An in silico scheme for optimizing the enzymatic acquisition of natural biologically active peptides based on machine learning and virtual digestion.

BACKGROUND: As a potential natural active substance, natural biologically active peptides (NBAPs) are recently attracting increasing attention. The traditional proteolysis methods of obtaining effective NBAPs are considerably vexing, especially since multiple proteases can be used, which blocks the exploration of available NBAPs. Although the development of virtual digesting brings some degree of convenience, the activity of the obtained peptides remains unclear, which would still not allow efficient access to the NBAPs. It is necessary to develop an efficient and accurate strategy for acquiring NBAPs. RESULTS: A new in silico scheme named SSA-LSTM-VD, which combines a sparrow search algorithm-long short-term memory (SSA-LSTM) deep learning and virtually digested, was presented to optimize the proteolysis acquisition of NBAPs. Therein, SSA-LSTM reached the highest Efficiency value reached 98.00 % compared to traditional machine learning algorithms, and basic LSTM algorithm. SSA-LSTM was trained to predict the activity of peptides in the proteins virtually digested results, obtain the percentage of target active peptide, and select the appropriate protease for the actual experiment. As an application, SSA-LSTM was employed to predict the percentage of neuroprotective peptides in the virtual digested result of walnut protein, and trypsin was ultimately found to possess the highest value (85.29 %). The walnut protein was digested by trypsin (WPTrH) and the peptide sequence obtained was analyzed closely matches the theoretical neuroprotective peptide. More importantly, the neuroprotective effects of WPTrH had been demonstrated in nerve damage mouse models. SIGNIFICANCE: The proposed SSA-LSTM-VD in this paper makes the acquisition of NBAPs efficient and accurate. The approach combines deep learning and virtually digested skillfully. Utilizing the SSA-LSTM-VD based strategy holds promise for discovering and developing peptides with neuroprotective properties or other desired biological activities.

Effects of an Akt-activating peptide obtained from walnut protein degradation on the prevention of memory impairment in mice.

Akt acts as a central protein influencing multiple pathologies in neurodegenerative diseases including AD and PD, and using Akt activators is a promising management strategy. The current study characterized the effects of an Akt-activating peptide (Glu-Pro-Glu-Val-Leu-Pro, EPEVLR) obtained from walnut protein degradation on D-gal-induced memory impairment in mice. EPEVLR was obtained by hydrolysis of walnut proteins, identification of peptide sequences, and screening for molecular docking sequentially. The MWM test in mice indicated that the oral administration of EPEVLR (80, 200 and 400 mg per kg per day) significantly (p < 0.05) reversed D-gal-induced memory impairment. WB tests of the mouse hippocampus confirmed that EPEVLR could activate Akt by promoting its phosphorylation. In addition, further characterization (including TEM, ELISA, and immunohistochemistry) related to Akt phosphorylation showed lower Aß and p-tau levels, as well as more autophagosomes than those in the model group. Moreover, the EPEVLR treatment significantly increased Lactobacillus abundance and reduced Helicobacter abundance in the gut microbiome and caused up-regulation of SCFAs and down-regulation of LPS of serum metabolites. Therefore, EPEVLR ingestion reversed cognitive impairment symptoms, possibly related to the activation of Akt and regulation of the intestinal flora pathway. Consumption of an EPEVLR-containing diet is beneficial for treating cognitive dysfunction.

Biobased Tannic Acid-Chitosan Composite Membranes as Reusable Adsorbents for Effective Enrichment of Phosphopeptides.

