Effects of sulphur nutrition during potato cultivation on the formation of acrylamide and aroma compounds during cooking

• Published in: Food chemistry Vol. 122; no. 3; pp. 753 - 760
• Main Authors: Elmore, J.S., Dodson, A.T., Muttucumaru, N., Halford, N.G., Parry, M.A.J., Mottram, D.S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2010; [Amsterdam]: Elsevier Science; Elsevier
• Subjects: Acrylamide; acrylamides; Amino acids; asparagine; Biological and medical sciences; cooking; cooking quality; Feeding. Feeding behavior; food analysis; food composition; food contamination; Food industries; Food toxicology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; odor compounds; plant nutrition; Potato; potato cultivation; potato flour; potatoes; Solanum tuberosum; Sugars; sulfur; sulfur nutrition; Sulphate fertiliser; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Volatile compounds; Potato; Acrylamide; Amino acids; Sulphate fertiliser; Volatile compounds; Sugars; Volatile compound; Heat treatment; Vegetables; Cooking; Nutrition; Tuber; Aroma; Sugar
• ISSN: 0308-8146; 1873-7072
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2010.03.049

Lack of sulphur nutrition during potato cultivation has been shown to have profound effects on tuber composition, affecting in particular the concentrations of free asparagine, other amino acids and sugars. This is important because free asparagine and sugars react at high temperatures to form acrylamide, a suspect carcinogen. Free amino acids and sugars also form a variety of other compounds associated with colour and flavour. In this study the volatile aroma compounds formed in potato flour heated at 180 °C for 20 min were compared for three varieties of potato grown, with and without sulphur fertiliser. Approximately 50 compounds were quantified in the headspace extracts of the heated flour, of which over 40 were affected by sulphur fertilisation and/or variety. Many of the 41 compounds found at higher concentrations in the sulphur-deficient flour were Strecker aldehydes and compounds formed from their condensation, whereas only one compound, benzaldehyde, behaved in the same way as did acrylamide and was found at higher concentrations in the sulphur-sufficient flour. The reasons for these effects are discussed.