posted on 2013-07-17, 00:00authored byAlessandro Venditti, Manuela Mandrone, Anna Maria Serrilli, Armandodoriano Bianco, Carmelina Iannello, Ferruccio Poli, Fabiana Antognoni
Dihydroasparagusic acid (DHAA) is
the reduced form of asparagusic
acid, a sulfur-containing flavor component produced by Asparagus plants. In this work, DHAA was synthetically produced by modifying
some published protocols, and the synthesized molecule was tested
in several in vitro assays (DPPH, ABTS, FRAP-ferrozine, BCB, deoxyribose
assays) to evaluate its radical scavenging activity. Results show
that DHAA is endowed with a significant in vitro antioxidant activity,
comparable to that of Trolox. DHAA was also evaluated for its inhibitory
activity toward tyrosinase, an enzyme involved, among others, in melanogenesis
and in browning processes of plant-derived foods. DHAA was shown to
exert an inhibitory effect on tyrosinase activity, and the inhibitor
kinetics, analyzed by a Lineweaver–Burk plot, exhibited a competitive
mechanism. Taken together, these results suggest that DHAA may be
considered as a potentially active molecule for use in various fields
of application, such as pharmaceutical, cosmetics, agronomic and food.