High-performance reusable materials from renewable resources are rare and urgently required in bioseparation. Herein, a series of tannic acid-chitosan composite membranes for the enrichment of phosphopeptides were fabricated by the freeze casting method. First, a tannic acid-chitosan composite membrane was acquired via the multiple hydrogen bonds between tannic acid and chitosan, which had a long-range aligned three-dimensional microstructure. Second, a covalent-hydrogen bond hybrid composite was also fabricated, with stable and aligned honeycomb-like microstructures that formed by the synergy of covalence and hydrogen bonding. Besides, a ternary composite membrane was "one-pot" synthesized by the copolymerization of tannic acid, chitosan, and Ti4+ ions, indicating the feasibility of involving metal ions in the composition of the polymer skeleton in place of additional modification steps. The as-prepared chitosan composite membranes exhibited excellent performance in the enrichment of phosphopeptides from ß-casein tryptic digest and human serum. Benefitting from the long-range aligned honeycomb-like structure coordinated by hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds, and a large number of pyrogallol functional groups provided by tannic acid, the covalent-hydrogen bond hybrid membrane showed excellent reusability and could be reused up to 16 times in phosphopeptide enrichment, as far as we know, which is the best reported result to date.

DKI can distinguish high-grade gliomas from IDH1-mutant low-grade gliomas and correlate with their different nuclear-to-cytoplasm ratio: a localized biopsy-based study.

OBJECTIVES: To explore whether differences in diffusional kurtosis imaging (DKI) between therapy-naïve high-grade gliomas (HGGs) and low-grade gliomas (LGGs) are related to the cellularity and/or the nuclear-to-cytoplasmic (N/C) ratio. METHODS: We analyzed 44 and 40 diffuse glioma samples that were pathologically confirmed as HGGs and IDH1-mutant LGGs, respectively. The DKI parameters included kurtosis metrics (mean kurtosis [MK], axial kurtosis [K//], and radial kurtosis [K⊥]), and the diffusional metrics (fractional anisotropy [FA], mean diffusion [MD], axial diffusion [λ//], and radial diffusion [λ⊥]). The cellularity and the N/C ratio were compared within LGGs and HGGs using the Mann-Whitney U test (significant level, p < 0.007 [0.05/7]); Bonferroni correction). Spearman's correlation analysis was used to calculate the correlation coefficients among DKI metrics, cellularity, and the N/C ratio at a significant level of p = 0.05. RESULTS: Excluding FA, all DKI metrics showed significant differences between HGGs and LGGs (all p ≤ 0.001). The N/C ratio of HGGs was significantly higher than that of LGGs; however, differences in cellularity were not significant between the two glioma groups (p = 0.525). Similarly, excluding FA, all DKI metrics were significantly correlated with the N/C ratio in LGGs, with correlation coefficients of - 0.365 (MD), - 0.313 (λ//), - 0.376 (λ⊥), 0.859 (MK), 0.772 (K//), and 0.842 (K//). There was a non-significant correlation between any DKI parameters and the cellularity in LGGs. Additionally, the cellularity and N/C ratios in HGGs did not correlate with any DKI metrics. CONCLUSIONS: DKI differentiate LGGs from HGGs associated with their different N/C ratios. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This study shows that DKI differentiates LGGs from HGGs may correlated with their different N/C ratios, this could provide a possible histopathological mechanism about why DKI can DKI differentiate LGGs from HGGs. KEY POINTS: • Excluding FA, all DKI metrics showed a significant difference between high-grade gliomas and IDH1-mutant low-grade gliomas. • The nuclear-to-cytoplasm ratios in high-grade gliomas were significantly more extensive than that in IDH1-mutant low-grade gliomas, but not the cellularity. • Significant associations were seen between DKI measures and the N/C ratio; a non-significant correlation was noted between any DKI metric and cellularity in glioma specimens.

In Situ Rapid Analysis of Squalene, Tocopherols, and Sterols in Walnut Oils Based on Supercritical Fluid Chromatography-Quadrupole Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry.

Quantification of liposoluble micronutrients in large-scale vegetable oil samples is urgently needed, because their health benefits are increasingly emphasized. However, current analytical methods are limited to either labor-intensive preparation processes or time-consuming chromatography separation. In this work, an online oil matrix separation strategy for direct, rapid, and simultaneous determination of squalene, tocopherols, and phytosterols in walnut oil (WO) was developed on the basis of the lipid class separation mode of supercritical fluid chromatography. A single run was completed in 13 min containing 6 min of column cleaning and balancing. Satisfactory limit of detections (0.05-0.20 ng/mL), limit of quantifications (0.15-0.45 ng/mL), recoveries (70.61-101.44%), and matrix effects (78.43-91.62%) were achieved, indicating the reliability of this method. In addition, eight sterol esters were identified in WO, which have not previously been reported. The proposed method was applied to characterize the liposoluble micronutrient profile of WO samples obtained from different walnut cultivars, geographical origins, and processes.

