Agarwood wound locations provide insight into the association between fungal diversity and volatile compounds in Aquilaria sinensis

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of wound location on the fungal communities and volatile distribution of agarwood in Aquilaria sinensis . Two-dimensional gas chromatography with high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry revealed 60 compounds from the NIST library, including 25 sesquiterpenes, seven monoterpenes, two diterpenes, nine aromatics, nine alkanes and eight others. Of five agarwood types, Types IV and II contained the greatest number and concentration of sesquiterpenes, respectively. The fungal communities of the agarwood were dominated by the phylum Ascomycota and were significantly affected by the type of wound tissue. Community richness indices (observed species, Chao1, PD whole tree, ACE indices) indicated that Types I and IV harboured the most and least species-rich fungal communities, and the fungal communities of Types V, I, III and IV/II were dominated by Lasiodiplodia , Hydnellum , Phaeoisaria and Ophiocordyceps species, respectively. Correlations between fungal species and agarwood components revealed that the chemical properties of A. sinensis were associated with fungal diversity. More specifically, the dominant fungal genera of Types V, I and III ( Lasiodiplodia , Hydnellum and Phaeoisaria , respectively) were strongly correlated with specific terpenoid compounds. The finding that wound location affects the fungal communities and volatile distribution of agarwood provides insight into the formation of distinct agarwood types.

Integrating Multiple Omics Identifies Phaeoacremonium rubrigenum Acting as Aquilaria sinensis Marker Fungus to Promote Agarwood Sesquiterpene Accumulation by Inducing Plant Host Phosphorylation

“…Agarwood is a resinous and fragrant wood that is an essential ingredient of some exclusive perfumes and is extensively used as medicine and incense across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe ( 3 , 4 ). The annual global agarwood market is valued at 6 to 8 billion USD, not including the proportion of unrecorded trade ( 5 , 6 ).…”

Aquilaria Species (Thymelaeaceae) Distribution, Volatile and Non-Volatile Phytochemicals, Pharmacological Uses, Agarwood Grading System, and Induction Methods

“…The dimeric 2-(2-phenylethyl) chromones of agarwood lead to the identification by structure. Liu et al [27] isolated different kinds of 2-(2-phenylethyl) chromones from agarwood. Mei et al [28] analyzed the extracts by GC-MS after extracting high-quality agarwood with ether, and found that the relative content of 2-(2-phenylethyl) chromone compounds was 60% in high-quality agarwood.…”

Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Advances in Technology and Applications: Biennial Update

“…A key fragrance raw material and essential oils have many applications and may possess biochemical activity. Among the GC×GC applications on plant essential oils and volatiles, a highlighted topic was the analysis of woody-scented ,− essential oils and fragrance ingredients, such as agarwood, guaiacwood, and vetiveryl acetate.…”

“…Agarwood composition was investigated in two works , using GC×GC. A three-dimensional approach (GC–GC×GC) was used by Yan et al to resolve oxygenated sesquiterpenes of this oleoresin, in which the system configuration was described previously (Higher Dimension Separation section).…”

“…Around 20 peaks were observed in this 4 min sesquiterpene fraction, being tentatively identified by the authors. In the second study, Liu et al 133 used GC×GC−TOFMS to analyze five different agarwood oil samples, establishing a relationship between the volatile components and the plant's fungal diversity. A total of 60 compounds were tentatively identified, with sesquiterpenes being the major chemical class.…”