Analysis of the relationship between VEGF, NLRP3 inflammatory complex, EPO levels, and ocular hemodynamics in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma.

OBJECTIVE: Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), NOD-like receptor thermal protein domain associated protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammatory complex, erythropoietin (EPO) levels, and ocular hemodynamics in patients diagnosed with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). METHODS: This is a prospective observational study. Patients diagnosed with POAG at The Sixth Hospital of Wuhan hospital between November 2022 and February 2023were enrolled.The patients were categorized into three groups based on the average visual field defect (mean deviation, MD) value: severe injury group (MD > 12 dB, 93 cases), moderate injury group (7 ≤ MD ≤ 12 dB, 89 cases), and mild injury group (MD < 7 dB, 85 cases). The levels of VEGF, NLRP3 inflammatory complex, EPO, and ocular hemodynamics were compared among the groups. Furthermore, the relationship between VEGF, NLRP3, EPO levels, and ocular hemodynamics in patients with POAG was analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis. After adjusting for confounding factors such as age and gender, multivariate Logistic regression analysis was performed with the ocular hemodynamics indexes being used as dependent variables, and VEGF, NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1, and EPO being used as independent variables. RESULTS: A total of267 patients with POAG were enrolled. There were no significant differences in sex, age, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, smoking, alcohol consumption, and blood glucose between the two groups (P > 0.05). The levels of NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1, and EPO in the severe and moderate injury groups were higher than those in the mild injury group, whereas the VEGF levels were lower in the severe and moderate groups compared to the mild group, showing significant differences (P < 0.05). The severe group exhibited higher levels of NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1, and EPO than the moderate group, while the VEGF levels were lower in the severe group compared to the moderate group, showing significant differences (P < 0.05). The peak systolic velocity(PSV) and resistance index (RI) were higher in the severe and moderate groups than in the mild group, whereas the EDV was significantly lower in the severe and moderate groups compared to the mild group (P < 0.05). The severe group exhibited higher PSV and RI values compared to the moderate group, while the EDV was lower in the severe group compared to the moderate group, showing significant differences (P < 0.05). Pearson correlation analysis was performed to examine the relationship between VEGF, NLRP3, EPO levels, and ocular hemodynamics in patients with POAG. VEGF, NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1, and EPO showed positive correlations with PSV and RI, and negative correlations with EDV in patients with POAG. Regression analysis showed that VEGF, NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1 and EPO were significantly correlated with ocular hemodynamics in POAG (all P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: We demonstrated that the levels of VEGF, NLRP3 inflammatory complex, and EPO were highly associated with ocular hemodynamics in patients diagnosed with POAG.

Dynamic changes of tenderness, moisture and protein in marinated chicken: the effect of different steaming temperatures.

BACKGROUND: The steam processing characteristics of chicken are a key factor in the simplicity and versatility of steamed chicken dishes. The aim of this study was to investigate in depth the changes in tenderness and water retention of marinated chicken at different slow steaming endpoint temperatures, and to further explore the effect of the evolution of protein conformations on the water status. RESULTS: The results showed that chicken samples' shear force peaked at 80 °C and decreased rapidly at 90 °C. As the steaming endpoint temperature increased between 50 and 90 °C, T21, T22, moisture content and centrifugal loss decreased, but P21, P22 and myofibril water-holding capacity showed regular changes. The electrophoretic bands and protein conformation changes showed that protein in marinated chicken underwent different degrees of denaturation, degradation and aggregation. And at 70 °C, with an increase of hydrophobic groups and crosslinking of disulfide bonds as well as an increase in the number of denatured sarcoplasmic proteins, the intermolecular network was enhanced, thus affecting the water retention. CONCLUSION: Water status of chicken meat heated at different steaming temperatures is closely related to the evolution of protein conformations. The present study serves as a robust theoretical foundation for enhancing the quality of steamed chicken products at an industrial scale. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

Identifying High-Quality Non-Instrumental Dysphagia Screening Tools for Detection of Adult Dysphagia Case in Acute-Care Settings: A Systematic Review.