[Adsorption Performance of Walnut Green Husk Biochar for Heavy Metals].

The biochars of WP300, WP500, and WP700 were prepared by pyrolyzing walnut green husk under 300℃, 500℃, and 700℃ with the oxygen-free condition for removing Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+ in an aqueous solution. The results revealed that WP500 prepared under the medium pyrolysis temperature achieved the best adsorption performance for heavy metals, and the highest removal efficiency was reached when the solution pH was 8, in which the removal efficiency of Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+ were 97.87%, 99.78%, and 71.15%, respectively. The required biochar dosage for heavy metal removal varied under different adsorption conditions. In the single-metal system, the optimal dosage for WP500 in the Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+ solutions was 1.3 g·L-1, 2.1 g·L-1, and 1.9 g·L-1, respectively, whereas in the pollution metals system, the optimal biochar dosage was 5.1 g·L-1. In addition, the adsorption capacity of WP500 for the three heavy metals followed the order of Pb2+>Cu2+>Cd2+ under the single and combined-metals system, indicating that there were no synergistic or antagonistic effects among these three adsorbates. The fitting results of the adsorption isotherm model suggested that various immobilization methods existed in adsorption process between WP500 and Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+. The kinetic fitting results suggested that the main reaction between WP500 and Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+ was chemical adsorption. The mechanisms of WP500 for heavy metals involved pore-filling, electrostatic attraction, ion-exchange, mineral precipitation, complexation, and π-π electron donor-accepter interaction. To conclude, this study offered a new insight for the resource utilization of the waste walnut green husk.

Multi-dimensional deep learning drives efficient discovery of novel neuroprotective peptides from walnut protein isolates.

Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, are multi-factor induced neurological disorders that require management from multiple pathologies. The peptides from natural proteins with diverse physiological activity can be candidates as multifunctional neuroprotective agents. However, traditional methods for screening neuroprotective peptides are not only time-consuming and laborious but also poorly accurate, which makes it difficult to effectively obtain the needed peptides. In this case, a multi-dimensional deep learning model called MiCNN-LSTM was proposed to screen for multifunctional neuroprotective peptides. Compared to other multi-dimensional algorithms, MiCNN-LSTM reached a higher accuracy value of 0.850. The MiCNN-LSTM was used to acquire candidate peptides from walnut protein hydrolysis. Following molecular docking, behavioral and biochemical index experimental validation eventually found 4 hexapeptides (EYVTLK, VFPTER, EPEVLR and ELEWER) demonstrating excellent multifunctional neuroprotective properties. Therein, EPEVLR performed the best and can be investigated in depth as a multifunctional neuroprotective agent. This strategy will greatly improve the efficiency of screening multifunctional bioactive peptides, and it will be beneficial for the development of food functional peptides.

Design of biomass-based N, S co-doped porous carbon via a straightforward post-treatment strategy for enhanced CO2 capture performance.

Biomass-based adsorbents are considered to have great potential for CO2 capture due to their low cost, high efficiency and exceptional sustainability. The aim of this work is to design a simple method for preparing biomass-based adsorbents with abundant active sites and large numbers of narrow micropores, so as to enhance CO2 capture performance. Herein, N, S co-doped porous carbon (NSPC) was created utilizing walnut shell-based microporous carbon (WSMC) as the main framework and thiourea as N/S dopant through physical grinding and post-treatment process at a moderate temperature without any other reagents and steps. By altering the post-treatment parameters, a series of porous carbons with varying physico-chemical properties were prepared to discuss the roles of microporosity and N/S functional groups in CO2 adsorption. NSPC with narrow micropore volume of 0.74 cm3 g-1, N content of 4.89 % and S contents of 0.71 % demonstrated the highest CO2 adsorption capacity of 7.26 (0 °C) and 5.51 mmol g-1 (25 °C) at 1 bar. Meanwhile, a good selectivity of binary gas mixture CO2/N2 (15/85) of 29.72 and outstanding recyclability after ten cycles of almost 100 % adsorption capacity retention were achieved. The proposed post-treatment method was beneficial in maintaining the narrow micropores and forming N/S active sites, which together improve the CO2 adsorption performance of NSPC. The novel NSPC displays amazing CO2 adsorption characteristics, and the practical, affordable synthetic approach exhibits significant potential to produce highly effective CO2 adsorbents on a broad scale.

