Multidimensional gas chromatography was used to determine ß-methyl-γ-octalactone (oak lactone) in wood extracts obtained from 30 newly felled oaks (Pedunculate, Sessile, and White) from French and American forests. Only two of the four stereoisomers of oak lactone were detected. Comparisons between trees, forests, and species revealed high variability in the levels of the two stereoisomers. Statistical analyses indicated that the wood of Sessile and American White oaks also contained significantly larger amounts of total oak lactone than the wood of Pedunculate oaks. The American White oaks were significantly richer in cis-ß-methyl-γ-octalactone than either the Pedunculate or Sessile oaks.
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Masson et al. (1995) studied this question.