Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides?

I was reading the ingredients list on a bag of crisps and there was one realy standing out "Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides".
The name sounds quite new to me so i looked around a little to see if i can find what it does and what the name means.
The term does not come up in a search on ATS so i post this name here in the hope some one has any more infomation on this food additive "Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides".

What i got so far is that it is used in combination with Monosodium glutamate .
Searches for just "ribonucleotides" gives quickly a lot of very scientific articles and the most interesting ones are a bit hard to grasp for me.

Maybe some one has been looking into this food additive before and can tell me/us more about it.
Thanks.

Here is some information that i found so far.

Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides, E number E635, are flavor enhancers which are synergistic with glutamates in creating the taste of umami. It is a mixture of disodium inosinate (IMP) and disodium guanylate (GMP) and is often used where a food already contains natural glutamates (as in meat extract) or added monosodium glutamate.

en.wikipedia.org...

It is well known that childrens behaviour is directly affected by artificial colourings, sweetners and flavourings. Fizzy drinks, sweets and crisps are the main culprits and there are now organic and chemical free alternatives in supermarkets and health food shops. Here are the main additives to avoid:

Flavour Enhancers: Monosodium glutomate (E621); disodium 5-ribonucleotide (E635); Artificial Sweetners: Sodium benzoate (E211); Sulphur dioxide (E220); aspartame; acesulfame K. Colourings: Yellow (E104), Brilliant blue (E113), sunset yellow (E110), carmoisine (E122), ponceau 4R (E124), allura red AC (E129) and indigo(!) carmine (E132).

www.zeusinfoservice.com...

Responses to Di-Sodium Guanosine 5'-Monophosphate and Monosodium L-Glutamate in Taste Receptor Cells of Rat Fungiform Papillae. J. Neurophysiol. 89: 1434-1439, 2003. The 5'-ribonucleotide guanosine 5'-monophosphate (GMP) is used widely as an umami taste stimulus and a potent flavor enhancer as it synergistically increases the umami taste elicited by monosodium glutamate. Transduction mechanisms for GMP and its synergy with glutamate are largely unknown. Using whole-cell patch-clamp and Ca2+ imaging, we examined responses to GMP, glutamate, and a mixture of GMP and glutamate in taste-receptor cells of rat fungiform papillae.

jn.physiology.org...

I guess not many people heard of this substance "Disodium 5'-ribonucleotide" before.
To me the name sounds very exotic and it just makes me wonder what it is realy.
It would be nice if some one has some more information on this thing.

[edit on 19-4-2009 by jaamaan]

Realy no body that can tell me more about this strange ingredient that you can find in a bag of dorito's?

Does no body knows or is it just harmless?

From the chemical land website:
"5'-Ribonucleotide products, Disodium Inosine-5'-monophosphate (IMP), Disodium-5'-guanosine monophosphate (GMP) and their mixture (I+G), are white crystals or crystalline powder. They are soluble in water and sparingly in alcohols but not in ethers. They are prepared by sugar fermentation following purification process. They have very strong flavour enhancing activity. The greater benefit of them is the synergistic effect on improving the own natural tastes and flavours of almost processed foods when they are used in combination with MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate). The synergistic effect can be recognized by cost savings. For example, 500gr of nucleotide (2%) + MSG (98%) have same flavor enhancing quality of 2,000gr MSG alone. The use of 5'-Ribonucleotide products in food is approved by FDA."

It us used to produce the flavor that Japanese call "unami". I cannot find anything about it's safety, but it is approved by the FDA. Not that FDA approval means anything to me.

Seems it may have been connected to itchy skin, rashes, and swolen lips/tongue.
"In 1994, Australian food regulators approved a new flavour enhancer called Ribonucleotides (flavour enhancer 635), a combination of disodium guanylate 627 and disodium inosinate 631. Researchers had recently discovered that combining some of these additives with MSG could enhancer the effects of MSG up to 10-15 times. Furthermore, if natural forms of MSG such as yeast extract or hydrolysed vegetable protein were used with ribonucleotides, the label could claim NO ADDED MSG. As products containing the new MSG started to appear on supermarket shelves, the Food Intolerance Network started to receive reports of reactions. As well as the usual set of food intolerance reactions, flavour enhancer 635 seems to be particularly associated with dramatic itchy skin rashes and sometimes swelling of the lips and tongue in children and adults who had never suffered from skin complaints. Because the reactions are often delayed by hours or even days, most consumers never realize the cause of their rash and some can suffer for years. Incredibly, it seems this new additive was never assessed for safety before approval, and our food regulators refuse to accept ‘anecdotes’ about its effects."

Link to page about the "Ribo-rash"

I don't know why they allow this chemical to be added to our food.

reply to post by tamusan


Thanks for posting all this information.
It will take me a while to read most of it.

So it is used to make the effect of msg stronger and to avoid MSG labeling while still having the same effects.

The side effects look quite simular as msg.

Keep your eyes out for this one people this is strange exotic stuff they put in the food supply.

I thought I would bring this thread back, simply because Sodium Benzoate is really bad. it wrecks your DNA.

I can't add much into the scientific explanations already given, but i can add that in my reading I have found they are branching off because consumers are starting to avoid msg in the foods they eat.

It's a misdirection, like finding a similar chemical and using it instead so that people won't realize what it is.

reply to post by Seiko
I agree. big companies are solely interested in profits not the health of it's consumers. look at Big tobacco

'ribonucleotides' sounds like some DNA altering #

Perhaps this will help;

As it is a fairly expensive additive, it usually is not used independently of glutamic acid; if disodium inosinate is present in a list of ingredients but MSG does not appear to be, it is possible that glutamic acid is provided as part of another ingredient or is naturally occurring in another ingredient like tomatoes, Parmesan cheese or yeast extract. It is often added to foods in conjunction with disodium guanylate; the combination is known as disodium 5'-ribonucleotides.

from wiki

I hope that helps in some way.

originally posted by: jaamaan
Realy no body that can tell me more about this strange ingredient that you can find in a bag of dorito's?

Does no body knows or is it just harmless?

a reply to: PinealBoy

Bro they know they just are so far away from self its in there head you cannot wake up anyone who is pretending to sleep