Amelioration of walnut-derived novel peptides against D-galactose-induced cognitive impairment by modulating the gut microbiota composition.

In this work, RLWPF (Arg-Leu-Trp-Pro-Phe) and VLRLF (Val-Leu-Arg-Leu-Phe) were investigated for the effects against D-galactose (D-gal) induced cognitive impairment by modulating the gut microbiota composition. The effects on serum metabolite production were further investigated. The two novel peptides derived from walnut protein alkaline protease hydrolysates were predicted by docking to acetylcholinesterase (AChE) with the highest binding affinities, -10.3 and -9.9 kcal mol-1, considered as the potential neuroprotective peptides. In behavioral experiments, RLWPF and VLRLF treatment significantly restored spatial learning and memory impairment induced by D-gal. The results showed that RLWPF and VLRLF could alleviate cholinergic dysfunction, oxidative stress, and inflammation to varying degrees caused by D-gal-induced aging. Furthermore, 16S rRNA analysis revealed that RLWPF and VLRLF treatment improved cognitive impairment by regulating the composition of the gut microbiota and the abundance of harmful bacteria, including the ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes, Helicobacter, Allobaculum, Alistipes, Mucispirillum, and Odoribacter. In addition to the same regulation, RLWPF and VLRLF had their marker and regulatory flora. Studies based on the gut microbiota would allow a better understanding of the neuroprotective effects of walnut-derived peptides, supporting that walnut-derived peptides could be potential functional ingredients in foods and nutraceuticals or drug candidates in the treatment of cognitive dysfunction.

Detection of walnut oil adulterated with high-linoleic acid vegetable oils using triacylglycerol pseudotargeted method based on SFC-QTOF-MS.

Authentication of walnut oil (WO) is challenging due to the adulteration of high-linoleic acid vegetable oils (HLOs) with similar fatty acid composition. To allow the discrimination of WO adulteration, a rapid, sensitive and stable scanning method based on supercritical fluid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SFC-QTOF-MS) was established to profile 59 potential triacylglycerol (TAGs) in HLOs samples within 10 min. Limit of quantitation of the proposed method is 0.002 µg mL-1 and the relative standard deviations range from 0.7% to 12.0%. TAGs profiles of WO samples from various varieties, geography origins, ripeness, and processing methods were used to construct orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and OPLS models that were highly accurate in both qualitative and quantitative prediction at adulteration levels as low as 5% (w/w). This study advances the TAGs analysis to characterize vegetable oils and holds promise as an efficient method for oil authentication.

Enhancing the oxygen reduction activity by constructing nanocluster-scaled Fe2O3/Cu interfaces.

Interface engineering is a promising strategy to enhance the catalytic performance of electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, it is still a challenge to modulate the size into a suitable range (e.g., nanocluster-scale) to make the most of the interface. Moreover, the explicit mechanism of the interface for enhancing catalytic performance is still elusive. Herein, a model catalyst (FeCu@NC) loaded with nanocluster-scaled Fe2O3/Cu interfaces was prepared by modulating the metal components of the precursor to explore the enhancement of interface engineering for the ORR. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of the strong interfacial coupling effects of Fe2O3/Cu and optimized microstructure, FeCu@NC exhibited superior ORR activity and zinc-air battery performance. Experimental and theoretical calculations revealed that the presence of the Fe2O3/Cu interface breaks the traditional cognition to endow the Cu atoms (intrinsically inferior for the ORR) with a slight positive charge, which serves as the active sites for the ORR. This study provides a novel insight into the design of advanced electrocatalysts for the ORR by interface engineering.

