Abstract
The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of four monofloral and one multifloral of Thai honeys produced by Apis cerana, Apis dorsata and Apis mellifera were analyzed by headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) followed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The floral sources were longan, sunflower, coffee, wild flowers (wild) and lychee. Honey originating from longan had more VOCs than all other floral sources. Sunflower honey had the least numbers of VOCs. cis-Linalool oxide, trans-linalool oxide, ho-trienol, and furan-2,5-dicarbaldehyde were present in all the honeys studied, independent of their floral origin. Interestingly, 2-phenylacetaldehyde was detected in all honey sample except longan honey produced by A. cerana. Thirty-two VOCs were identified as possible floral markers. After validating differences in honey volatiles from different floral sources and honeybee species, the results suggest that differences in quality and quantity of honey volatiles are influenced by both floral source and honeybee species. The group of honey volatiles detected from A. cerana was completely different from those of A. mellifera and A. dorsata. VOCs could therefore be applied as chemical markers of honeys and may reflect preferences of shared floral sources amongst different honeybee species.
Highlights
Honey is a well-known natural product derived from honeybees
Some volatiles were absent in particular honeys, e.g. 2-phenylacetaldehyde, isophorone and methyl nonanoate were absent from longan honey from A. cerana while linalool, ho-trienol, benzyl ethanol, isophorone and epoxylinalool isomer II were absent from sunflower honey from A. mellifera
Significantly high amounts of cis- and trans-linalool oxide were found in lychee (A. mellifera) and longan honeys (A. mellifera and A. cerana) than that found in the other honeys
Summary
Honey is a well-known natural product derived from honeybees. Worker honeybees collect nectar from flower blossom and store them in a honey sack before they return to the hive. The nectar is mixed with enzymes from bees resulting in the breakdown of complex sugars in the nectar to simple sugars such as glucose and fructose [1]. Honey contains proteins, lipids and vitamins [2]. Honey may have aromatic compounds at very low concentrations in the form of volatile mixtures. Each volatile compound in the mixture may contribute a different aroma, taste and function leading to the uniqueness of honey.
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