INTRODUCTION: As patients nowadays tend to have multiple diseases and complex medical histories, our aim was to identify high-quality, non-instrumental dysphagia screening tools used for the detection of adult dysphagia cases in all disease categories in acute-care settings. METHOD: A literature search was conducted in five databases from each database's earliest inception to 31 July 2021 and guided by five keywords: 'dysphagia', 'deglutition', 'screening', 'test' and 'measure'. Without limiting the search in any specific disease category, reviewers assessed original studies and identified tools if they had been validated against instrumental evaluations and if they had been designed as a pass-fail procedure to screen whether dysphagia is absent or present. We further excluded any tool if it was (1) for pediatric focus, or (2) a patient self-report questionnaire. All final tool candidates underwent a methodological quality appraisal using the Revised Tool for the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2). RESULT: Out of 195 studies with 165 tools identified, 20 tool candidates underwent QUADAS-2 review. We found six high-quality, non-instrumental screening tools for detecting adult dysphagia cases in acute-care settings, including the Yale Swallow Protocol, Gugging Swallowing Screen, Toronto Bedside Swallowing Screening Test (both English and Portuguese versions), Sapienza Global Bedside Evaluation of Swallowing and Two-Step Thickened Water Test. These high-quality tools were developed primarily for patients with stroke. Only Yale Swallow Protocol was originally tested for heterogeneous populations with stroke, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, oesophageal surgery, neurosurgery and head-and-neck cancer. CONCLUSIONS: The results highlight the gap in the unavailability of high-quality dysphagia screening tool in several emerged high-risk populations including elderly inpatients, or patients following endotracheal extubation. Further research is needed to determine whether these six tools can be effectively applied across different high-risk populations in acute-care settings to screen for cases finding.

Glycosylation modification: A promising strategy for regulating the functionalities of myofibrillar proteins.

Myofibrillar proteins (MPs), the most important proteins in muscle, play a vital role in the texture, flavor, sensory and consumer acceptance of final muscle-based food products. Over the past several decades, conjugation of carbohydrates to MPs via glycosylation is of particular interest due to the substantial enhancement in MPs characteristics. Studying the covalent interactions between carbohydrates and MPs under various processing conditions and molecular mechanisms by which carbohydrates affect the functionalities of MPs can introduce new perspectives for design and production of muscle-based foods. However, there is no insightful and comprehensive summary of the structural, physicochemical and functional characteristics changes of MPs induced by glycosylation modification and how these changes can be adopted to potentially promote the science-based development of tailor-made muscle foods. Based on this, the functionalities of MPs as well as their practical limiting issues are initially highlighted. A comprehensive overview of fabrication strategies is then introduced. Additionally, changes in the structural and functional properties of MPs regulated by glycosylation have also been carefully summarized. On this basis, the research limitations to be solved and our perspectives for the future development of muscle-based foods are put forward.

Structural and Genetic Identification of the O-Antigen from an Escherichia coli Isolate, SD2019180, Representing a Novel Serogroup.

The O-antigen is one of the outermost surface components of Gram-negative bacteria. Its large structural variation provides the molecular basis for bacterial serological diversity. Here, we established the structure of the O-antigen from an Escherichia coli strain, SD2019180, which appeared to be completely different from the known E. coli serogroups. The O-antigen tetrasaccharide biological repeating unit was identified as → 2)-[ß-d-GlcpA-(1 → 4)]-[α-d-Galp-(1 → 3)]-α-l-Fucp-(1 → 3)-α-d-GlcpNAc-(1 →. Furthermore, we analyzed the O-antigen gene cluster of SD2019180 and confirmed its role in O-antigen synthesis by using deletion and complementation experiments. Our findings indicate that SD2019180 is a novel serogroup of Escherichia coli.

A new approach for reducing pollutants level: a longitudinal cohort study of physical exercises in young people.

