4-Hydroxy-5-Methyl-3(2H)-Furanone (HMFO) contributes to browning in the xylose-lysine maillard reaction system

Abstract

During research on the Maillard reaction between xylose and lysine (Lys), we detected a major peak showing an absorbance maximum at about 280 nm by diode-array-detection (DAD)-HPLC. In this study, the peak was isolated and identified as 4-hydroxy-5-methyl-3(2H)-furanone (HMFO). This compound accounted for 60 - 80% of the total area of HPLC peaks (280 nm), and about 20 mg/100 mL of HMFO was produced from a solution containing 200 mg/100 mL of xylose. HMFO was produced not only from xylose, but also from arabinose and ribose, and ribose was the best precursor. When HMFO was heated in a buffer solution with or without Lys, it was decomposed or polymerized, and colored and colorless polymers appeared. Diacetyl and methylglyoxal were the major decomposed dicarbonyl compounds from HMFO; these dicarbonyl compounds are considered to be the major precursors for polymers formed from HMFO.