| Brilliant Blue FCF | |
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ethyl - [4 - [ [4 - [ethyl -[(3 - sulfophenyl) methyl] amino] phenyl] - (2 - sulfophenyl) methylidene] - 1 - cyclohexa - 2, 5 - dienylidene] - [(3 - sulfophenyl) methyl] azanium |
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Other names
FD&C Blue No.1 |
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| Identifiers | |
| CAS number | 3844-45-9 |
| PubChem | 19700 |
| ChemSpider | 18556 |
| UNII | H3R47K3TBD |
| Jmol-3D images | Image 1 |
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| Properties | |
| Molecular formula | C37H34N2Na2O9S3 |
| (verify) (what is: /?) Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa) |
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| Infobox references | |
Brilliant Blue FCF (Blue 1), also known under commercial names, is a colorant for foods and other substances to induce a color change.(It also is almost chemically identical to green 3, with only the difference of one oxygen atom.) It is denoted by E number E133 and has a color index of 42090. It has the appearance of a reddish-blue powder. It is soluble in water, and the solution has a maximum absorption at about 628 nanometer.
Contents |
It is a synthetic dye produced using aromatic hydrocarbons from petroleum.[1] It can be combined with tartrazine (E102) to produce various shades of green.
It is usually a disodium salt. The diammonium salt has CAS number []. Calcium and potassium salts are also permitted. It can also appear as an aluminium lake. The chemical formation is C37H34N2Na2O9S3. The dye is poorly absorbed from the gastro-intestinal tract and 95% of the ingested dye can be found in the feces. It also reacts with certain bile pigments to form green feces.
As a blue color, Brilliant Blue FCF is often found in ice cream, canned processed peas, packet soups, bottled food colorings, icings, ice pops, blue raspberry flavored products, dairy products, sweets[2] and drinks. It is also used in soaps, shampoos, mouthwash[3] and other hygiene and cosmetics applications. In soil science, Brilliant Blue is applied in tracing studies to visualize infiltration and water distribution in the soil.
Brilliant Blue FCF has previously been banned in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland among others but has been certified as a safe food additive in the EU and is today legal in most of the countries. It has the capacity for inducing an allergic reaction in individuals with pre-existing moderate asthma.[4] In the United States production exceeds 1 million pounds annually, and daily consumption is around 16 mg per person. Extensive testing has led the National Institutes of Health to conclude that color additives do not cause hyperactivity.[5]
Scientists who were investigating the use of compounds to lessen the severity of inflammation following spinal cord injury had previously tested a compound called OxATP to block a key ATP receptor in spinal neurons. However, OxATP has toxic side effects and must be injected directly into the spinal cord; in searching for alternatives they noted that Brilliant Blue FCF has a similar structure. This led them to test a related dye, Brilliant Blue G, also known as Coomassie Brilliant Blue in rats, which improved recovery from spinal cord injury.[6]