Metabolomics-based investigation of compounds associated with sensory profiles of strawberries

Strawberry cultivars have recently been diversified, and breeding objectives generally focus on production characteristics, as well as those to attract consumers. Strawberry cultivar selection and breeding rely heavily on human sensory evaluation. However, methods relying solely on sensory evaluation face challenges, such as being influenced by the subjectivity and physical condition of the panelists. Therefore, if compounds correlated with sensory profiles can be identified through instrumental analysis, combining this with sensory evaluation could enable more robust evaluation and improve the selection of new strawberry cultivars. Previous studies have investigated the relationship between strawberry metabolites and sensory profiles but have mainly focused on volatiles, certain sugars, and organic acids. However, some non-volatile compounds also influence flavor. Therefore, investigation of the correlations between non-volatile compounds and sensory profiles based on comprehensive analytical data is valuable. The objective of this study was to investigate the compounds correlated with the sensory profiles of strawberries. Sensory evaluations and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS)-based compound analyses were performed on five strawberry cultivars. Orthogonal partial least squares (OPLS) regression analysis was then performed using the compound data as explanatory variables and the sensory evaluation scores as response variables. Models capable of accurately predicting sensory profiles were constructed, and several non-volatile and volatile compounds showing high correlations were identified. This study confirmed the correlations between the sensory profiles of strawberries and volatile as well as non-volatile compounds, including amino and organic acids, providing useful insights into the breeding of new strawberry cultivars.