Characterization of Odor-Active Compounds of Ichang Lemon (Citrus wilsonii Tan.) and Identification of Its Genetic Interspecific Origin by DNA Genotyping.

Ichang lemon is a citrus fruit whose rind gives off a delicious and much appreciated fragrance and flavor. The volatile components of the fruit peel of Ichang lemon were investigated by GC-MS and GC-O (AEDA method). Simultaneously, its genetic origin was identified by using diagnostic SNP markers specific to ancestral species and multiallelic SSR and InDel markers. Ichang lemon combines three ancestral genomes (Citrus maxima, Citrus ichangensis, and Citrus reticulata) and may be a pummelo × Yuzu hybrid. Although the major compounds of the Ichang lemon aromatic profile were present in Citrus junos, a few pummelo-specific compounds were also detected, such as indole and nootkatone, in agreement with its maternal lineage. 3-Methyl-3-sulfanylbutyl acetate, reported to occur in passion fruit and brewed coffee, was identified by GC-MS, GC-QTOF-MS, and GC-FTIR for the first time in citrus. This odor-active compound has a sulfurous, tropical fruity, green note.

Respiratory Health - Exposure Measurements and Modeling in the Fragrance and Flavour Industry.

Although the flavor and fragrance industry is about 150 years old, the use of synthetic materials started more than 100 years ago, and the awareness of the respiratory hazard presented by some flavoring substances emerged only recently. In 2001, the US National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) identified for the first time inhalation exposure to flavoring substances in the workplace as a possible occupational hazard. As a consequence, manufacturers must comply with a variety of workplace safety requirements, and management has to ensure the improvement of health and safety of the employees exposed to hazardous volatile organic compounds. In this sensitive context, MANE opened its facilities to an intensive measuring campaign with the objective to better estimate the real level of hazardous respiratory exposure of workers. In this study, exposure to 27 hazardous volatile substances were measured during several types of handling operations (weighing-mixing, packaging, reconditioning-transferring), 430 measurement results were generated, and were exploited to propose an improved model derived from the well-known ECETOC-TRA model. The quantification of volatile substances in the working atmosphere involved three main steps: adsorption of the chemicals on a solid support, thermal desorption, followed by analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Our approach was to examine experimental measures done in various manufacturing workplaces and to define correction factors to reflect more accurately working conditions and habits. Four correction factors were adjusted in the ECETOC-TRA to integrate important exposure variation factors: exposure duration, percentage of the substance in the composition, presence of collective protective equipment and wearing of personal protective equipment. Verification of the validity of the model is based on the comparison of the values obtained after adaptation of the ECETOC-TRA model, according to various exposure scenarios, with the experimental values measured under real conditions. After examination of the predicted results, 98% of the values obtained with the proposed new model were above the experimental values measured in real conditions. This must be compared with the results of the classical ECETOC-TRA system, which generates only 37% of overestimated values. As the values generated by the new model intended to help decision-makers of the industry to implement adapted protective action and information, and considering the high variability of the working environments, it was of the utmost importance to us not to underestimate the exposure level. The proposed correction factors have been designed to achieve this goal. We wish to propose the present method as an improved monitoring tool to improve respiratory health and safety in the flavor and fragrance manufacturing facilities.

Quantification of selected furocoumarins by high-performance liquid chromatography and UV-detection: capabilities and limits.

The performance of HPLC-UV as a means of quantifying selected furocoumarins in essential oils has been evaluated, based on a ring test validation approach. Accuracy profiles were generated, to determine bias and statistical confidence associated with determination at different concentrations, along with lower limits of quantification (LOQ). From these findings, it can be concluded that the method described may only be used in simple cases (essential oils), to measure individual furocoumarin compounds at concentrations greater than 10mg/l; the non compound-specific nature of detection by absorption in the UV range is unable to overcome the effect of interferences arising from chromatographic coelutions, such as those encountered in the analysis of complex commercial fragrance mixtures. The use of an algorithmically calculated 'spectral similarity' function, with reference to authentic standards, may be used to improve reliability in assignment and quantification.

Collaborative validation of the quantification method for suspected allergens and test of an automated data treatment.

Previous publications investigated different data treatment strategies for quantification of volatile suspected allergens by GC/MS. This publication presents the validation results obtained on "ready to inject" samples under reproducibility conditions following inter-laboratory ring-testing. The approach is based on the monitoring of three selected ions per analyte using two different GC capillary columns. To aid the analysts a decisional tree is used for guidance during the interpretation of the analytical results. The method is evaluated using a fragrance oil concentrate spiked with all suspected allergens to mimic the difficulty of a real sample extract or perfume oil. At the concentrations of 10 and 100mg/kg, imposed by Directive 76/768/EEC for labeling of leave-on and rinse-off cosmetics, the mean bias is +14% and -4%, respectively. The method is linear for all analytes, and the prediction intervals for each analyte have been determined. To speed up the analyst's task, an automated data treatment is also proposed. The method mean bias is slightly shifted towards negative values, but the method prediction intervals are close to that resulting from the decisional tree.

GC-MS quantification of suspected volatile allergens in fragrances. 2. Data treatment strategies and method performances.

The performances of the GC-MS determination of suspected allergens in fragrance concentrates have been investigated. The limit of quantification was experimentally determined (10 mg/L), and the variability was investigated for three different data treatment strategies: (1) two columns and three quantification ions; (2) two columns and one quantification ion; and (3) one column and three quantification ions. The first strategy best minimizes the risk of determination bias due to coelutions. This risk was evaluated by calculating the probability of coeluting a suspected allergen with perfume constituents exhibiting ions in common. For hydroxycitronellal, when using a two-column strategy, this may statistically occur more than once every 36 analyses for one ion or once every 144 analyses for three ions in common.

Identification of monomenthyl succinate in natural mint extracts by LC-ESI-MS-MS and GC-MS.

Fresh and dried mint leaves Mentha piperita (peppermint) and Mentha spicata (spearmint) were extracted in two different ways and the extracts investigated by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. All the ethanolic extracts prepared with Soxhlet apparatus were used in the identification of monomenthyl succinate as previously reported. The highest level was found in fresh spearmint leaves. The analysis of the extractions, prepared under mild conditions using a fluorinated solvent (HFC 134-a), confirmed the natural occurrence of monomenthyl succinate in the leaves, ruling out the hypothesis that this constituent could be an artifact of the Soxhlet extraction process. A method for identifying this compound in such a fluorinated solvent extract of mint leaf using preliminary esterification with diazomethane and then GC-MS is described.

Behavior of flavor compounds in model food systems: a thermodynamic study.

Physicochemical parameters, such as hydrophobicity, water solubility, and volatility, of four flavor compounds (ethyl acetate, ethyl butyrate, ethyl hexanoate, and 2-pentanone) were determined. The amount of flavor compounds released from different model matrices (mineral water, purified triolein, an oil-in-water emulsion, a carbohydrate matrix, and a complex matrix containing lipids and carbohydrates) into the gaseous phase was determined at thermodynamic equilibrium, at 37 degrees C, by static headspace gas chromatography. The degree of interaction between the flavor compounds and the matrix components was shown by measuring the percentage retention using the water matrix as the reference. The partition of flavor compounds was principally dependent on their hydrophobicity. Physicochemical interactions that occurred in the different media led to different degrees of flavor retention. An impact of fat on flavor retention was demonstrated when a water matrix and an oil-in-water matrix or carbohydrate and complex matrices were compared. A carbohydrate impact on flavor compound retention was also detected, which was evident even in the presence of lipids.