Differential accumulation of bioactive metabolites in coffee cell cultures in comparison to green coffee beans

Conventional coffee production faces sustainability challenges. Coffee cell cultures (CC) are a promising alternative coffee raw material. This study investigated the composition of CC in comparison to conventional green coffee beans (GB) using untargeted metabolomics and lipidomics approaches. The lipid content (g/100 g) of GB was approximately four times higher than that of CC with triglycerides as the predominant lipid class identified followed by diterpenes. Additionally, differences were observed in the diterpene profiles of CC and GB. CC accumulated more thiamine and choline but lower contents of caffeine, trigonelline, and alpha-tocopherol compared to GB. The detected carbohydrates of statistical significance between CC and GB were mostly monosaccharides. This study provides information on the bioactive metabolites in CC, demonstrates the possibility of tailor-made coffee products from CC, and encourages further optimization of the production process of CC to enable development of sustainable, healthy coffee beverages for the future.