Acta Scientiarum Polonorum Technologia Alimentaria

Abstract The phenomenon of chirality, common in nature, pertains also to food components. The effect of the chiral structure of chemical compounds is the occurrence of optical isomers, i.e. enantiomers. The only source of optically active substances are living organisms, which produce most frequently mostly one of isomers. Proteins and carbohydrates are chiral: amino acids are found in proteins only in the L form, whereas carbohydrates are formed of D-saccharides. Enantiomers may exhibit diverse behaviour in reactions with biologically active compounds of living organisms. Chiral structure of proteins turned out to be significant in the perception of taste perceptions as well as the perception of aroma. The most characteristic phenomenon is chirality among odorants. Numerous compounds essential for aroma are found in nature in the form of two isomers, with considerable predominance of one of them, while the ratio of these isomers is specific and stable. Enantiomers of odorants may differ in the intensity and character of their smell. The phenomenon of chirality has been known since mid-1800; however, it then constituted a serious analytical problem. Only the development of methods facilitating the separation of optical isomers created a possibility to investigate its universality and importance in living organisms. The application of more and more advanced analytical techniques in the control of chiral nature of food ingredients may be used to detect adulterations and es-pecially to determine authenticity of fragrances.