Retrospective cohort study on the correlation analysis among peri-procedural factors, complications, and local tumor progression of lung tumors treated with CT-guided microwave ablation.

Background: Despite adherence to guidelines, recurrence of lesions remains possible in lung tumor microwave ablation (MWA) even when termination is enabled by 5-10 mm ground glass changes. Limited evidence exists regarding the correlation between timely management of perioperative complications (including pneumothorax, pleural effusion, hemorrhage, cavity formation, and infection) and local tumor progression. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the relationship among peri-procedural factors, complications, and local tumor progression in 164 cases of lung tumors treated with computed tomography-guided MWA (CT-MWA), and improve the local prognosis and reduce the complication rate of CT-guided lung tumor ablation. Methods: We reviewed 164 consecutive patients who underwent CT-MWA at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center's Minimally Invasive Therapy Center for lung cancer from September 2019 to May 2020. Correlative analysis was performed between peri-procedural factors, complications and outcomes (local tumor progression rates). Patients who have had prior surgery or previous MWA were excluded. Ablation was the first treatment of choice, and all patients who have had other treatments were excluded. Patients were followed every 3 months with CT. Outcomes of ablation including complications and local tumor progression were evaluated. Peri-procedural factors included demographical factors, tumor features, ablation parameters, management of intra-procedural pneumothorax, and CT features. Complications included pneumothorax, post-procedural refractory infection, and pleural effusion. Results: The study included 98 males and 68 females, with an average age of 56.1 years. Local tumor progression rate was negatively correlated with intra-procedural management of pneumothorax (R=-0.550, P=0.0003) and Hounsfield unit (HU) difference between HU before and after procedure (R=-0.855, P=0.006), and positively correlated with the average HU value of immediate post-procedural CT at the measurement points (R=0.857, P=0.00002). The correlation analysis results also showed a positive correlation between infection after procedure and pneumothorax (R=0.340, P=0.0001). Conclusions: A greater difference between HU before and after the procedure or a decrease in CT values immediately after ablation may predict a higher rate of local complete ablation. Prompt management of intraoperative pneumothorax may lower local tumor progression rates and decrease incidence of post-procedural infection.

Separation, identification, and design of α-glucosidase inhibitory peptides based on the molecular mechanism from Paeonia ostii 'Feng Dan' seed protein.

Peptides are considered promising sources of nutraceuticals. In this study, a mixture of peptides was prepared from Paeonia ostii 'Feng Dan' seed meal protein by continuous enzymolysis. Successive separation and purification procedures, including ultrafiltration and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), were performed, and six novel peptides were identified by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization source-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). In an in vitro antidiabetic activity test, Tyr-Phe-Phe-Met exhibited stronger α-glucosidase inhibitory activity (48.17 ± 3.34% at 1 mg/mL) than the other peptides. Docking studies of this peptide into the active site of α-glucosidase showed that the formation of hydrogen bonds could be critical for the enzymatic trapping of inhibitory peptides. Furthermore, two novel peptides, Phe-Phe-Phe-Met (IC50  = 245.46 ± 44.01 µM) and Tyr-Tyr-Phe-Met (IC50  = 306.71 ± 48.17 µM), with improved α-glucosidase inhibitory activity, were designed based on molecular docking. Therefore, the seed meal of Paeonia ostii could be considered a functional food ingredient for the management of hyperglycemia, and three novel peptides were identified as α-glucosidase inhibitors.

Exploring the structural dependence of metal-free carbon electrocatalysts on zinc-based metal-organic framework types.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been widely used as precursors to derive carbon-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) due to their high porosity and tunable chemical composition/structure. However, the influence of MOF type on the structure and further ORR activity of derived metal-free carbon catalysts is still elusive. In the present work, a series of different Zn-based MOFs were employed as precursors to explore this issue. Meanwhile, prepare N-doped metal-free carbon catalysts were prepared for the ORR under the activation of sacrificial urea (which is effective to enhance the ORR activity of carbon-based catalysts). By analyzing the intermediates during pyrolysis, it is found that the decisive role of MOF types on the doped N and the morphology of derived carbon catalysts was played by the Zn coordination environment of MOFs and its reactivity with the decomposition intermediate of urea. Although the structure and porosity of derived carbon catalysts from different MOFs are very different, they all showed superior ORR activity and Zn-air battery performance up to 20 wt% Pt/C benchmark catalysts. From the above analyses, the combination of urea and compounded Zn is also a promising activation method for the preparation of highly-efficient metal-free carbon electrocatalysts.

