Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>)
Green and white asparagus are quite different crops but can be harvested from the same plant. They have distinct morphological differences due to their mode of cultivation and they are characterised by having contrasting appearance and flavour. Significant chemical differences are therefore expected...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Metabolites |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2218-1989/11/10/708 |
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| author | Eirini Pegiou Qingrui Zhu Paraskevas Pegios Ric C. H. De Vos Roland Mumm Robert D. Hall |
| author_facet | Eirini Pegiou Qingrui Zhu Paraskevas Pegios Ric C. H. De Vos Roland Mumm Robert D. Hall |
| author_sort | Eirini Pegiou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Green and white asparagus are quite different crops but can be harvested from the same plant. They have distinct morphological differences due to their mode of cultivation and they are characterised by having contrasting appearance and flavour. Significant chemical differences are therefore expected. Spears from three varieties of both green and white forms, harvested in two consecutive seasons were analysed using headspace GC-MS and LC-MS with an untargeted metabolomic workflow. Mainly C<sub>5</sub> and C<sub>8</sub> alcohols and aldehydes, and phenolic compounds were more abundant in green spears, whereas benzenoids, monoterpenes, unsaturated aldehydes and steroidal saponins were more abundant in white ones. Previously reported key asparagus volatiles and non-volatiles were detected at similar or not significantly different levels in the two asparagus types. Spatial metabolomics revealed also that many volatiles with known positive aroma attributes were significantly more abundant in the upper parts of the spears and showed a decreasing trend towards the base. These findings provide valuable insights into the metabolome of raw asparagus, the contrasts between green and white spears as well as the different chemical distributions along the stem. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:24:03Z |
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| id | doaj.art-7e8bd5ddad0447f080713b5a2e2b1328 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2218-1989 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:24:03Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Metabolites |
| spelling | doaj.art-7e8bd5ddad0447f080713b5a2e2b13282023-11-22T19:07:43ZengMDPI AGMetabolites2218-19892021-10-01111070810.3390/metabo11100708Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>)Eirini Pegiou0Qingrui Zhu1Paraskevas Pegios2Ric C. H. De Vos3Roland Mumm4Robert D. Hall5Laboratory of Plant Physiology, Wageningen University and Research, 6700AA Wageningen, The NetherlandsLaboratory of Plant Physiology, Wageningen University and Research, 6700AA Wageningen, The NetherlandsDTU Compute, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Lyngby, DenmarkBusiness Unit Bioscience, Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, 6700AA Wageningen, The NetherlandsBusiness Unit Bioscience, Wageningen Plant Research, Wageningen University and Research, 6700AA Wageningen, The NetherlandsLaboratory of Plant Physiology, Wageningen University and Research, 6700AA Wageningen, The NetherlandsGreen and white asparagus are quite different crops but can be harvested from the same plant. They have distinct morphological differences due to their mode of cultivation and they are characterised by having contrasting appearance and flavour. Significant chemical differences are therefore expected. Spears from three varieties of both green and white forms, harvested in two consecutive seasons were analysed using headspace GC-MS and LC-MS with an untargeted metabolomic workflow. Mainly C<sub>5</sub> and C<sub>8</sub> alcohols and aldehydes, and phenolic compounds were more abundant in green spears, whereas benzenoids, monoterpenes, unsaturated aldehydes and steroidal saponins were more abundant in white ones. Previously reported key asparagus volatiles and non-volatiles were detected at similar or not significantly different levels in the two asparagus types. Spatial metabolomics revealed also that many volatiles with known positive aroma attributes were significantly more abundant in the upper parts of the spears and showed a decreasing trend towards the base. These findings provide valuable insights into the metabolome of raw asparagus, the contrasts between green and white spears as well as the different chemical distributions along the stem.https://www.mdpi.com/2218-1989/11/10/708<i>Asparagus officinalis</i>asparagus metabolomeGC-MSLC-MScrop metabolomicsspatial metabolomics |
| spellingShingle | Eirini Pegiou Qingrui Zhu Paraskevas Pegios Ric C. H. De Vos Roland Mumm Robert D. Hall Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) Metabolites <i>Asparagus officinalis</i> asparagus metabolome GC-MS LC-MS crop metabolomics spatial metabolomics |
| title | Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) |
| title_full | Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) |
| title_fullStr | Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) |
| title_short | Metabolomics Reveals Heterogeneity in the Chemical Composition of Green and White Spears of Asparagus (<i>A. officinalis</i>) |
| title_sort | metabolomics reveals heterogeneity in the chemical composition of green and white spears of asparagus i a officinalis i |
| topic | <i>Asparagus officinalis</i> asparagus metabolome GC-MS LC-MS crop metabolomics spatial metabolomics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2218-1989/11/10/708 |
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