Differentiation of European and Chinese Truffle (<i>Tuber</i> sp.) Species by Means of Sterol Fingerprints

Abstract

The increasing demand of valuable truffles (Tuber sp.) has prompted new areas of naturally growing truffles entering the market. Hence, the identification of valueless Tuber species is an important task to prevent food fraud. Here, we show that sterol patterns are suited to differentiate five Tuber species (Tuber magnatum, Tuber melanosporum, Tuber aestivum, Tuber albidum, and Tuber indicum varieties) from each other. Next to the known main sterols of Tuber, ergosterol and brassicasterol, occurrence of minor sterols in differing shares resulted in characteristic fingerprints in the five Tuber species, irrespective of the country of origin. A total of 27 sterols were evaluated, and we proposed assignment criteria of main sterol relations as well as eight distinct biomarkers within the minor compounds for the differentiation of European and Chinese truffles.