Kinetics of conversion of dihydroxyacetone to methylglyoxal in New Zealand mānuka honey: Part III - A model to simulate the conversion

A kinetic model for the conversion of dihydroxyacetone (DHA) to methylglyoxal (MGO) in honey is proposed; a building block approach was used to create the model. Artificial honeys doped with DHA and individual perturbants were fitted first, then multiple perturbants (alanine, proline and iron, and combinations of these) were fitted before comparing the simulation to real honey samples (doped clover and mānuka honey). The main responses in the prediction model were DHA, MGO, proline, primary amino acids, acidity, 3-phenyllactic acid and 4-methoxyphenyllactic acid. Three temperatures (20, 27 and 37 °C) were studied and the conversion of DHA to MGO was monitored over at least 1 year. Differences in the conversion between clover doped with DHA and mānuka honey were observed. The simulation fitted well for the honeys tested.