Metabolism of ethyl tiglate in apple fruits leads to the formation of small amounts of (R)-ethyl 2-methylbutanoate.

(S)-Ethyl 2-methylbutanoate is an important aroma compound in apples and serves as an indicator for genuineness of apple products due to its high optical purity of greater than 98% enantiomeric excess [T. Koenig and P. Schreier, Zeitsch. Lebensm.-Unters. Forsch. A, 1999, 208, 130-133; K. Schumacher et al., J. Agric. Food Chem., 1998, 46, 4496-4500]. The origin of minor amounts of (R)-ethyl 2-methylbutanoate is unknown as naturally occurring (+)-isoleucine, the proposed precursor of (S)-ethyl 2-methylbutanoate is enantiomerically pure. Since ethyl (E)-2-methyl-2-butenoate (ethyl tiglate) was recently discovered as a natural apple constituent and hydrogenation activity in apples was demonstrated we proposed ethyl tiglate as a precursor of (R)-ethyl 2-methylbutanoate. D4-3,4,4,4-ethyl tiglate was synthesized and was injected into ripe apple fruits (cv. Golden Delicious, Red Delicious and Granny Smith). After 3, 6, and 12 days apple volatiles were isolated by solid phase extraction on XAD-2 and the metabolites formed from D4-3,4,4,4-ethyl tiglate were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, 2-methylbutyl acetate, 2-methylbutanol, and 2-methylbutanoic acid were identified as major transformation products. Chiral evaluation of the metabolites by multidimensional GC-MS revealed enantiomeric excesses ranging from 43% (S) to 30% (R) depending on the apple cultivar, sampling date and metabolite. The data show for the first time that the natural apple constituent ethyl tiglate can serve as a source for (R)-2-methylbutanol derivatives.