Volatile compounds are responsible for some sensory characteristics of virgin olive oil (VOO); however, they have not been studied from a nutritional point view. In this work, the effect of the simulated digestion on VOO volatile compounds responsible for green flavor was studied, analyzing their changes through the three steps of an in vitro digestion model (mouth, stomach, and small intestine). Index of recovery and bioaccessibility were determined for the main volatiles of "Picual" VOO. At end of the duodenal step, higher recoveries of ethanol, pent-1-en-3-ol, β-ocimene, and nonanal were observed. From the 10 volatile compounds analyzed, only six compounds were bioaccessible. The compounds with the highest bioaccessibility were pent-1-en-3-ol, nonanal, β-ocimene, and ethanol. The results showed for the first time the recovery and bioaccessibility of several volatile compounds present in VOO.
Keywords: bioaccessibility; in vitro digestion; virgin olive oil; volatile compounds.