Comparative Analysis of Volatile Compounds in the Flower Buds of Three <i>Panax</i> Species Using Fast Gas Chromatography Electronic Nose, Headspace-Gas Chromatography-Ion Mobility Spectrometry, and Headspace Solid Phase Microextraction-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Coupled with Multivariate Statistical Analysis
Yang Yue,
Jiaxin Yin,
Jingyi Xie,
Shufang Wu,
Hui Ding,
Lifeng Han,
Songtao Bie,
Wen Song,
Ying Zhang,
Xinbo Song,
Heshui Yu,
Zheng Li
Affiliations
Yang Yue
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Jiaxin Yin
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Jingyi Xie
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Shufang Wu
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Hui Ding
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Lifeng Han
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Songtao Bie
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Wen Song
Tianjin HongRenTang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Tianjin 300385, China
Ying Zhang
Tianjin HongRenTang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Tianjin 300385, China
Xinbo Song
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Heshui Yu
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
Zheng Li
College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China
The flower buds of three Panax species (PGF: P. ginseng; PQF: P. quinquefolius; PNF: P. notoginseng) widely consumed as health tea are easily confused in market circulation. We aimed to develop a green, fast, and easy analysis strategy to distinguish PGF, PQF, and PNF. In this work, fast gas chromatography electronic nose (fast GC e-nose), headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS), and headspace solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) were utilized to comprehensively analyze the volatile organic components (VOCs) of three flowers. Meanwhile, a principal component analysis (PCA) and heatmap were applied to distinguish the VOCs identified in PGF, PQF, and PNF. A random forest (RF) analysis was used to screen key factors affecting the discrimination. As a result, 39, 68, and 78 VOCs were identified in three flowers using fast GC e-nose, HS-GC-IMS, and HS-SPME-GC-MS. Nine VOCs were selected as potential chemical markers based on a model of RF for distinguishing these three species. Conclusively, a complete VOC analysis strategy was created to provide a methodological reference for the rapid, simple, and environmentally friendly detection and identification of food products (tea, oil, honey, etc.) and herbs with flavor characteristics and to provide a basis for further specification of their quality and base sources.