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Compositional and Electronic Discrimination Analyses of Taste and Aroma Profiles of Non-Centrifugal Cane Brown Sugars

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Abstract

Eight non-centrifugal cane brown sugars were compositionally differentiated by their sugar, amino acid, mineral, phenolic, and volatile aroma components. Their taste and aroma profiles were generated using two electronic sensing techniques, namely, a potentiometric electronic tongue (e-tongue) and a mass spectrometry (MS)-based electronic nose (e-nose). The nutritional and phenolic contents varied in brown sugars and influenced relative taste values for sweetness, umami, astringency, and bitterness. Various composition–taste correlations, including both contributive and negative associations, were discovered, whereas minerals and phenolics had a positive effect on astringency and bitterness. Brown sugars were also composed of different formations of volatile aroma components, predominantly acetaldehyde, ethanol, acetic acid, butanoic acid, 2,5-dimethyl pyrazine, and 2,6-dimethyl pyrazine. Hyphenated MS-based e-nose sensing differentiated brown sugars in more detail and generated important discriminant chemical markers for those aroma compounds in the multivariate PCA statistical model, viz., m/z 42 and 43 (acetaldehyde), 46 (ethanol), 55 and 73 (butanoic acid), 60 (acetic acid), and 94, 108, and 122 (pyrazines).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of the Ryukyus, 1 Senbaru, Nishihara, Okinawa, 903-0213, Japan

    Yonathan Asikin, Wakana Takahara, Makoto Takahashi & Koji Wada

  2. Regional Agricultural System Section, Okinawa Prefectural Agricultural Research Center, 820 Makabe, Itoman, Okinawa, 901-0336, Japan

    Naoto Hirose

  3. Product Development Division, Mitsui Sugar Co., Ltd., 36-2 Nihonbashi-Hakozakicho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 103-8423, Japan

    Satoru Ito

Authors
  1. Yonathan Asikin
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  2. Wakana Takahara
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  3. Makoto Takahashi
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  4. Naoto Hirose
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  5. Satoru Ito
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  6. Koji Wada
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Koji Wada.

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Funding

Financial support for this study was provided by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (No. 26350095) from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science and a special grant for Okinawa Promotion No. 66.

Conflict of Interest

Yonathan Asikin declares that he has no conflict of interest. Wakana Takahara declares that she has no conflict of interest. Makoto Takahashi declares that he has no conflict of interest. Naoto Hirose declares that he has no conflict of interest. Satoru Ito declares that he has no conflict of interest. Koji Wada declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects.

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Table S1

Significance differences of relative taste value of non-centrifugal cane brown sugars (DOCX 21 kb)

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Asikin, Y., Takahara, W., Takahashi, M. et al. Compositional and Electronic Discrimination Analyses of Taste and Aroma Profiles of Non-Centrifugal Cane Brown Sugars. Food Anal. Methods 10, 1844–1856 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12161-016-0746-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12161-016-0746-5

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