Tags: Chemical Compound, Chemical Substance.
3-Dehydroquinic acid (DHQ) is the first carbocyclic intermediate of the shikimate pathway. It is created from 3-deoxyarabinoheptulosonate 7-phosphate a 7-carbon ulonic acid by the enzyme DHQ synthase. The mechanism of ring closure is complex but involves an aldol condensation at C-2 and C-7. It has the same structure as quinic acid which is found in coffee but the C-3 hydroxyl is oxidized to a ketone group.
