The Maillard Reaction is a nonenzymatic glycation reaction that commonly occurs in food products and proceeds via three stages to afford Maillard Reaction Products (MRPs). In a first step, the reducing end of a carbohydrate undergoes a condensation reaction with an amino group from an amino acid, peptide or protein to afford a Schiff base that rearranges to the Amadori product (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1: Formation of Amadori Products.

The second stage involves the formation of a variety of reactive dicarbonyl compounds such as glyoxal, MGO, and deoxyglucosone by degradation of the Amadori product. In the third and final stage of the Maillard reaction, Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs, Fig.2) are formed, as well as the typical brown polymers termed melanoidins resulting from the condensation and polymerization of proteins.

An increased presence of MRPs in food, for example in dairy products, may negatively influence the quality of the product by causing undesired flavors and coloring, as well as by lowering its nutritional value. In order to analyze the extent to which Maillard Reaction Products are present in food after different kinds of treatment (e.g. heat), appropriate analytical methods are of crucial importance. Poojary et al. have developed a validated UHPLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous identification and quantification of 15 different Advanced Glycation End Products, as well as furosine and various other related compounds (protein-derived crosslinks and certain amino acids). This novel method is highly sensitive (LOD and LOQ values in the ng/mL range), and is applicable for milk samples, for different varieties of meat, as well as for bovine plasma and perfusion liquid. All 25 AGE standards and internal standards used in this publication were purchased from Iris Biotech.

Fig. 2: AGE standards and internal standards from Iris Biotech used in Poojary et al., J Chromatogr A 2020.

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References:

• Liquid chromatography quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometry for the simultaneous analysis of advanced glycation end products and protein-derived cross-links in food and biological matrices; M. M. Poojary, W. Zhang, I. Greco, C. De Gobba, K. Olsen and M. N. Lund; J Chromatogr A 2020; 1615: 460767. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2019.460767
• Effect of heating on Maillard reactions in milk; M. A. J. S. Van Boekel; Food Chemistry 1998; 62: 403-414. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0308-8146(98)00075-2
• Mechanism of protein modification by glyoxal and glycolaldehyde, reactive intermediates of the Maillard reaction; M. A. Glomb and V. M. Monnier; J Biol Chem 1995; 270: 10017-26. https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.270.17.10017
• New Aspects of the Maillard Reaction in Foods and in the Human Body; F. Ledl and E. Schleicher; Angewandte Chemie International Edition in English 1990; 29: 565-594. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.199005653