Unraveling the difference in aroma characteristics of tomato flesh with different colors using HS-SPME-GC–MS/MS and E-nose combined with multivariate data analysis

Aroma profiles of tomato flesh from 16 tomato varieties with 4 different fruit colors were characterized by headspace-solid phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (HS-SPM<i>E</i>-GC-MS/MS) and electronic nose (<i>E</i>-nose). A total of 154 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were qualitatively and semi-quantitatively identified, including 29 aldehydes, 22 hydrocarbons, 21 alcohols, 32 unknown compounds, and others, with aldehydes being the most abundant. Twenty-six characteristic VOCs might be major contributors to tomato flavor by relative odor activity value analysis. The correlation between <i>E</i>-nose sensor responses and GC-MS/MS volatile profiles was also examined. The machine learning models were constructed to show potential for distinguishing the fruit colors of the tomato. Finally, 16 fruit color-indicating VOCs were selected via multivariate data analysis. The present study will contribute to flavor evaluation and provide a chemical basis for future tomato flavor improvement, to be accompanied by sensory validation.