Fabrication, performance, and potential environmental impacts of polysaccharide-based food packaging materials incorporated with phytochemicals: A review.

Although food packaging preserves food's quality, it unfortunately contributes to global climate change since the considerable carbon emissions associated with its entire life cycle. Polysaccharide-based packaging materials (PPMs) are promising options to preserve foods, potentially helping the food industry reduce its carbon footprint. PPMs incorporated with phytochemicals hold promise to address this critical issue, keep food fresh and prolong the shelf life. However, phytochemicals' health benefits are impacted by their distinct chemical structures thus the phytochemicals-incorporated PPMs generally exhibit differential performances. PPMs must be thoughtfully formulated to possess adequate physicochemical properties to meet commercial standards. Given this, this review first-time provides a comprehensive review of recent advances in the fabrication of phytochemicals incorporated PPMs. The application performances of phytochemicals-incorporated PPMs for preserving foods, as well as the intelligent monitoring of food quality, are thoroughly introduced. The possible associated environmental impacts and scalability challenges for the commercial application of these PPMs are also methodically assessed. This review seeks to provide comprehensive insights into exploring new avenues to achieve a greener and safer food industry via innovative food packaging materials. This is paramount to preserve not only food shelf life but also the environment, facilitating the eco-friendly development of the food industry.

Red Cabbage Modulates Composition and Co-Occurrence Networks of Gut Microbiota in a Rodent Diet-Induced Obesity Model.

Red cabbage (RC), a cruciferous vegetable rich in various bioactive substances, can significantly reduce the risk factors of several non-communicable diseases, but the mechanism underlying the biological effects of RC remains unclear. Furthermore, mechanisms that operate through the regulation of gut microbiota also are not known. Given the relationships between diet, gut microbiota, and health, a diet-induced mice obesity model was used to elucidate the influence of RC on gut microbial composition and bacteria-bacteria interactions in mice. After 24 h of dietary intervention, a high-fat (HF) diet with the intake of RC led to increased Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratios in the feces of mice. RC also reduced the relative abundance of Bifidobacteria, Lactobacillus, and Akkermansia muciniphila in mice fed a low-fat (LF) diet. After 8-weeks of dietary intervention, RC significantly changed the structure and the ecological network of the gut microbial community. Particularly, RC inhibited an HF-diet-induced increase in AF12 in mice, and this genus was positively correlated with body weight, low-density lipoprotein level, and fecal bile acid of mice. Unclassified Clostridiales, specifically increased via RC consumption, were also found to negatively correlate with hepatic free cholesterol levels in mice. Overall, our results demonstrated that RC modulating gut microbial composition and interactions are associated with the attenuation of HF-diet-induced body weight gain and altered cholesterol metabolism in mice.

The coordination chemistry of two symmetric double-armed oxadiazole-bridged organic ligands with copper salts.

Two new symmetric double-armed oxadiazole-bridged ligands, 4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-3-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-3-carboxylate (L1) and 4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-4-carboxylate (L2), were prepared by the reaction of 2,5-bis(2-hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole with nicotinoyl chloride and isonicotinoyl chloride, respectively. Ligand L1 can be used as an organic clip to bind Cu(II) cations and generate a molecular complex, bis(4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-3-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-3-carboxylate)bis(perchlorato)copper(II), [Cu(ClO4)2(C28H20N4O5)2], (I). In compound (I), the Cu(II) cation is located on an inversion centre and is hexacoordinated in a distorted octahedral geometry, with the pyridine N atoms of two L1 ligands in the equatorial positions and two weakly coordinating perchlorate counter-ions in the axial positions. The two arms of the L1 ligands bend inward and converge at the Cu(II) coordination point to give rise to a spirometallocycle. Ligand L2 binds Cu(I) cations to generate a supramolecule, diacetonitriledi-µ3-iodido-di-µ2-iodido-bis(4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-4-carboxylate)tetracopper(I), [Cu4I4(CH3CN)2(C28H20N4O5)2], (II). The asymmetric unit of (II) indicates that it contains two Cu(I) atoms, one L2 ligand, one acetonitrile ligand and two iodide ligands. Both of the Cu(I) atoms are four-coordinated in an approximately tetrahedral environment. The molecule is centrosymmetric and the four I atoms and four Cu(I) atoms form a rope-ladder-type [Cu4I4] unit. Discrete units are linked into one-dimensional chains through π-π interactions.