Imaging Lipidomics and Metallomics of Brown Rice Cultivars Used for Sake Production

Many previous studies have reported various phospholipids and elements that affect sake production; however, it seems to be challenging to investigate individual types in each rice variety due to their high diversity, not to mention their distribution patterns. Since its introduction, mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) has gained attention in various fields as a simple compound visualization technique. The current study highlights the progress of powerful MSI in comprehensively analyzing phospholipids and minerals in brown rice for sake production. Multivariate analysis suggested phospholipids relating to each rice group based on regions of interest. Phospholipid classes connected with embryo and endosperm included fatty acylcarnitine, diacylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylglycerol, and phosphatidylethanolamine. Meanwhile, the studied rice groups showed the same distribution of the investigated 12 minerals. This is the first study that reports a comprehensive imaging analysis of phospholipids and elements in brown rice for several cultivars for sake production.