Dynamic headspace-gas chromatography-olfactometry analysis of different anatomical parts of lovage (Levisticum officinale Koch.) at eight growing stages

Volatiles of five different parts of lovage (leaves, stems, flowers, seeds, and roots) were isolated by dynamic headspace (DHS) method and analyzed by GC-FID and GC-olfactometry (GC-O) techniques. In total, 98 compounds were identified in the samples, of which 41 are reported as lovage volatiles for the first time. Qualitative differences in the composition of DHS constituents of various anatomical parts of the plants were not significant, whereas the amounts of a number of identified volatile compounds were different in leaves, stems, flowers, seeds, and roots. Seasonal variations in the composition of headspace volatiles were also determined. Except for roots, beta -phellandrene was found to be the most abundant headspace component in all anatomical parts of lovage constituting from 36.50% to 79.28% of the total GC peak area. The sniffing panel characterized effluents from the GC column, and odor descriptors were attributed to the recognized constituents. alpha -Pinene and alpha -phellandrene/myrcene were the most frequently recognized constituents among 11 GC effluents constituting 12 identified compounds and 1 unknown compound, which were detected by the members of the sniffing panel. None of the detected constituents was recognized as a lovage character impact aroma compound.