Ferulic acid aroma compounds

Using immediate precursors of desired food aroma compounds also increased metabolite yields. For example, by applying ferulic acid to cultured Vanilla planifolia cells, vanillin concentration could be enhanced as compared to untreated cells. Vanilla concentration was also increased in green vanilla bean extracts when the cells were treated with 3-glucosidase. 

Phenolic aroma compounds can be generated by the thermal radical degradation of phenolic acids such as ferulic acid (52), which is a constituent of many vegetable raw materials [76]. Fig. 3.32 shows the formation scheme for vinylguaiacol (53), vanilline (54) and guaiacol (55) from 52. 

Other strains, like VLl, were selected for their low vinyl-phenol production. These compounds possess rather unpleasant pharmaceutical aromas. Above a certain concentration, they dull the aroma of dry white wines (Volume 2, Sections 8.4.2 and 8.4.3). These strains have low cinnamate decarboxylase activity. During alcoholic fermentation, this enzyme catalyzes the partial transformation of p-coumaric and ferulic acid found in juice into vinyl-4-phenol and vinyl-4-gaiacol. Since this enzyme is inhibited by phenolic compounds, only white wines can contain quantities of vinyl-phenols likely to affect their aroma. The use of strains with low cinnamate decarboxylase activity is recommended— particularly for white juices containing high concentrations of hydroxy cinnamic acid. 

L-Phenylalanine,which is derived via the shikimic acid pathway,is an important precursor for aromatic aroma components. This amino acid can be transformed into phe-nylpyruvate by transamination and by subsequent decarboxylation to 2-phenylacetyl-CoA in an analogous reaction as discussed for leucine and valine. 2-Phenylacetyl-CoA is converted into esters of a variety of alcohols or reduced to 2-phenylethanol and transformed into 2-phenyl-ethyl esters. The end products of phenylalanine catabolism are fumaric acid and acetoacetate which are further metabolized by the TCA-cycle. Phenylalanine ammonia lyase converts the amino acid into cinnamic acid, the key intermediate of phenylpropanoid metabolism. By a series of enzymes (cinnamate-4-hydroxylase, p-coumarate 3-hydroxylase, catechol O-methyltransferase and ferulate 5-hydroxylase) cinnamic acid is transformed into p-couma-ric-, caffeic-, ferulic-, 5-hydroxyferulic- and sinapic acids,which act as precursors for flavor components and are important intermediates in the biosynthesis of fla-vonoides, lignins, etc. Reduction of cinnamic acids to aldehydes and alcohols by cinnamoyl-CoA NADPH-oxido-reductase and cinnamoyl-alcohol-dehydrogenase form important flavor compounds such as cinnamic aldehyde, cin-namyl alcohol and esters. Further reduction of cinnamyl alcohols lead to propenyl- and allylphenols such as... 

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