Volatile compounds from three pineapple varieties grown in Colombia.

Abstract

La piña (Ananas comosus [L.] Merr.) is one of the most important and popular of tropical fruits, mainly due to its attractive flavor. Several hundreds of varieties are grown in various parts of the world and are known to vary markedly in their sensory characteristics. Application of liquid-liquid extraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and odor activity value was used to analyze volatile compounds from fresh pineapple varieties Oromiel, Cayena and Manzana grown in Colombia, and to estimate the most aroma-active compounds. A total of 194 volatile compounds were identified, which were distributed in 183 (17.51 mg/kg), 173 (11.39 mg/kg) y 153 (9.14 mg/kg) constituents in the varieties Oromiel, Cayena and Manzana, respectively. The composition of the extracts was constituted by esters, aldehydes, alcohols, acids, terpenes, furans and other of different chemical nature, but quantitatively esters and thioesters were predominant. Ethyl hexanoate was the major compound in the three varieties, with a pineapple note. Oromiel and Manzana varieties agreed with methyl 3-(methylthio)-propanoate as the second major constituent, with a pineapple-like note at low concentrations, while in Cayena pineapple was methyl octanoate (fruity note). A total of 35, 37 and 30 of them were aroma active compounds of the varieties Oromiel, Cayena y Manzana, respectively. The contribution of each one was different among the varieties.