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Title: Alternative Sweeteners

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8<br />

Neotame<br />

W. Wayne Stargel, Dale A. Mayhew, C. Phil Comer, Sue E. Andress,<br />

and Harriett H. Butchko<br />

The NutraSweet Company, Mount Prospect, Illinois<br />

I. INTRODUCTION<br />

Neotame (N-[N-(3,3-dimethylbutyl)-l-α-aspartyl]-l-phenylalanine 1-methyl ester)<br />

is a new high-intensity sweetener and flavor enhancer that is currently undergoing<br />

international regulatory consideration. Neotame is 7000 to 13,000 times<br />

sweeter than sucrose. It is derived from and is structurally similar to aspartame<br />

but is 30 to 60 times sweeter than aspartame, depending on the sweetness required<br />

in various food or beverage matrices. This zero-calorie sweetener has a clean<br />

sweet taste with no undesirable taste characteristics; neotame is functional and<br />

stable in a wide array of beverages and foods and should require no special labeling<br />

for phenylketonuria.<br />

Neotame resulted from a long-term research program designed to discover<br />

high-intensity sweeteners with optimized performance characteristics.<br />

French scientists Claude Nofre and Jean-Marie Tinti invented neotame from a<br />

simple N-alkylation of aspartame (1, 2). The NutraSweet Company holds the<br />

rights to a wide range of patents related to neotame.<br />

II. PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND CHEMISTRY<br />

A. Structure and Synthesis<br />

Neotame is manufactured from aspartame and 3,3-dimethylbutyraldehyde via<br />

reductive alkylation followed by purification, drying, and milling. The N-alkyl<br />

component of neotame, 3,3-dimethylbutanoic acid, occurs naturally in goat<br />

129

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