Characterization Of Maillard Reaction Products In Early Stage By Using Mass Spectrometry

Maillard reaction, the well-known non-enzymatic reaction between reducing sugarsand proteins, is recognized as one of the most important reactions in the research fields ofnutritional science and medical science. The ability to reliably determine and study theproducts generated from Maillard reaction is a crucial research direction in food science.Tandem mass spectrometry (MS) is a particularly useful technology to identify andcharacterize the Maillard reaction products. The present thesis aims to systematicallyinvestigate the Maillard reaction products from amino acids, polypeptide, and reducingsugar, based on the technology and method of MS.From the aspects of the used amino acid/peptide-sugar model, the reactants,temperature and time, the Maillard reaction products are much systematically studied. Itindicates that monosaccharides, amino acid with positive charge, and high temperature canpromote Maillard reaction.It makes use of the technology of electrospray ionization (tandem) spectrometry,nuclear magnetic resonance, theoretical simulation, and so on to study the primary-stageproducts, especially for the reactive sites and the structures of Amadori rearrangementproducts. Applying the technology of tandem MS, it analyses the degradation behavior ofAmadori rearrangement products (Maillard products) in MS. It is easiest to form oxoniumwhen losting the neutral small molecule from the sugar moiety, which was confirmed bythe experimental results of two-stage and multistage MS in energy collision induceddissociation (CID). Furthermore, the tandem MS data reflect that the amino side chain oflysine has the higher reactivity. The research on the reactive sites of amino acids withpolypeptide sugar using MS method indicates MS technology can accurately determinethe reactive sites in the Maillard reaction of polypeptide. These results give a hint for theMaillard reaction of macromolecule, such as protein.