“The present article describes a new pathway of acrylamide formation, both in model systems and in foods, via an enzymatic formation of 3-aminopropionamide (3-APA).”

Acrylamide is still one of the most challenging topics in food safety. The amide is currently classified as a possible carcinogenic to humans and, therefore, its presence in many processed foods, either industrially or home-made, puts pressure on governments and food companies all over the world. During the last three years, a lot of research has been done on details of the formation pathway and also on ideas to reduce its amounts in foods—in particular, potato products or bakery goods.

The present article describes a new pathway of acrylamide formation, both in model systems and in foods, via an enzymatic formation of 3-aminopropionamide (3-APA). This intermediate was shown to generate acrylamide simply by a deamination in surprisingly high yields. Recently, we could also show (Schieberle, P.; Koehler, P.; Granvogl, M., New Aspects on the Formation and Analysis of Acrylamide, In: "Chemistry and Safety of Acrylamide in Food", Friedman, M.; Mottram, D. S.; Eds.; Springer, New York, 2005; pp. 205-222) that 3-APA formation is much more effectively generated by a thermal degradation of asparagine in a Strecker reaction.

In my opinion, acrylamide is one of the greatest challenges food chemists have ever been confronted with, because manufacturers as well as consumers had to learn that this compound cannot be eliminated from foods, except by avoiding higher temperatures. Thus, it is only by interdisciplinary research involving food chemists, mechanical engineers, and toxicologists that this challenge can be addressed, also leading to a better understanding of its metabolism in foods and the human body.

Two years ago, it was a great pleasure for me, when my professor, Peter Schieberle, the Chair for Food Chemistry at the Technical University of Munich, asked me to collaborate in a large project initiated in Germany—a total of five research groups were involved—addressing this topic. At that time, I readily agreed, because the topic was up-to-date and present in all media. I was also quite interested in understanding the formation of this food-borne toxicant in our daily diet, and I had the dream of finding ways to minimize the content of acrylamide in foods for the benefit of consumers around the world.

Prof. Dr. Peter Schieberle has the Chair for Food Chemistry at the Technical University of Munich and is director of the German Research Center for Food Chemistry (DFA). Currently he has 15 Ph.D. students working in the fields of flavor research and Maillard reaction. Michael Granvogl is a scientific coworker at the Chair for Food Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, currently concluding his Ph.D. studies. Dr. Magnus Jezussek is a former Ph.D. student of Prof. Schieberle. He left the institute recently to work for the food authority of the state of Bavaria. Dr. Peter Koehler is Associate Professor for Food Chemistry and leader of a working group at the German Research Center for Food Chemistry. The group consists of six Ph.D. students working in the field of cereal research (enzymes, emulsifiers, and post translational protein modifications).

The results have been of great importance in getting a better understanding of the formation of acrylamide in foods. Only when this question has been finally solved, will the second step, the reduction of acrylamide, be systematically tackled. So, the social implications are the possible production of "healthier" foods, and the political implications can perhaps best be met by setting limits for acrylamide contents in foods.