Theobromine

About: Theobromine is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1137 publications have been published within this topic receiving 29723 citations. The topic is also known as: 3,7-Dimethylxanthine & Theobromin.

Detection of caffeine and its main metabolites for early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease using micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography.

Abstract: Caffeine (CA) is a common xanthine alkaloid found in tea leaves, coffee beans, and other natural plants, and is the most widely used psychotropic substance in the world. Accumulating evidence suggests that low plasma levels of CA and its metabolites may serve as reliable diagnostic markers for early Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. In this study, we demonstrated a new MEKC method for determining CA and its three main downstream metabolites, paraxanthine (PX), theobromine (TB), and theophylline (TP), in human plasma. Plasma samples were collected, and analyzed using MEKC, after SPE. The running buffer was composed of 35 mM phosphate, pH of 10.5, and 25 mM SDS. The separation voltage was 15 kV and the detection wavelength was at 210 nm. Under the optimum conditions, four distinct analytes were completely separated and detected in less than 12 min. Method limits of detection were as low as 7.5 ng/mL for CA, 5.0 ng/mL for TB, and 4.0 ng/mL for both PX and TP. The recoveries were between 88.0% and 105.9%. This method was successfully applied to 27 human plasma samples. The results indicate that the plasma concentrations of the four analytes are significantly lower in patients with early PD than in control subjects (p < 0.05). The area under curve was improved to 0.839 when CA and its three main metabolites were included, suggesting that MEKC testing of CA, TP, TB, and PX may serve as a potential method for early diagnosis of PD.

Chemical reactivity and electronic structure of N-methyl derivatives of xanthine

Abstract: Calculations of electron density and other indices of reactivity have been performed for N-methyl-substituted xanthines using the Huckel, Del Re, and CNDO/2 methods. The considerable difference in chemical reactivity of theophylline, theobromine, and caffeine is probably due either to steric repulsion of the van der Waals type or to the electrostatic effects of a positively charged methyl group in position 7.

Gas chromatographic determination of theobromine in foods

Abstract: Theobromine in foods was determined by gas chromatography (GC). The following procedure was used to clean up samples. The homogenized sample was boiled in alkaline aqueous media, then fat was extracted with n-hexane. The aqueous layer was acidified with diluted hydrochloric acid and sodium chloride was added. Theobromine was extracted from this treated aqueous solution with dichloromethane and the extract was evaporated to dryness. The residue was redissolved in dichloromethane containing internal standard. GC analysis was performed on a column packed with 1% cyclohexane dimethanol succinate on Gaschrom Q, with FID. In this method, the average recoveries were 99-101%, the coefficient of variation was less than 3% and the limit of determination for theobromine in foods was about 0.005%. (Received May 27, 1985)

Methylxanthine content in hot drinks consumed in the State of Kuwait

Abstract: Apart from four major catechins present in Camellia sinensis (tea), four major methylxanthines are also present in tea aqueous extract. Caffeine with its structural similarity to uric acid is the predominant methylxanthine in tea and it is known to contribute to hypertension and obesity leading to diabetes. Caffeine intake from tea, soft drinks and candies may be contributing to high level of obesity and diabetes prevalent in Kuwait. There are a variety of hot drinks that are traditional to the culture of Kuwait and their caffeine content has not been established. In this study we have undertaken to establish caffeine content in traditional hot drinks used in Kuwait and have found that Arabic Gahwa, a very popular hot drink in Kuwait, has one of the lowest caffeine content among coffee drinks but its high frequency of consumption may have an additive effect on caffeine intake. Caffeine content of commercial brands and herbal teas used in Kuwait has also been established and found that Rabea black tea had the highest caffeine and theobromine content, while Red label black tea has the lowest caffeine. Reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to establish methylxanthine content in different tea aqueous extracts. A comparison of caffeine content in various hot drinks is presented.

Formulation of chocolate with carob and low caffeine and theobromine content, no added sugar, dairy free, gluten free, soy free, and with or without fibers

Abstract: The patent invention relates to a chocolate formulation with carob, with low caffeine and theobromine contents, animal milk-free, with or without added sugars, gluten-free, soy-free, with or without fiber, using cocoa and carob as the basis, alternatively supplemented with coconut fat, rice derivatives, powdered sweet potato and sugars having a low glycemic index, producing a food product with special nutritional features to meet the requirements of customers with dietary restrictions due to health problems or life style (low-fat or natural diets, body-builders, etc.) with color, odor and flavor attributes which are characteristic of products based on cocoa and carob.