Abstract: In order to investigate the differences in chemical compositions between Yunnan white tea and Fuding white tea, 9 Yunnan white tea samples and 6 Fuding white tea samples were studied by ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole orbitrap mass spectrometer (UHPLC-Q-Exactive/MS) combined with sensory evaluation to analyze the non-volatile chemical components of white tea in two places. A total of 109 compounds were structurally identified in this study, including catechins, dimeric catechins, flavonoid glycosides (flavone/flavonol-O-glycosides and flavone/flavonol-C-glycosides), N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidinone-substituted flavan-3-ols (EPSFs), amino acids, phenolic acids, organic acids, alkaloids, lipids, et al. The partial least squares discriminant analysis and heatmap analysis show that there were distinct differences in the chemical components between Yunnan white tea and Fuding white tea. A total of 46 compounds showed significant differences between groups (P<0.05). The contents of epicatechins, dimericcatechins, flavonoid glycosides (kaempferol-3-galactoside, quercetin-3-glucoside, etc.), phenolic acids, organic acids, and lipids were relatively high in Yunnan white tea; while the contents of nonepicatechins, flavonoid glycosides (quercetin-3-galactoside, myricetin-3-galactoside, etc.), amino acids and alkaloids were relatively higher in Fuding white tea, which was speculated to be related with tea cultivars and drying processes. This study provided a theoretical basis for the understanding and recognition of the difference in the chemical substance and flavor quality of different white tea between two places, as well as the identification of white tea origins.

Key words: Yunnan white tea, Fuding white tea, metabolomics, LC-MS, chemical composition