## 3 Results and Discussion
### Integrated Metabolomics and Flavoromics of Germinated Sacha Inchi Seeds
A decrease in FAMEs has also been reported in germinated rice [26], barley [11] and mung bean [12]. During germination, triacylglycer levels are hydrolyzed by lipase into FFAs and glycerol, and then hydrolyzed fatty acids are degraded into glycosylomes by \(\beta\)-oxidation. Fatty acids are oxidized to carbon dioxide and water, producing energy for the germination and biosynthesis of new compounds. Therefore, palmitic, stearic, linoleic, linolenic, and oleic acids can be used as energy sources during embryo development in germinating sacha inchi. In addition, LOX is the main pathway to mobilize lipids during germination [27]. We found 10 FFAs, 2 fatty alcohols, and 5 sterols during germination. The FFA content was the highest at 2 DAG, and then significantly dropped followed by a slight increase. Linolenic acid had the highest concentration at 2 DAG (~27-fold), followed by oleic (13-fold), and linoleic (9-fold) acids, compared to ungerminated sacha inchi seeds. The increase in major FFAs at the beginning stage in the present study was similar to related research. [PERSON] et al. (2015) [19] reported that the major unsaturated fatty acids content increased at the beginning stage (3-10 days after germination), followed by a slight decrease during the germination course of sacha inchi. Under the different conditions on germination such as temperature, moisture, and germination time may influence lipid degradation rates [11] in germinated sacha inchi. At the beginning of germination, triacylglycerlevels are hydrolyzed by lipases into FFAs. Then, the FFAs are distributed into the mitochondrial matrix and degraded to acetyl-CoA by oxidation, which is then processed in the Krebs and glyoxylate cycles [28]. The fatty alcohol content in germinated sacha inchi seeds showed a relatively small change compared to ungerminated seeds: 9,12-OH 18:0 showed the highest concentration at 0 DAG and 12-OH 18:1 at 4 DAG. Figure 3: Dendrogram (similarity mode of agglomerative hierarchical clustering) of germinated sacha inchi seeds at different germination times (\(p\leq 0.05\)). DAG, days after germination. The changes in sterol levels during germination were relatively small, with a higher concentration at 0 DAG than at other days. The \(\Delta\)7-campestanol and sitosterol levels significantly changed during germination, similar to germination in wheat [29]. Figure 4: Heat plots of metabolites (**A**) and flavor compounds (**B**) in sacha inchi seeds at different germination times. FAME, fatty acid methyl ester; FFA, free fatty acid; DAG, days after germination. Six sugars (fructose, glucose, sorbitol, myo-inositol, sucrose, and trehalose) were found. Between 0 DAG and 2 DAG, the disaccharide sucrose level rapidly dropped, but drastically increased later. Similar results were seen in germinating mangosteen [14]. Fructose, glucose, sorbitol, myo-inositol, and trehalose increased up to 6 DAG and gradually declined later. The fructose content changed from 0 DAG to 8 DAG. The increase in mono- and disaccharides during germination might suggest that carbohydrates and sugars are hydrolyzed to simple molecules at the beginning of germination to provide germinating energy for sacha inchi [30]. During seed growth, sacha inchi could continue to collect soluble sugars until late maturation. The consumption of soluble sugars during initial germination might have been affected by glycolysis and the TCA cycle. In organic mung bean, sugar accumulation during germination might be due to the degradation of starch in the endosperm via glycolysis, which provides the main energy source for germination [31]. During germination, enzymes (proteinases, oligopeptide, peptidase, and aminopeptides) hydrolyze storage proteins in the endosperm into amino acids [15]. In germinating rice, the protease pathway is the main pathway for degradation of storage proteins into free amino acids [32]. We identified 22 metabolic acids in germinating sacha inchi seeds, including 17 amino and 5 organic acids.