BACKGROUND: The present study aimed to evaluate the elimination of three common pollutants (dimethoate, benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) and bisphenol A (BPA) by different physical exercises and to assess the possible factors which could affect the pollutants elimination. METHODS: A total of 200 individuals who chose different kinds of exercises in accordance to their own wish were recruited. The levels of urinary pollutants were measured using ß-glucuronidase hydrolysis followed by a high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry-based method. RESULTS: Totally, the levels of dimethoate, BaP and BPA were reduced after physical exercises. However, the elimination of BaP in male was higher than that in female but the elimination of BPA in female was higher than that in male. Multivariate logistic regression showed that the degree of heart rate (HR) change was a protective factor affecting the improvement effect of dimethoate, BaP and BPA while BMI (body mass index) was a risk factor. Nevertheless, sex was a risk factor affecting the improvement of dimethoate and BaP but had a lower efficacy on BPA improvement. CONCLUSION: The present findings indicate that physical exercises can be considered as a novel approach to eliminate pollutants level in human body and can also give suggestions for choosing specific physical exercises to male and female individuals. Moreover, those who are with higher BMI need to lose weight before eliminating pollutant level through physical exercises.

Storage Stability and In Vitro Bioaccessibility of Liposomal Betacyanins from Red Pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus).

In order to address the poor stability of the betacyanins from red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus, HP), which are considered as good sources of natural colorant, liposomal-encapsulation technique was applied in this study. Thin-layer dispersion method was employed to prepare HP betacyacnin liposomes (HPBL). The formulation parameters for HPBL were optimized, and the characteristics, stability, and release profile of HPBL in in vitro gastrointestinal systems were evaluated.Results showed that an HP betacyanin encapsulation efficiency of 93.43 ± 0.11% was obtained after formulation optimization. The HPBL exhibited a narrow size distribution of particle within a nanometer range and a strong electronegative ζ-potential. By liposomal encapsulation, storage stability of HP betacyanin was significantly enhanced in different storage temperatures. When the environmental pH ranged from 4.3-7.0, around 80% of HP betacyanins were preserved on Day 21 with the liposomal protection. The loss of 2,2'-Diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activity and color deterioration of HPBL were developed in accordance with the degradation of HP betacyanins during storage. In in vitro gastrointestinal digestion study, with the protection of liposome, the retention rates of HP betacyanins in vitro were enhanced by 14% and 40% for gastric and intestinal digestion, respectively.This study suggested that liposomal encapsulation was an effective approach to stabilize HP betacyanins during storage and gastrointestinal digestion, but further investigations were needed to better optimize the liposomal formulation and understand the complex liposomal system.

Urinary levels of dimethoate, bisphenol A and benzo[a]pyrene in first-year students of Hohai University from different geographical regions.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to detect the urinary levels of dimethoate, benzo(a) pyrene (BaP), and bisphenol A (BPA) in first-year Hohai University students with different geographic origins. METHODS: First-morning urine samples were collected from 540 healthy freshmen aged 17 to 19 years. Chemical levels were measured using ß-glucuronidase hydrolysis followed by a high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-based method. Geometric means (GMs) of these three chemicals are presented by body mass index (BMI) and location in a volume-based and creatinine-standardized way. RESULTS: GM concentrations of omethoate, BPA and 3-OHBaP were 9.47 µg/L (10.80 µg/g creatinine), 3.54 µg/L (4.04 µg/g creatinine) and 0.34 ng/L (0.39 ng/g creatinine), respectively. The GM concentration of omethoate in males was significantly higher than that in females. The individuals with a BMI higher than 23.9 had higher GM concentrations of omethoate, BPA, and 3-OHBaP. The inhabitants of Southwest China had significantly lower GM concentrations of omethoate, BPA, and 3-OHBaP than those who lived in other locations in China. CONCLUSION: The average level of environmental chemical accumulation in freshmen is lower in Southwest China and differs in youth who live in different regions. In addition, obesity is correlated with higher toxin levels in youth.

