A novel strategy for rapid identification of the fruits of Illicium verum and Illicium anisatum using electronic nose and tongue technology

Purpose: To develop an effective and rapid strategy for the identification of fruits of I. verum and I. anisatum based on their odor and taste.Methods: Electronic nose (E-nose) and electronic tongue (E-tongue) technology was used to identify the fruits of I. verum (FIV) and I. anisatum (FIA). Samples of FIA, FIV, and FIA : FIV mixtures in different proportions (1 : 3, 1 : 1, and 3 : 1) were prepared to evaluate the identification abilities of E-nose and Etongue methods. Samples were powdered and sifted through a standard sieve (aperture size 355 ± 13 μm) for E-nose analysis. Each sample was refluxed with water for 1 h before E-tongue analysis. The acquired data were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant factor analysis (DFA).Results: Based on the signals acquired by E-nose and E-tongue analyses, a total of 90 data points each were used for PCA. The three principal component values for E-nose analysis were PC1 = 93.89 %, PC2 = 6.08 %, and PC3 = 0.03 %, and those for E-tongue analysis were PC1 = 98.72 %, PC2 = 0.68 %, and PC3 = 0.57 %. The sample data were significantly divided into two groups representing FIV and FIA. Furthermore, E-nose and E-tongue assessments combined with PCA and DFA analyses effectively identified FIV, FIA and their mixtures.Conclusion: The use of E-nose and E-tongue technology is an effective and rapid strategy to identify the fruits of I. verum and I. anisatum and their mixtures. This strategy may also offer an effective method for detection of adulterants.Keywords: Illicium verum, Illicium anisatum, Discrimination, Electronic nose, Electronic tongue, Safety, Principal component analysis, Discriminant factor analysi