• Acinetobacter was positively linked to trigonelline, cryptochlorogenic acid, and crude oil. • Wickerhamomyces correlated positively with chlorogenic and isochlorogenic acids but negatively with trigonelline. • Glycerolipids were significantly associated with Acinetobacter and Wickerhamomyces. Seed endophytes can influence coffee bean quality by modulating biochemical composition and flavor, yet their relationships with the biochemical profiles of Coffea arabica beans remain insufficiently characterized. In this study, we investigated key biochemical compounds (caffeine, chlorogenic acids, trigonelline, and crude oil), lipid profiles, and seed endophytes across six C. arabica cultivars. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry identified 3,143 lipids, which were classified into six categories, with glycerolipids (53.3%) representing the most abundant group. Sequencing analysis revealed Proteobacteria and Ascomycota as the dominant bacterial and fungal phyla in coffee seeds. Correlation analysis indicated no significant associations between the top two bacterial phyla and major biochemical components. In contrast, fungal phyla exhibited strong relationships: Ascomycota correlated positively with chlorogenic and isochlorogenic acids but negatively with trigonelline, while Basidiomycota showed the opposite trend. At the genus level, Acinetobacter was positively linked to trigonelline, cryptochlorogenic acid, and crude oil, whereas Wickerhamomyces correlated positively with chlorogenic and isochlorogenic acids but negatively with trigonelline. Lipid-microbe analyses further revealed that lipids significantly associated with Acinetobacter and Wickerhamomyces were primarily glycerolipids. These findings provide new insights into how seed-associated endophytes interact with biochemical composition and lipid metabolism in C. arabica beans. Such associations highlight the potential of microbiome-informed strategies for improving coffee flavor and nutritional value.
Wei et al. (Sun,) studied this question.