Aroma compounds with enhanced sweet perception in tea infusions: Screening, characterization, and sweetening mechanism

Introduction Tea ( Camellia sinensis ) is globally consumed for its pleasant flavor, with sweetness being a key factor in evaluating tea quality. While taste compounds contribute to this sweetness, aroma also plays a significant role, but its contribution is not well understood in tea infusion. Objectives This study aimed to identify aroma compounds that enhance sweetness in tea infusion using a sensomics approach, and explore their synergistic effects through molecular docking. Results The aroma increased the sweetness of the tea infusion by more than 24.0 %. Eighteen aroma-active compounds linked to sweetness were identified, among which ( E )- β -damascenone (apple-like), linalool (citrus-like), geraniol (citrus-like), dimethyl sulfide (corn-like), ( E,E )-2,4-heptadienal (floral), ( E,Z )-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber-like), ( E )-linalool oxide (furanoid) (floral), dihydroactinidiolide (fruity), γ -nonalactone (coconut-like), and ( E )- β -ionone (floral) had higher sweetness similarity and significantly increased the sweet intensity of sucrose ( p  < 0.05). They likely enhance sweetness by reducing the binding energy of sucrose to sweet taste receptors, forming new hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. Conclusion This study provides new insights into the role of aroma compounds in tea sweetness and suggests a potential mechanism for their sweetening effect. These compounds could be used as flavour enhancers or additives to improve the sweetness of tea beverages.