binds to
DNA & inhibits its replication of malaria-infected
cells that absorb it in higher amounts than healthy
cells.
Quinine is an effective muscle relaxant, long used
by the Quechua Indians of Peru to halt shivering
due to low temperatures. The Quechua would mix
the ground bark of cinchona trees with sweetened
water to offset the bark's bitter taste, thus producing
first tonic water as a medicine.
Quinine played a significant role in the colonization of
Africa by Europeans. Quinine was the prime reason
that Africa ceased to be the "white man's grave".

A new taste sensation u …mami

Umami is one of
the five basic tastes
together with
sweet, sour, bitter,
and salty. Umami is
a loanword from
the Japanese
umami (うまみ ? )
1908 scientist
Kikunae Ikeda found
that glutamate was
in the broth from
kombu seaweed.
The taste of kombu
dashi was distinct
from sweet, sour,
bitter and salty. and
named it umami.
Umami – the 5th sense

Flavour – phytochemcials with special meaning to
humans
Flavours principles: one has to differentiate between substances
that have been isolated from a spice or that simulate one!
apple ethyl-2-methylbutyrate
banana amylacetate & eugenol
coconut @-nona-lactone
lemon citral (limonene= smell
peach undeca-lactone
vanilla vanillin
celery apiole, myristicine
mushrooms lenthionine
onion Dipropyl disulphide,
propanethiol lachrymator
Esters : amylacetate ethyl-methyl
butyrate banana apple
Harborne JB (1988) Introduction to Ecological Biochemistry, Academic Press London

Smell and taste are more than related
Do this at home! when conversation is boring or you feel like it

Task : Testing the role of olfactory contribution to Taste
The taste of coffee, cherries and garlic! Who could forget it?
However, these three things are not recognized by our taste
receptors but exclusively by our olfactory sense of smell.
You do not believe it? Test it out!
(A) We will prepare four paper cups with a bag of (a) black tea, ( (b) peppermint tea, (c) coffee &
(d) nothing (plain warm water) and fill them with hot water from the dispenser in the Bastyr hallway.
Now we will choose a test person, who has to close her eyes and wear a nose clip to
eliminate the sense of smell. Hand the test person the cup (she cannot see!) and let her
sample it. Take the cup from her hands and put it down on a sheet of paper together
with her answer.
black tea peppermint coffee warm water
test 1 ID-ied as
test 2 ID-ied as
(B) We will dice raw (a) cherries, (b) garlic, (c) apples and (d) onion. We repeat the
exercise while feeding the test person a small spoonful of the samples.
cherries garlic apples onion
test 1 ID-ied as
test 2 ID-ied as

The smell of Carvone
Mint leaves and Caraway seeds
both contain a molecule called
carvone.
However, the two carvone molecules
are actually not identical, they are
mirror forms or stereo isomers.
1. With a spoon, crush the caraway
seeds in a bowl.
2. With another spoon, crush the
mint leaves in another bowl.
3. Smell the difference!

When you grate lemon or
orange peels you release
volatile oils from the secretory
cavities into the air. The smell
receptors in your nose absorb
the molecules and send a signal
to the brain, which interprets the
smell.
The smell of Limonene
Orange & Lemon peels
both contain a molecule called limonene.
However, the limonene in the orange has a different structure than that in
the lemon. The stereo isomers actually have a different smell.
1. Grate a small piece of orange peel into one Petri dish.
2. Grate a small piece of orange peel into another Petri dish.
3. Smell the difference!

A sweet taste “ to fall in love”
Know the symptoms: Phenyl-ethyl-amine is a chemical that the brain
produces when you fall in love. It steps up the heart rate and causes a
happy, slightly dreamy feeling.
Chocolate contains some amount of phenyl-ethyl-amine, which is considered
a pseudoalkaloid. This may explain why we easily fall in love with chocolate
or people that feed us chocolate. We conclude: chocolate appears as the less
dangerous version of getting that feeling
since it does not require a long commitment.
Michael Liebowitz, author of the popular 1983 book The Chemistry of Love, remarked
to reporters that "chocolate is loaded with PEA." This became the focus for an article in
The New York Times, which was then taken up by the wire services and then by
magazine free-lancers, evolving into the now-eponymous "chocolate theory of love

How does it work, e.g. “ to fall in love”
Know the symptoms:
(1)The initial giddiness when we're first falling in love
includes a racing heart, flushed skin and sweaty palms.
This seems to be due to the dopamine,
norepinephrine & phenylethylamine release.
(a)Dopamine is thought to be the "pleasure chemical,"
producing a feeling of bliss
(b) Norepinephrine = adrenalin is causing the racing
heart & excitement
(c) Phenylethylamine functions as a neuromodulator in
the mammalian central nervous system. There are
many compounds derived from phenethylamine that
include stimulants, psychedelics, and entactogens, as
well as anorectics, bronchodilators, decongestants, and
antidepressants, among others. Phenethylamine is
soluble in water, ethanol, and ether. Similar to other
low-molecular-weight amines, it has a fishy odor.

Food and Mood - Cheese
Amines like histamine and tyramine are found in large quatities in
cheeses like Cheddar, Blue Ch., Swiss Ch, and “Dutch-style” Ch.
In these strongly ripened cheeses the casein protein is broken
down to AAs and decarboxylated to amines (smell).
In some people small quant. & in all people large quantities cause
- - rise in blood pressure
- headaches and rashes
but cheese prevents tooth decay by Streptococcus
good to end meal with it! Also:
people after cheese feel deep satisfaction
“ A dinner which ends without cheese is like a
beautiful woman with only one eye.” Says
Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1986) The
physiology of taste. North Point Press , San
Francisco, USA (translated from the French 1830)