Biological pathways for the formation of oxygen-containing aroma compounds

While sulfur- and nitrogen-containing aroma compounds are often considered to be more potent than oxygen-containing aroma compounds, oxygen-containing aroma compounds are widely distributed in foods and often make a very significant contribution to aroma. This is true across food categories including raw plant materials, fermented, and thermally processed foods. Wide arrays of oxygenated aroma compounds (e.g. acids, alcohols, aldehydes, furans, pyrans, lactones, etc.) have sufficiently low sensory thresholds and defined characters to be important aroma contributors. This paper will discuss some of the biological pathways leading to both the most abundant and some of the more potent oxygenated aroma compounds.