EN
Betacyanins are conjugates of betalamic acid and glycosylated cyclo-DOPA which bring about the creation of a specific chromophoric system, the 1,7-dia- zaheptamethin chain. Betanin, a betacyanin pigment from red beet (Beta vulga- ris L.), as well as its decarboxylated derivatives were subjected to reduction with the use of NaBH4. The pigment structures contain a vinyl linker which is postu- lated to be protonated during reaction with NaBH4. In this study, 17-decarboxy- betanin and 2,17-bidecarboxy-betanin were obtained from betanin, which had been previously isolated from red beet root (Beta vulgaris L.). Purified pigments were tested in the presence of the reduction reagent while looking for the prod- ucts of the reaction identified by LC-MS.