Acidity of Hydroxyl Groups: An Overlooked Influence on Antiradical Properties of Flavonoids

Abstract

The reactions of 10 flavonoids with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (dpph(*)) carried out in alcohols always occur significantly faster than in acidified alcohols or in dioxane. These fast kinetics benefit from the contribution of the electron transfer from a flavonoid anion to a radical, a mechanism known as Sequential Proton-Loss Electron-Transfer (SPLET), which adds to the kinetics of single-step Hydrogen Atom Transfer (HAT)/Proton Coupled Electron Transfer (PCET) processes (see Acc. Chem. Res. 2007, 40 , 222.). The domination of SPLET over HAT/PCET in case of a flavonoid reacting with electron-deficient radicals such as peroxyls or dpph(*) in polar solvents explains the enhancement of antioxidant activity of 3-hydroxyflavone. It also elucidates the great acceleration in the reactions of dpph(*) with quercetin, morin, galangin, and 7,8-dihydroxyflavone. The analysis of structure-acidity and structure-activity relationships for 10 flavonoids clearly indicates that hydroxyl group at position 7 is the most acidic site. Thus, in polar solvents this group can participate in radical reaction via SPLET. In nonpolar solvents the most active site in quercetin (a flavonoid antioxidant commonly found in plants) is 3',4'-dihydroxyl moiety and HAT/PCET occurs. However, in ionization-supporting solvents an anion formed at position 7 is responsible for very fast kinetics of quercetin/dpph(*) reaction because both mechanisms participate: HAT (from catechol moiety in ring B) and SPLET (from ionized 7-hydroxyl in ring A). Because of conjugation of rings A, B, and C the final structure of the formed quercetin radical (or quercetin anion radical) is the same for the SPLET and HAT/PCET mechanisms.