Establishment of the Chemical Equilibria of Different Types of Pyranoanthocyanins in Aqueous Solutions: Evidence for the Formation of Aggregation in Pyranomalvidin-3-O-coumaroylglucoside-(+)-catechin

The chemical equilibria of the pyranomalvidin-3-glucosides linked to (+)-catechin, (-)-epicatechin, and catechol moieties (and the respective coumaroylglucoside Compounds) were established by means of UV-vis spectroscopy. The conjugated double bonds among pyranic rings C and D provide a higher electronic delocalization that prevents the nucleophilic attack of water at position 2. Consequently, besides flavylium cation (AH(+)), the bases A, A(-), and A(2-) have been identified by increasing pH, and the respective acidity constants were determined by spectrophotometry. The formation of dimers at higher concentration was observed for pyranomalvidin-3-O-coumaroylglucoside-(+)-catechin, and the respective data treated by the exciton model suggests the for-nation of a chiller where the monomers form J-type aggregates with the dipolar moments in opposite directions and rotated by 174 degrees at a distance of 5.2 angstrom (from the center).