Aminoguanidine inhibits protein browning without extensive Amadori carbonyl blocking

It has been proposed that aminoguanidine reacts extensively with Amadori carbonyl groups of glycated proteins thus blocking them and inhibiting the further reactions which lead to browning and fluorescence development. We have glycated bovine serum albumin in the presence of 1, 5, 10 and 25 mM aminoguanidine and measured fluorescence development at 440 nm upon excitation at 370 nm, free (unblocked) Amadori groups as fructosamine with a colorimetric assay and furosine by HPLC, as an index of total Amadori products. Aminoguandine significantly inhibited fluorescence development at all the tested concentrations (31%, 65%, 69% and 82% inhibitions, respectively) (P < 0.001). Blocking of Amadori groups was demonstrated by decreased fructosamine and unchanged furosine yields but only at the higher concentrations and to a very limited extent (13% and 27% blocking, respectively) (P < 0.01). Incubation of Aminoguanidine with albumin produced the appearance of 320 nm absorbing yellow chromophores, quite increased in the presence of glucose. These results suggest that Aminoguanidine is able to block Amadori groups, as previously hypothesized, but question the importance of this mechanism as an explanation of its capacity to inhibit browning. Scavenging of glucose seems to have no impact on glycation as seen by unchanged furosine yields.