描述
Coumarin, also known as 1,2-benzopyrone or benzo-alpha-pyrone, belongs to coumarins and derivatives class of compounds. Those are polycyclic aromatic compounds containing a 1-benzopyran moiety with a ketone group at the C2 carbon atom (1-benzopyran-2-one). Coumarin is slightly soluble (in water) and an extremely weak basic (essentially neutral) compound (based on its pKa). Coumarin is a sweet, green, and new mown hay tasting compound and can be found in a number of food items such as malus (crab apple), sunburst squash (pattypan squash), european cranberry, and star anise, which makes coumarin a potential biomarker for the consumption of these food products. Coumarin can be found primarily in saliva. Coumarin is formally rated as an unfounded non-carcinogenic (IARC 3) potentially toxic compound. Coumarin was first synthesized in 1868. It is used in the pharmaceutical industry as a precursor reagent in the synthesis of a number of synthetic anticoagulant pharmaceuticals similar to dicoumarol, the notable ones being warfarin (brand name Coumadin) and some even more potent rodenticides that work by the same anticoagulant mechanism. 4-hydroxycoumarins are a type of vitamin K antagonist. Pharmaceutical (modified) coumarins were all developed from the study of sweet clover disease; see warfarin for this history. However, unmodified coumarin itself, as it occurs in plants, has no effect on the vitamin K coagulation system, or on the action of warfarin-type drugs .