Structural Determination and Genetic Identification of the O-Antigen from an Escherichia coli Strain, LL004, Representing a Novel Serogroup.

The O-antigen is the outermost component of the lipopolysaccharide layer in Gram-negative bacteria, and the variation of O-antigen structure provides the basis for bacterial serological diversity. Here, we determined the O-antigen structure of an Escherichia coli strain, LL004, which is totally different from all of the E. coli serogroups. The tetrasaccharide repeating unit was determined as →4)-ß-d-Galp-(1→3)-ß-d-GlcpNAc6OAc(~70%)-(1→3)-ß-d-GalpA-(1→3)-ß-d-GalpNAc-(1→ with monosaccharide analysis and NMR spectra. We also characterized the O-antigen gene cluster of LL004, and sequence analysis showed that it correlated well with the O-antigen structure. Deletion and complementation testing further confirmed its role in O-antigen biosynthesis, and indicated that the O-antigen of LL004 is assembled via the Wzx/Wzy dependent pathway. Our findings, in combination, suggest that LL004 should represent a novel serogroup of E. coli.

Evaluation of the Relationship among Biogenic Amines, Nitrite and Microbial Diversity in Fermented Mustard.

Biogenic amines (BAs) and nitrites are both considered harmful compounds for customer health, and are closely correlated with the microorganisms in fermented mustard (FM). In this study, BAs and nitrite contents in fifteen FM samples from different brands were analyzed. The concentrations of cadaverine in one sample and of histamine in one sample were above the toxic level. Moreover, five FM samples contained a high level of nitrite, exceeding the maximum residue limit (20 mg/kg) suggested by the National Food Safety Standard. Then, this study investigated bacterial and fungal communities by high-throughput sequencing analysis. Firmicutes and Basidiomycota were identified as the major bacteria and fungi phylum, respectively. The correlations among microorganisms, BAs and nitrite were analyzed. Typtamine showed a positive correlation with Lactobacillus and Pseudomonas. Cadaverine and nitrite is positively correlated with Leuconostoc. Furthermore, thirteen strains were selected from the samples to evaluate the accumulation and degradation properties of their BAs and nitrite. The results indicated that the Lactobacillus isolates, including L. plantarum GZ-2 and L. brevis SC-2, can significantly reduce BAs and nitrite in FM model experiments. This study not only assessed the contents of BAs and nitrite in FM samples, but also provided potential starter cultures for BAs and nitrite control in the FM products industry.

Modification of myofibrillar protein functional properties prepared by various strategies: A comprehensive review.

Today, both consumers and food industry producers have exhibited an ever-growing interest in improving and broadening the functional performance of proteins in food industry. Myofibrillar protein (MP) is mainly responsible for texture, yield and organoleptic characteristics of final meat products. To increase functional properties of MP, technological and nutritional improvement of MP is needed to modify its structure and functionalities. Considerable approaches, including additives, oxidation treatments, and novel food processing technologies, have been utilized to modify its functional properties to manufacture acceptable meat products with lower cost and more desirable nutritional characteristics. However, a comprehensive summary of structural and functional changes of MP in response to different modification strategies is still lacking. Hence, in this review paper, our main goal is first to provide an overview of the functional characteristics of MP. Then, this review will mainly discuss the current knowledge on the functional changes of MP caused by various modification methods and will present some examples of previous works and recent progress. Finally, future outlooks are presented to tailor the manufacture of functionality enhanced and value-added muscle-based products and enable modified MP can be applied as a novel meat ingredient in food industry.

Diversity of avian influenza A(H5N6) viruses in wild birds in southern China.

