Fumaric acid

Fumaric acid, an unsaturated dicarboxylic acid. It forms a white, crystalline powder and is only slightly soluble in water and organic solvents. The water-soluble salts of fumaric acid, the fumarates, are formed with alkaline solutions. With acids, malic acid is formed by water addition.

Fumaric acid is found in nature in many plants, including the common fumitory Fumaria officinalis (the plant was called fumaric acid. The medicinal plant is used as a remedy for psoriasis because of its fumaric acid content. Fumaric acid is an important metabolic product both in plants and animals. It is an intermediate product of the citric acid cycle (formed by oxidation of succinic acid) and is therefore ubiquitously present.

Malic acid is produced from fumaric acid. Fumaric acid is an important raw material for the production of plastics.

Fumaric acid is approved as food additive E 297 and is used for preservation and as an acidifier. In pig breeding and chicken fattening, fumaric acid is added to feed to prevent infections in the intestines.

Esters of fumaric acid are successfully used as antipsoriatric drugs or as a remedy for multiple sclerosis.

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