Abstract: In order to explore the changes in flavor nucleotide-related compounds in low-salt pickled potherb mustard during storage and transportation, a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was established to analyze the changes in the contents of flavor nucleotide-associated substances in low-salt pickled potherb mustard during storage at (25 ± 5) ℃ (J-25), (4 ± 1) ℃ (J-4), and (25 ± 5) ℃ after sterilization (M-25) or (4 ± 1) ℃ after sterilization (M-4) were analyzed. Moreover, the changes in sensory quality were monitored. The results showed that 12 compounds related to flavor nucleotides were effectively separated within 33 min. Both sterilization and cold storage inhibited the deterioration of sensory quality and flavor nucleotide-associated substances, and their combination was more effective than either alone. The contents of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and inosine monophosphate (IMP) in group M-4 were 29.7% and 66.4% of the initial values after 60 days, respectively, and the sensory quality was still acceptable. The total amount of ATP-related compounds in pickled potherb mustard stored at (25 ± 5) ℃ increased first and then decreased rapidly, and the sensory acceptance period of group J-25 was only 9 days. Both sterilization and cold storage effectively inhibited the changes of flavor nucleotides including adenosine monophosphate (AMP), guanosine monophosphate (GMP), cytidine monophosphate (CMP), uridine monophosphate (UMP) in pickled potherb mustard, and the total amount of these four flavor nucleotides in group M-4 was as high as 4.30 mg/100 g at the end of storage. Microbial metabolism in pickled potherb mustard and high temperatures accelerated the deterioration of flavor nucleotide-related compounds during storage, while sterilization and cold storage were beneficial to the maintenance of flavor nucleotide-associated compounds. The results of this study provide theoretical support for the processing and storage of low-salt pickled potherb mustard.

Key words: low-salt pickled potherb mustard; flavor nucleotide-related compounds; high performance liquid chromatography detection; storage