The predominance of H5N6 in ducks and continuous human cases have heightened its potential threat to public health in China. Therefore, the detection of emerging variants of H5N6 avian influenza viruses has become a priority for pandemic preparedness. Questions remain as to its origin and circulation within the wild bird reservoir and interactions at the wild-domestic interface. Samples were collected from migratory birds in Poyang Lake, Jiangxi Province, PR China during the routine bird ring survey in 2014-16. Phylogenetic and coalescent analyses were conducted to uncover the evolutionary relationship among viruses circulating in wild birds. Here, we report the potential origin and phylogenetic diversity of H5N6 viruses isolated from wild birds in Poyang Lake. Sequence analyses indicated that Jiangxi H5N6 viruses most likely evolved from Eurasian-derived H5Nx and H6N6 viruses through multiple reassortment events. Crucially, the diversity of the HA gene implies that these Jiangxi H5N6 viruses have diverged into two primary clades - clade 2.3.4.4 and clade 2.3.2.1 c. Phylogenetic analysis revealed two independent pathways of reassortment during 2014-16 that might have facilitated the generation of emerging variants within wild bird populations as well as inter-species infections. Our findings contribute to our understanding of the genetic diversification of H5N6 viruses in the wild bird population. These results highlight the necessity of large-scale surveillance of wild birds in the Poyang Lake area to address the threat of regional epizootic epidemics and attendant pandemics.

Effects of a swallowing and oral care intervention for patients following endotracheal extubation: a pre- and post-intervention study.

BACKGROUND: For patients who survive a critical illness and have their oral endotracheal tube removed, dysphagia is highly prevalent, and without intervention, it may persist far beyond hospital discharge. This pre- and post-intervention study with historical controls tested the effects of a swallowing and oral care (SOC) intervention on patients' time to resume oral intake and salivary flow following endotracheal extubation. METHODS: The sample comprised intensive care unit patients (≥ 50 years) successfully extubated after ≥ 48 h endotracheal intubation. Participants who received usual care (controls, n = 117) were recruited before 2015, and those who received usual care plus the intervention (n = 54) were enrolled after 2015. After extubation, all participants were assessed by a blinded nurse for daily intake status (21 days) and whole-mouth unstimulated salivary flow (2, 7, 14 days). The intervention group received the nurse-administered SOC intervention, comprising toothbrushing/salivary gland massage, oral motor exercise, and safe-swallowing education daily for 14 days or until hospital discharge. RESULTS: The intervention group received 8.3 ± 4.2 days of SOC intervention, taking 15.4 min daily with no reported adverse event (coughing, wet voice, or decreased oxygen saturation) during and immediately after intervention. Participants who received the intervention were significantly more likely than controls to resume total oral intake after extubation (aHR 1.77, 95% CI 1.08-2.91). Stratified by age group, older participants (≥ 65 years) in the SOC group were 2.47-fold more likely than their younger counterparts to resume total oral intake (aHR 2.47, 95% CI 1.31-4.67). The SOC group also had significantly higher salivary flows 14 days following extubation (ß = 0.67, 95% CI 0.29-1.06). CONCLUSIONS: The nurse-administered SOC is safe and effective, with greater odds of patients' resuming total oral intake and increased salivary flows 14 days following endotracheal extubation. Age matters with SOC; it more effectively helped participants ≥ 65 years old resume total oral intake postextubation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02334774, registered on January 08, 2015.

Effect of ethyl oleate pretreatment on blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.): drying kinetics, antioxidant activity, and structure of wax layer.

Blueberry belongs to the genus vaccinium, which is rich in a variety of biologically active components beneficial to the human body. Drying of blueberry is a slow and energy-intensive process because of its waxy skin, which has low permeability to moisture. Therefore, chemical pretreatment of ethyl oleate (AEEO) was adopted to accelerate moisture diffusivity. The results showed that the drying rate of blueberries was increased significantly by AEEO treatment, and the drying time can be shortened by 17.17-40.70%. After AEEO dipping, the effective diffusion coefficient increased from 5.461 × 10-9 to 1.067 × 10-8 m2/s at 60 °C. Six semi-theoretical thin-layer models were used to estimate the curves of air-drying of blueberry, and Wang-Singh model was found to perform better than other models. Besides, the rehydration and retention of nutritional contents were also improved by AEEO dipping. The total phenolics, total flavonoids, total anthocyanin content, and ABTS*+ scavenging activity of blueberry were increased by 37.74%, 21.01%, 47.83%, and 30.75%, respectively. The result of SEM observation and cell-membrane permeability indicated that AEEO could break down the wax layer of blueberry, change the crystal structure of wax layer, and increase cell permeability, which resulted in shorter drying time and higher quality of blueberry.

