News Life Carnivores can lose sweet genes A string of mammals that eat a lot of meat have lost the power to detect sweetness By Susan Milius March 13, 2012 at 10:34 am - More than 2 years ago Share this:Share Share via email (Opens in new window) Email Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to print (Opens in new window) Print As a rough rule of tongue, animals that have lost the power to taste sweetness tend to be specialized meat eaters. A gene crucial for detecting sweet taste carries disabling glitches in seven of 12 mammals analyzed in a new study.