Chemical Forums
Chemistry Forums for Students => Undergraduate General Chemistry Forum => Topic started by: Mnemonic on March 09, 2021, 04:12:55 AM
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Hi all,
I remember during my first year at uni that my chemistry prof was going on about how the real amazing chocolate was rare and it was based on it's chemical formula. Does anyone have any idea what this was about as I can't find anything?
I think it's related to cis, trans, chirality or something similar but honestly can't remember.
Any direction would be fantastic
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Chocolate is a mixture, so there is no way to speak about its "formula".
Perhaps they were referring to some specific component of the mixture, like theobromine?
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I though discussing drugs is against the rules. But to be honest I confess to being an out of control chocolate addict myself...
But on a more serious note, theobromine is probably the most potent psychopharmacological agent in cacao. It's very closely related to caffeine in fact. Caffeine is the n-methyl homolog of theobromine. Another common stimulant in this class of compounds is theophiline, which is present in tea and is the n-methyl homolog of caffeine.
Makes you wonder if one couldn't tinker with this molecule a bit and optimize its beneficial effects :)
Also, fun fact: I read this study once where they gave caffeine naive volunteers caffeine and tested their cognitive performance which, as one would expect improved with the caffeine. As their tolerance built, their performance slowly began to decline again, but the interesting part is that it did't go back to baseline, suggesting that even long-term caffeine users still benefit from the drug! 8)