REVIEW ARTICLE published: 31 December 2013 doi: 10.3389/fchem.2013.00040 Chicoric acid: chemistry, distribution, and production Jungmin Lee 1* and Carolyn F. Scagel 2 1 United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Horticultural Crops Research Unit Worksite, Parma, ID, USA 2 United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Horticultural Crops Research Unit, Corvallis, OR, USA Edited by: Though chicoric acid was first identified in 1958, it was largely ignored until recent popular Matteo Balderacchi, Università media coverage cited potential health beneficial properties from consuming food and Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy dietary supplements containing this compound. To date, plants from at least 63 genera Reviewed by: and species have been found to contain chicoric acid, and while the compound is used Massimiliano Valentini, Agricultural Research Council, Italy as a processing quality indicator, it may also have useful health benefits. This review of Giorgia Sarais, University of Cagliari, chicoric acid summarizes research findings and highlights gaps in research knowledge Italy for investigators, industry stakeholders, and consumers alike. Additionally, chicoric acid *Correspondence: identification, and quantification methods, biosynthesis, processing improvements to Jungmin Lee, United States increase chicoric acid retention, and potential areas for future research are discussed. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Keywords: phenolics, polyphenolics, cichoric acid, caffeic acid derivative, dicaffeoyltartaric acid, hydroxycinnamic Horticultural Crops Research Unit acid, phenolic acid Worksite, 29603 U of I Ln, Parma, ID 83660, USA e-mail:
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[email protected] INTRODUCTION or signaling molecules (Harborne, 1979; Gallagher et al., 2010; Recent US consumer interest in boosting their dietary intake Mandal et al., 2010).