Analysis of In Vivo Plant Volatiles Using Active Sampling and TD-GC×GC-TOFMS

Area of Science:

• Plant science
• Analytical chemistry
• Metabolomics

Background:

• Plants produce numerous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) crucial for understanding metabolism and stress responses.
• VOC emission is influenced by plant life stage, environment, and stress factors.
• In vivo sampling offers minimally invasive, representative analysis of plant volatilomes under controlled conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a novel in vivo plant sampling technique.
• To analyze headspace secondary plant metabolites with minimal invasiveness.
• To compare the new technique with existing methods like solid-phase microextraction (SPME).

Main Methods:

• Utilized in vivo active sampling with thermal desorption (TD) tubes.
• Employed comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to a time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TD-GC×GC-TOFMS).
• Validated the technique across diverse plant species with varying sizes and volatile profiles.

Main Results:

• In vivo active sampling onto TD tubes showed wider compound coverage and larger peak areas than SPME.
• Achieved a Horwitz ratio of 0.893, indicating high reliability and reproducibility.
• Successfully measured hundreds of compounds, including terpenes, aldehydes, ketones, terpenoids, and alcohols.

Conclusions:

• The novel in vivo active sampling method is a versatile addition for plant volatile analysis.
• This technique enables detailed insights into plant metabolism and responses to environmental factors.
• It offers a robust and reproducible approach for studying plant secondary metabolites.