Volatile Fingerprint and Differences in Volatile Compounds of Different Foxtail Millet (Setaria italica Beauv.) Varieties

Aroma components in foxtail millet are one of the key factors in origin traceability and quality control, and they are associated with consumer acceptance and the corresponding processing suitability. However, the volatile differences based on the foxtail millet varieties have not been studied further. The present study was undertaken to develop the characteristic volatile fingerprint and analyze the differences in volatile compounds of 20 foxtail millet varieties by electronic nose (E-Nose), headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS), and headspace solid-phase microextraction/gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS). A total of 43 volatile compounds were tentatively identified in foxtail millet samples, 34 and 18 by GC-IMS and GC-MS, respectively. Aldehydes, alcohols, and ketones were the major volatile compounds, and the hexanal content was the highest. The characteristic volatile fingerprint of foxtail millet was successfully constructed. A total of 39 common volatile compounds were found in all varieties. The content of hexanal, heptanal, 1-pentanol, acetophenone, 2-heptanone, and nonanal were explored to explain the aroma characteristics among the different varieties, and different varieties can be separated based on these components. The results demonstrate that the combination of E-Nose, GC-IMS, and GC-MS can be a fast and accurate method to identify the general aroma peculiarities of different foxtail millet varieties.

Uncovering the differences in flavor volatiles of different colored foxtail millets based on gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry and chemometrics

The differences of volatile organic compounds in commercially available foxtail millets with different colors (black, green, white and yellow) were assayed through gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry (GC-IMS) to explore their volatile flavor characteristics. Fifty-five volatile components were found in various colored foxtail millets, including 25 kinds of aldehydes (accounting for 39.19-48.69%), 10 ketones (25.36-32.37%), 15 alcohols (20.19-24.11%), 2 ethers (2.29-2.45%), 2 furans (1.49-2.95%) and 1 ester (0.27-0.39%). Aldehydes, alcohols and ketones were the chief volatiles in different colored foxtail millet, followed by furans, esters and ethers. These identified volatile flavor components in various colored foxtail millets obtained by GC-IMS could be well distinguished by principal components and cluster analysis. Meanwhile, a stable prediction model was fitted via partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), in which 17 kinds of differentially volatile components were screened out based on variable importance in projection (VIP>1). These findings might provide certain information for understanding the flavor traits of colored foxtail millets in future.

Characterization and discrimination of flavor volatiles of different colored wheat grains after cooking based on GC-IMS and chemometrics

Changes in flavor volatiles of three colored wheat grains (black, green, and yellow) after cooking were detected via gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry (GC-IMS) to explore corresponding volatile flavor traits. A total of 52 volatile chemicals were spotted among these cooked wheat grains, including 30 aldehydes (accounting for 73.86-83.78%), 11 ketones (9.53-16.98%), 3 alcohols (0.88-1.21%), 4 furans (4.82-7.44%), 2 esters (0.28-0.42%), and 2 pyrazines (0.18-0.32%). Aldehydes, ketones, and furans were the main volatile compounds in three different cooked wheat. For black-colored wheat, the relative contents of benzene acetaldehyde, benzaldehyde, 2-methyl butanal, and 3-methyl butanal were much higher (p < 0.05). For green-colored wheat, the relative contents of nonanal, 2-pentyl furan, (E)-hept-2-enal, 2-butanone, and acetone were significantly higher (p < 0.05). For yellow-colored wheat, the relative amounts of heptanal, hexanal, and pentanal were much higher (p < 0.05). The overall volatile substances of the three cooked wheat grains might be classified by GC-IMS data coupled with principal component analysis and heatmap clustering analysis. A reliable forecast set was established through orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), and 22 differential volatile compounds were screened out based on variable importance in projection (VIP) being higher than 1.0, as flavor markers for distinguishing the three cooked wheat grains. These results suggest that GC-IMS could be used for characterizing the flavor volatiles of different colored wheat, and the findings could contribute certain information for understand the aroma traits in different colored cooked wheat and related products in the future.

Characterization of volatile organic compounds of different pigmented rice after puffing based on gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry and chemometrics

The distinctness in volatile profiles of pigmented rice with various colors (black, green, purple, red, and yellow) after puffing were assayed through gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry (GC-IMS) to explore their odor characteristics. Fifty-two volatile components were found in those puffed rice, including 27 kinds of aldehydes (accounting for 59.69-64.37 %), 9 ketones (25.55-29.73 %), 5 alcohols (2.45-5.29 %), 4 pyrazines (1.38-2.36 %), 3 ethers (0.81-1.27 %), 2 furans (0.95-1.39 %), 1 pyridine (1.0-1,16 %), and 1 pyrrole (0.59-0.71 %). Aldehydes and ketones were the two chief volatiles in different pigmented puffed rice. These identified volatile flavor components in various pigmented puffed rice obtained by GC-IMS might be well differentiated by principal component and cluster interpretation. Meanwhile, a stable prediction model was fitted via orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis, and 19 differentially volatile components were screened out based on variable importance projection (VIP) above 1. These findings could add certain information for understanding the flavor profiles of pigmented puffed rice and related products.