Identification of Fragrances from Chestnut Blossom by Gas Chromatography-Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

chestnuts are an important source of food. The scientific name for the Korean chestnut tree that widely distributed in Korean peninsular is Castanea crenata var dulcis Siebold et Zuccarini (Fagaceae) or Castanea kusakuri. The Japanese chestnut is classified as Castanea crenata, the Chinese chestnut as Castanea mollissima or Castanea bungeana Blume, the European chestnut as Castanea sativa, the American chestnut as Castanea dentata and some American species the chinquapin as Castanea pumila. It was commonly found on mountains, hills, and slopes in gravelly or rocky, well-drained glacial soils. The flowers of the Korean chestnut appeared in June, producing a spectacular display of creamy-yellow blossoms and were strongly scented. The flowers were similar to those of the Japanese chestnut. Chestnut honey was produced in this season. Interestingly, it has been believed that chestnut blossoms emit strong sperm-like scents for attracting mate. The edible nuts ripened and dropped from September. The bark and wood were rich in tannic acid which provided tannin for use in the tanning of leather. To date, however, chemical composition of fragrances emanated from chestnut blossom has never been studied. The main purpose of this study is to characterize the fragrance composition emanated from chestnut blossom. The screening of new compounds and combination formulas for cosmetics, aroma therapy and many other applications is the final goal. In this study, solid-phase trapping-solvent extraction (SPTE) was used to collect fragrances emitted from chestnut blossom. Then, fragrant compounds were analysed by GC-MSn with electron impact (EI) ionization and methane chemical ionization (CI) modes for the cross-checking. For the first time, fragrance constituents of chestnut blossom have been reported here.