Proteins contained in meat and other comestible goods are usually rich in the amino acids arginine and lysine. The side chain func- tional groups of Arg and Lys react with reducing carbohydrates such as glucose or lactose to form Amadori reaction products. These characteristic intermediates decompose particularely at elevated temperatures to various Maillard reaction products (MRPs) which are responsible for the distinctive flavours of many food products. Moreover, MRPs are widely used as markers for the nutritional quality of food and have gained broad attention in cosmetics, biochemistry, food, and pharma industry. MRPs reduce the availability of essential amino acids, like lysine, in food and therefore influence their nutritional quality. They are responsible for deterioration of food during storage and processing. From a pharmacological point of view they may cause kidney damage and show carcinogenic, but also antiall- ergenic, antibiotic, anti-mutagenic, an antioxidant properties.

References:
Forty years of furosine – Forty years of using Maillard reaction products as indicators of the nutritional quality of foods; Helmut F. Erbersdobler and Veronika Somoza; Mol. Nutr. Food Res. 2007; 51: 423-430. DOI 10.1002/ mnfr.200600154 423.
Food Browning and Its Prevention: An Overview; Mendel Friedman; J. Agric. Food Chem. 1996; 44(3): 631-653.
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