Dynamic flavor formation and microbial succession during fermentation of water bamboo shoots: Insights from volatilomics and metagenomics

Abstract

This study investigated the dynamic changes in flavor compounds and microbial communities during fermented water bamboo shoot (FWBS) fermentation by integrating physicochemical analysis, electronic tongue, electronic nose, HS-SPME-GC–MS and metagenomics. These results showed that free amino acids exhibited an initial increase followed by a decrease, reaching a peak on day 5, while lactic acid accumulated rapidly as the predominant organic acid. E-tongue analysis classified FWBS fermentation into early (day1 – day 3), middle (day 5), and late stages (day 7 – day 9). A total of 76 VOCs were detected, mainly esters, phenols and alcohols. Spearman correlation analysis indicated that Lactiplantibacillus, Lactococcus, Leuconostoc, Weissella were positively correlated with 14 key VOCs (VIP > 1, OAV > 1, and P < 0.05) These findings provide new insights into the flavor formation mechanism of FWBS and establish a foundation for quality control and targeted fermentation regulation.