What the article does not mention is the connection of bitter taste to one of the two separate chemicals causing the drug interaction. It is a flavonoid called

What the article does not mention is the connection of bitter taste to one of the two separate chemicals causing the drug interaction. It is a flavonoid called Naringenin. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naringenin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naringenin On its own the chemical is tasteless but in grapefruit in connection with other chemicals common to a variety of fruits, the derived glycoside Naringin, becomes the principle compound providing the bitterness. The chemical is present in many fruits including fruits that typically considered bitter, but it makes grapefruit noticeably more bitter due to its higher concentration there. Perhaps humans are sensitive to the flavor due to the potentially toxic nature. Strangely enough Naringenin is considered a toxin due to its interaction with human biochemistry but is not directly toxic. It allows increased sensitivity to other toxins. Though, to be fair, some drugs and nutrients are formulated in the GI tract due to microbial activity whose drug interaction and absorption can be directly modified by presence of this chemical. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naringin#Toxicity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naringin#Toxicity The link above indicates Naringin is a chemical isolate apart from 6',7'-Dihydroxybergamottin, the primary interacting furanocoumarin, and both independently suppress the P450 enzyme CYP3A4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6%27,7%27-Dihydroxybergamottin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6%27,7%27-Dihydroxybergamottin