Abstract: The kinetics of alkaline hydrolysis of some ring-substituted acetoxycinnamic acids and related compounds were studied in the presence of theophylline anion and substituted theophyllines. Inhibition of the rate of hydrolysis by these xanthines was attributed to complex formation between the cinnamates and the xanthines. qIl values (qll is the fractional decrease in reactivity of the complexed substrate relative to the free substrate) of about 0.4 ...