Properties of chlorogenic acid quinone: Relationship between browning and the formation of hydrogen peroxide from a quinone solution

Chlorogenic acid is the major polyphenol in foods derived from plants and is a good substrate for polyphenol oxidase. Chlorogenic acid quinone (CQA-Q), which is an oxidative product of chlorogenic acid by polyphenol oxidase, is an important intermediate compound in enzymatic browning. CQA-Q was prepared, and its properties and the relationship with browning were examined. The quinone solution was yellow or orange, and its molecular absorption coefficient was estimated to be 1.7x10(3) for 325 nm and 9.7x10(2) for 400 nm in an acidic aqueous solution. Chlorogenic acid and H2O2 were spontaneously generated in the CQA-Q solution as the yellowish color of the solution gradually faded. A pale colored polymer was the major product in the reaction solution. Amino acids such as lysine and arginine added to CQA-Q solution did not repress the fading of the yellowish color of the solution. We concluded from these results that CQA-Q itself and a mixture of CQA-Q and amino acids did not form intensive brown pigments in the acidic aqueous solution. H2O2 spontaneously formed in the CQA-Q solution, and other polyphenols might have played an important role in the formation of the brown color by enzymatic browning.