Geranyl 6-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside isolated as an aroma precursor from leaves of a green tea cultivar.

A new glycosidic aroma precursor was isolated from green tea leaves (Camellia sinensis var. sinensis cv. Yabukita) along with the known primeverosides of cis-linalool 3,6-oxide, linalool and geraniol. These glycosides were separated by chromatographic isolation on Amberlite XAD-2, ODS flash chromatography, and finally HPLC. The chemical structure of the new unknown glycoside was confirmed as geranyl 6-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside (geranyl beta-vicianoside) by spectrometric analyses and by an enzymatic hydrolysis with glycosidase followed by GC-MS and HPLC analyses. Moreover the vicianoside was hydrolyzed with acetone powder obtained from fresh tea leaves to generate the same compounds, suggesting this glycoside to be a tea aroma precursor.