Determination of the activity of telomerase in cancer cells by using BSA-protected gold nanoclusters as a fluorescent probe.

Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) protected with a bovine serum albumin (BSA) coating are known to emit red fluorescence (peaking at 650 nm) on photoexcitation with ultraviolet light (365 nm). On addition of Cu(II) ions, fluorescence is quenched because Cu(II) complexes certain amino acid units in the BSA chain. Fluorescence is, however, restored if pyrophosphate (PPi) is added because it will chelate Cu(II) and remove it from the BSA coating on the AuNCs. Because PPi is involved in the function of telomerase, the BSA@AuNCs loaded with Cu(II) can act as a fluorescent probe for determination of the activity of telomerase. A fluorescent assay was worked out for telomerase that is highly sensitive and has a wide linear range (10 nU to 10 fM per mL). The fluorescent probe was applied to the determination of telomerase activity in cervix carcinoma cells via imaging. It is shown that tumor cells can be well distinguished from normal cells by monitoring the differences in intracellular telomerase activity. Graphical abstract Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) protected by bovine serum albumin (BSA) and displaying red photoluminescence were prepared as fluorescent probe for the determination of telomerase activity and used for imaging of cervix carcinoma (HeLa) cells.

Determination of trace uric acid in serum using porous graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) as a fluorescent probe.

Porous graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) was prepared by a one-step acid etching and ultrasonication process. It is found that the strong blue fluorescence of g-C3N4 (with excitation/emission maxima at 320/400 nm) is fairly selectively quenched by uric acid (UA). The morphology and chemical structure of the nanoporous g-C3N4 were characterized by XRD, TEM and FTIR. Quenching studies and Stern-Volmer plots reveal two UA concentration ranges of different quenching efficiency. The first extends from 50 to 500 nM, the other from 0.5 to 10 µM. The limit of detection is 8.4 nM. The two quenching processes are attributed to both dynamic and static quenching. The porous g-C3N4 probes were applied to the determination of UA in (spiked) human serum and human plasma, and the results were as good as those obtained with UA standard solutions. These data illustrate that g-C3N4 can be used to selectively and sensitively quantify trace levels of UA even in a complex environment. Graphical abstract Porous graphite nitride carbon (g-C3N4) is shown to be a viable fluorescent probe for uric acid (UA) via both dynamic and static quenching. The electron transfer of carbon nitride is represented by the arrows; hν is the incident light; PL is the fluorescence emission.

A Walk-and-Eat Intervention Improves Outcomes for Patients With Esophageal Cancer Undergoing Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Preserving functional walking capacity and nutritional status is important for patients with esophageal cancer, but no effective intervention is available, particularly during active treatment. METHODS: This pilot randomized controlled trial tested the effects of a walk-and-eat intervention for patients with esophageal cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Participants with locally advanced esophageal cancer stage IIB or higher (n = 59) were randomly assigned to receive the walk-and-eat intervention (n = 30; nurse-supervised walking three times per week and weekly nutritional advice) or usual care (n = 29; control group) during 4-5 weeks of chemoradiotherapy. Primary endpoints were changes in distance on the 6-minute walk test, hand-grip strength, lean muscle mass, and body weight between initiation and completion of intervention. RESULTS: Participants (mean age: 59.6 years) were mostly male (92.9%) with squamous cell carcinoma (96.4%). During chemoradiotherapy, participants who received the walk-and-eat intervention had 100-m less decline than controls in walk distance (adjusted p = .012), 3-kg less decrease in hand-grip strength (adjusted p = .002), and 2.7-kg less reduction in body weight (adjusted p < .001), regardless of age. The intervention group also had significantly lower rates of need for intravenous nutritional support and wheelchair use. CONCLUSION: The nurse-led walk-and-eat intervention is feasible and effective to preserve functional walking capacity and nutritional status for patients with esophageal cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.

