Synthesis and sensorial properties of mercaptoaldehydes

Mercaptoalcohols and mercaptoketones have been described in the past decade as relevant character-impact compounds in various food products. On the other hand, very little is known of mercaptoaldehydes. Only 3-mercapto-2-methylpentanal and 3-mercaptohexanal have been found in onions and beef liver, respectively. The aim of this work was to synthesize 13 mercaptoaldehydes not commercially available by combinatorial chemistry. Chromatographic analyses of the mixture allowed the determination of their retention indices and mass spectroscopy fragments for further identification in foods. Gas chromatography-olfactometry demonstrated how some of them are characterized by unusual odor and very low perception threshold.