Identification of main metabolites correlated with the sensory attributes of Diospyros kaki. cv. "Taishuu" through a large-scale comprehensive analysis by sensory evaluation, electronic tongue and metabolomics

Diospyros kaki. cv. "Taishuu" is currently the most popular sweet persimmon variety globally. However, the metabolic causes for the differences in taste are unknown due to the lack of a comprehensive investigation of the metabolites in sweet persimmon fruit. Therefore, we selected more than 2500 fruits of Taishuu sweet persimmon from 35 orchards across China, established sensory evaluation standards for the taste quality of Taishuu sweet persimmon, clarified that flavor was the main factor affecting its comprehensive taste, and further concluded that richness was the main factor affecting its flavor. Metabolomics technology was used to find the differential metabolites affecting the taste of Taishuu sweet persimmon, to find the differential metabolites of each index of the electronic tongue, and to identify 50 differential metabolites affecting the flavor, mainly amino acids. All metabolites were analyzed using WGCNA and 23 common metabolites were found. This study provides a basis for the quality improvement of Taishuu sweet persimmon.