Identification of the main degradation products of patulin generated through heat detoxication treatments

The chemical stability of patulin (PAT) was studied in model aqueous media at different temperatures and pH values in the presence and absence of sulfites. At pH 6, 50% was degraded within one hour at 100 degrees C. At lower pH the detoxication efficiency was strongly reduced. The compound 3-keto-5-hydroxy-pentanal was shown to be the main degradation product of patulin. As the hemiacetal function has to be transformed into an aldehyde before retroaldolization and lactone hydrolysis, sulfites, as expected, improved detoxication, especially at high pH. At pH 7 in the presence of 50 ppm sulfite, PAT was completely degraded within 3 h at 25 degrees C.