## 1 Introduction  
Muskmelons (_Cucunis melo_ L.), including cantaloupe and honeydew melons, belong to the family Cucurbitaaceae and are likely originated in Asia [1]. The United States (US) ranks first in the per capita consumption of melons as a fresh fruit [2]. The average American consumes \(\sim\)13 kg of melon each year [3]. The most important melon traits associated with consumer preference are flavor, color, aroma, texture, juiciness, phytountrients, and sweetness [4, 5, 6].  
Sweetness and phytontutrient contents of melons are important quality attributes. Glucose, sucrose, and fructose make up the total sugar content (\(\sim\)97%) of melons. Sucrose accumulates as the major sugar (\(\sim\)50%) during ripening, with lower levels of fructose and glucose [7]. Muskmelons also have a large number of bioactive compounds such as folic acid, vitamin A (\(\beta\)-carotene), vitamin C (ascorbic acid), L-citrulline (a non-essential amino acid), and micronutrient elements such as iron, magnesium, and potassium [5, 8]. These phytontutrients have numerous health-promoting properties such as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antioxidant, anticancer, diuretic, antimicrobial, and antidiabetic activities [9, 10, 11].  
Therefore, melon breeders have focused on producing improved melon cultivars with high sugar levels and enhanced phytonutrient contents.  
In addition to sugar and phytonutrients, horticultural breeding programs have focused on long shelf life and improved food safety, especially for melons [12]. Indeed, the 2011 cantaloupe-related foodborne illness outbreak caused by Listeria monocytogenes was the deadliest outbreak in recent US history and caused a 32% reduction in the production of melons in the past decade. In addition, 43 outbreaks were associated with cantaloupe between 1998 and 2018 [13; 14; 15; 16]. Plant volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have antimicrobial properties and help protect fruits against decay microorganisms [17]. Phytochemicals, including a wide range of VOCs, contribute to flavor and have been used as natural alternatives to improve the shelf life and safety of food [18]. Melon breeding programs aim to enhance the sustainability and profitability of melon production in the US by concentrating on consumer preferences and industry-driven needs. Therefore, exploration of melon VOC profiles provides key information for breeding programs aimed at producing safe, high-quality melons.  
Ongoing research on melon VOCs has identified around 291 volatile compounds [19]. The key contributors to the total VOCs are esters, aldehydes, and ketones, along with smaller quantities of alcohols, sesquiterpenes, and sulfur-containing compounds [20; 21; 22]. These research programs have used various analytical techniques to identify and measure VOCs, including dynamic headspace extraction [23], stir bar sorptive technique [24], and solid phase microextraction (SPME) [25; 26]. Head space (HS) [27] is a simple, solvent-free method for extraction and concentration of volatile compounds, combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). We used this technique to analyze the VOCs in various citrus fruits [28; 29].  
Although several studies have evaluated the VOCs from melon cultivars [26; 30; 31], our knowledge of the VOC profiles in breeding lines of melon remains limited. Therefore, this study aimed to (a) characterize the VOCs from 28 melon breeding lines, (b) improve our knowledge about the aroma profile and VOC composition of various breeding lines, and (c) elucidate the relationship between volatile compounds and flavor, antimicrobial properties, and sugars. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report pertaining to elucidation of volatiles from different melon breeding lines.