Category: sweetener
Aliases: Monk fruit extract, Luo han guo, Mogroside V, Siraitia grosvenorii extract, Monkfruit, Luo han guo extract, Buddha fruit
Cucurbitane-type triterpene glycosides from the fruit of Siraitia grosvenorii (monk fruit / luo han guo), with mogroside V the dominant and sweetest species (~250x sucrose). Sweetness is mediated by agonism at the heterodimeric sweet-taste receptor T1R2/T1R3 on lingual taste cells. The intact glycosides are large, highly glycosylated molecules poorly absorbed in the small intestine; they pass to the colon where gut microbiota progressively strip the glucose units to less-glycosylated mogrosides and ultimately the aglycone mogrol, which is absorbed, undergoes oxidative/enterohepatic metabolism, and is excreted largely in faeces and bile. They contribute negligible calories and do not raise blood glucose or insulin; the cucurbitane core also carries antioxidant activity. Heat- and pH-stable, suitable for cooking and beverages.
Monk fruit (luo han guo) extract; mogroside V is ~250x sweeter than sucrose, non-caloric and non-glycemic. US GRAS; no numeric JECFA ADI and no assigned EU E-number (not yet an EU-authorised sweetener as of 2024). Strong safety record; frequently blended with erythritol as a bulk carrier.