(1)H-NMR-based discrimination of thermal and vinegar treated ginseng roots.

To investigate the changes in nonvolatile metabolites of thermal and/or vinegar treated ginseng (TVG), samples prepared using various treatment conditions were analyzed using an (1)H-NMR-based metabolomics technique. The processing conditions of the ginseng in this study were 100, 140, and 180 degrees C with and without vinegar and the duration of exposure to each temperature was 10, 30, and 50 min, respectively. There was a clear separation in the score plots among various treatment conditions. Major compounds contributing to the separation of 50% methanol extracts of TVG with various process conditions were valine, lactate, alanine, arginine, glucose, fructose, and sucrose. As temperature increased, valine, arginine, glucose, fructose, and sucrose concentrations decreased, whereas lactate, glucose, and fructose increased in the vinegar-treated samples compared to non-vinegar-treated samples. The present study suggests the usefulness of an (1)H-NMR-based metabolomics approach to discriminate TVG samples, subjected to different processing conditions.