MYCOLab Ai Logo - gold and army green

Headspace Solid-Phase Microextraction Followed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry as a Powerful Analytical Tool for the Discrimination of Truffle Species According to Their Volatiles

Summary

This study analyzed the aromatic compounds in two types of Greek truffles to distinguish between them. Researchers used a technique called headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography to identify 45 different volatile compounds. The study found specific aromatic markers that uniquely identify each truffle species, demonstrating that this analytical approach can reliably differentiate between truffle types based on their smell.

Background

Truffles are highly appreciated fungi with unique organoleptic properties and rich nutritional content. While volatile analysis has been conducted on truffle species from various European and other regions, there is no documentation of the volatile fingerprint of truffles grown in Greece despite their superior quality.

Objective

To optimize a HS-SPME protocol and assess the volatile metabolome of Tuber Aestivum and Tuber Borchii originating from Greece using GC-MS analysis, and to establish markers responsible for discrimination of these two species.

Results

Forty-five volatile compounds were identified. Optimal extraction parameters were 100 mg sample mass, 50°C temperature, and 45 min extraction time. HCA dendrogram showed clear clustering of the two species, and PLS-DA model achieved 82% explained variance with R² = 0.96 and Q² = 0.94, identifying characteristic volatile markers for each species.

Conclusion

HS-SPME coupled with GC-MS and chemometrics effectively discriminated between Tuber Aestivum and Tuber Borchii species. Key distinguishing compounds were identified: 2-methyl-butanoic acid, 2-methyl-1-propanol, and 3-octanone for Tuber Borchii, and 1-octen-3-ol, 2-butanone, 3-methyl-butanal, 2-methyl-1-butanol, and ethanol for Tuber Aestivum.
  • Published in:Frontiers in Nutrition,
  • Study Type:Analytical Study,
  • Source: 10.3389/fnut.2022.856250, PMID: 35558753, PMCID: PMC9085510
Scroll to Top