A comparative metabolomics study on two fresh edible lilies for vegetable: Lilium brownii var. viridulum and Lilium davidii var. unicolor

Lily has been frequently used as food or medicine. Lilium brownii var. viridulum (L. brownii) and L. davidii var. unicolor are mainstream fresh edible species for vegetable. To investigate the differences between two varieties, free sugars, organic acids analysis and untargeted metabolomics were conducted. Thirty-one differential phytochemicals were annotated via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry, which mainly enriched in amino acids and carbohydrates metabolic pathways. Seven phytochemicals, daidzin, isomaltulose, melibiose, melezitose, isorubijervosine, trigonelline and lycoperoside-D, were identified in lily for the first time. Compared with L. brownii, the contents of sugars and glutamine were higher, the bitter amino acids arginine, tyrosine, and alkaloids were lower in L. davidii var. unicolor. Meanwhile, the higher abundance of ferulic acid and p-coumaric acid presented sour rather than bitter taste in L. davidii var. unicolor. The results will provide new insights into the differences between L. brownii and L. davidii var. unicolor.