Abstract: Nitraria and Black wolfberry are characteristic berries in Northwest China. They are not only crucial to local ecological protection, but also become important resources in the field of food and health because of their rich nutrients and unique flavor. In order to explore the characteristics of metabolic components in two characteristic wild berries of Nitraria and Black wolfberry in Qaidam Basin, the non-volatile and volatile substances of the two berries were identified and screened based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-QTOF-MS）, gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry （GC-IMS） and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry（GC-MS）. The results showed that the reducing sugar contents of Nitraria was 196.46 g / L, which was significantly higher than that of Black wolfberry. The titratable acid contents of Nitraria was 3.43 g / L, and the total phenol contents were 7.03 mg / g, which was significantly lower than that of Black wolfberry. The main monomer phenolic compounds in Nitraria and Black wolfberry were flavonoids. The characteristic monomer phenolic compounds in Nitraria were albiflorin, dicoumarin and paeoniflorin. The characteristic monomer phenols in Black wolfberry are naringin, phlorizin, proanthocyanidin B1, etc. The characteristic volatile substances of Nitraria were ethyl 3-methylbutyrate, ethyl hexanoate, isovaleric acid, farnesol, ( - ) -4-terpineol, linalool, L-rose oxide. The aroma characteristics of fruity, floral and cheese flavor were prominent; The characteristic volatile substances of Black wolfberry were methyl octanoate, 1-octen-3-ol, ( E ) -3-hexen-1-ol, ( Z ) -3-hexen-1-ol, decanal, nonanal, nerol, citronellol, D-limonene. The aroma characteristics of flower, fruit, grass, mushroom and soil were prominent. After screening, identification and statistical analysis, the top ten compounds with significant differences in the non-volatile substances of the two berries were histidine, myricetin 3-glucoside, proline, iridone 4 ' -glucoside, 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid, isovalerylglutamic acid, caffeic acid, 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, isorhamnetin-3-glucoside and peoniflorin 3-O-glucoside. The results of this study can provide a theoretical basis for the development and utilization of differentiated high-value products of two characteristic berries of Nitraria and Black wolfberry.

Key words: Nitraria, Black wolfberry, Quality, Non-targeted metabolomics