Untargeted Profiling and Differentiation of Volatiles in Varieties of Meat Using GC Orbitrap MS

Volatile compounds play vital roles in food sensory attributes and food quality. An analysis of volatile compounds could illustrate the sensory attributes at the microscale level. Here, untargeted profiling approaches for volatiles in five most-consumed meat species were established using headspace SPME-GC/high resolution Orbitrap MS. An extended high-resolution database of meat volatile compounds was established to enhance the qualification accuracy. Using sulfur-containing compounds, aldehydes, and ketones as the research model, the parameters including fiber coating types, extraction temperature, extraction time, and desorbing time were optimized. Principle component analysis, volcano analysis and partial least squares discriminant analysis were applied to run the classification and the selection of discriminant markers between meat varieties, respectively. Different varieties could be largely distinguished according to the volatiles’ profiles. 1-Octen-3-ol, 1-octen-3-one, 2-pentyl furan and some other furans degraded from n-6 fatty acids would contribute to distinguishing duck meat from other categories, while methyl esters mainly from oleic acid as well as dimethyl sulfoxide and carbon disulfide possibly produced from the sulfur-containing amino acids contributed to the discrimination of beef. Therefore, volatiles’ profiling not only could interpret the aroma style in meat but also could be another promising method for meat differentiation and authentication.