An unfolding/aggregation kinetic instructed rational design towards improving graft degree of glycation for myofibrillar protein.

Glycation is an effective strategy for the application of myofibrillar protein (MP) in beverage formulas by improving water solubility. In conventional glycation, the efficiency was limited as MP-saccharides conjugates mostly produced at low temperature due to thermosensitivity. This study was aimed to explore unfolding/aggregation kinetics of MP, including aggregate behavior, structural characteristics, and micromorphology, which guided the selection of temperature for glycation. It was shown that 40 °C/47.5 °C were critical temperature for MP unfolding/aggregation, respectively. Accordingly, an innovative technology of glycation (cyclic continuous glycation, CCG) was established by combining such temperatures. The results confirmed that cyclic continuous heating (CCH) inhibited excessive exposure of sulfhydryl and hydrophobic groups impeding protein aggregation. Importantly, it was revealed that rational designed CCG promoted covalent binding of MP to glucose by regulating unfolding-aggregation balance, exhibiting higher glycation degree. Overall, CCG-modified MP is expected to motivate the application of meat proteins in food formulations.

Effects of Lactobacillus plantarum FM 17 fermentation on jackfruit polysaccharides: Physicochemical, structural, and bioactive properties.

Fermentation is a novel technology for modifying polysaccharides in fruits and improving their bioactivities. In this work, we introduced Lactobacillus plantarum FM 17 to ferment jackfruit pulp and subsequently purified polysaccharides from unfermented (JP) and fermented jackfruit pulp (JP-F). Furthermore, the physicochemical, structural, and bioactive properties of JP and JP-F were investigated. Results showed fermentation dropped the glucuronic acid, molecular weight, and particle size of JP-F by 15.62 %, 23.92 %, and 39.43 %, respectively, compared with those of JP. JP-F showed higher solubility than JP but lower apparent viscosity and thermal stability. Additionally, FT-IR spectra and X-ray diffraction analysis showed that fermentation did not alter the different types of glycosidic bonds and the fundamental polysaccharide structure. Moreover, JP-F exhibited stronger DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging properties than JP and stronger stimulation on macrophage secretion of NO and IL-6 in RAW 264.7 cells. Therefore, using L. plantarum FM 17 for fermentation can alter physical and chemical properties of jackfruit pulp polysaccharides, enhancing their bioactivities.

Revealing the characteristic aroma and boundary compositions of five pig breeds based on HS-SPME/GC-O-MS, aroma recombination and omission experiments.

To clarify the characteristic aroma compounds and flavor discrepancies of five Chinese typical pig species, headspace-solid phase microextraction gas chromatography-olfactometry-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-O-MS), electronic nose (E-nose), aroma recombination and omission experiments were used to analyze the characteristic aroma and boundary of five boiled pork. A total of 38 volatile compounds were identified, of which 14 were identified as important odorants with odor-activity values (OAVs) greater than 1. Aroma recombination and omission experiments revealed 8 key characteristic aroma compounds, which significantly contributed to the overall aroma. Sensory evaluation of the recombination model with the 8 aroma compounds scored 3.0 to 4.0 out of 5 points. 12 potential markers were identified to distinguish by principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), including (E)-2-octenal, 3-ethyl-2-methyl-1,3-hexadiene, (E)-2-heptenal, 2-pentylfuran, cyclooctanol, 1-heptanol, sec-butylamine, D-limonene, N-vinylformamide, 2,3-octanedione, 2-ethylfuran and 3-pentanamine. Alongside benzaldehyde and pentanal, the combinations and fluctuations of these 14 aroma markers were proposed to constitute the aroma boundaries of different pork breeds. The aroma-active substances were able to effectively differentiate different breeds.