Volatile Fingerprinting and Regional Differentiation of Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) Using GC–IMS Combined with OPLS-DA

This study aimed to systematically characterize the volatile organic compound (VOC) pro- files of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) from eight major production regions, providing a scientific basis for quality evaluation and geographical traceability. VOC profiling was conducted using gas chromatography–ion mobility spectrometry (GC–IMS), and regional differences were assessed through multivariate statistical analyses, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Orthogonal Partial Least...