Could environmental effect overcome genetic? A chemometric study on wheat volatiles fingerprint

A deeper knowledge of the causes of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) variance in wheat is crucial for quality improvement and control of its derivatives. The VOCs profile of common and durum wheat kernels grown in different fields sited at different altitudes over two years was analysed and 149 compounds were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Principal component analysis evidenced that the year of cultivation was the highest source of VOCs variance. The effects of wheat origin, as described by the cultivation site, its elevation, and species were further investigated by PLS-DA, that permitted to correctly classify wheat of different origin on the basis of its VOCs profile. The importance of the different effects was investigated by multidimensional test and resulted: year of cultivation > field of cultivation > species > altitude. Findings suggest that environmental conditions are more important than species in the determination of the VOCs variance of wheat.