To investigate the thermal degradation pathways of 2, 3-dihydro-3, 5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4 (H)-pyran-4-one (1) in the Maillard reaction, the 13C-labeled and unlabeled 1 were synthesized and heated in model systems of food processing. The extent and position of the labeling of the reaction products were interpreted by the mass spectroscopy data. The volatiles identified were, among others, 2, 4-dihydroxy-2, 5-dimethyl-3 (2 H)-furanone (2), ...