Fabrication of hydrophilic titanium (IV)-immobilized polydispersed microspheres via inverse suspension polymerization for enrichment of phosphopeptides in milk.

It is prerequisite to efficient extraction of phosphopeptides in bottom-up strategy for protein phosphorylation research. A kind of Ti4+-immobilized polydispersed phosphate-rich microsphere was fabricated via inverse suspension polymerization by employing vinylphosphonic acid (VPA) and N,N-methylenebisacrylamide (MBA) as functional monomer and crosslinker, respectively. The resulting microsphere demonstrated excellent sensitivity (as low as 10 fmol), selectivity (the mass ratio of ß-casein to BSA digests is 1/500), and adsorption capacity (up to 200 mg g-1). What's more, 113 unique phosphopeptides assigned to 25 unique phosphoproteins were indiscriminately identified from 5 µL of pasteurized milk digest, exhibiting great performance in capturing phosphopeptides. In this approach, only two steps were required to synthesize Ti4+-IMAC (Ti4+-Immobilized metal affinity chromatography). Compared with other methods required multistep modifying process, this strategy is simple and time-saving, offering a prospect of pilot production and commercialization. It is expected that the application of IMAC in milk and other food samples will still make it possible to unravel the huge complexity of the Foodome in the near future.

The Synergistic Anti-inflammatory Activity and Interaction Mechanism of Ellagic Acid and a Bioactive Tripeptide (Phe-Pro-Leu) from Walnut Meal.

The anti-inflammatory effect of the interaction between ellagic acid (EA) and a bioactive tripeptide (FPL) from walnut meal was investigated in this study. We found that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) -induced expression of nitric oxide, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, and interleukin-1ß were significantly inhibited by the interaction of EA and FPL in RAW264.7 macrophage cells. Cell viability assays and CompuSyn simulations predicted the highest synergistic effect of the combination at doses of EA-25 µM and FPL-100 µM, with the lowest combination index (CI) values reaching 0.56. Fluorescence spectra revealed the intrinsic fluorescence of phenylalanine in FPL was quenched by interaction with EA. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated FPL had electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions with EA through N-H, C = O, C-N bonds and the secondary structure of FPL had effectively changed, with a decrease in α-helix when interacting with EA. Our results demonstrated that the synergistic anti-inflammatory effect of EA and FPL as potential inflammatory inhibitors in food industry.

Volatile Flavor Compounds of Pugionium cornutum (L.) Gaertn. Before and After Different Dehydration Treatments.

Pugionium cornutum (L.) Gaertn (also Pugionium) is a special Mongolian vegetable, belonging to the Cruciferous family, growing in arid and semi-arid areas of northern China, with a unique flavor and potential health benefits. This article aims to describe the profile of volatile flavor compounds in fresh and different dehydrated samples, establish the fingerprint, and identify the characteristic compounds. The fresh Pugionium sample and 3 kinds of dehydrated samples were analyzed. Headspace/gas chromatography-ion migration spectrometry (HS/GC-IMS) and solid-phase microextraction/gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME/GC-MS) were used for identification and relative quantification. HS/GC-IMS identified 78 compounds, whereas SPME/GC-MS identified 53 compounds. Principal component analysis (PCA), clustering analysis, and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were used as appropriate to investigate variations in volatile compounds among Pugionium samples and identify distinctive compounds. The first two principal components described 76.5% and 69.5% of the variance of the data from HS/GC-IMS and SPME/GC-MS, respectively. By clustering analysis, 4 kinds of Pugionium samples could be classified into four independent groups. The similarity between fresh Pugionium and natural dehydration Pugionium was higher than the other two dehydrated samples, indicating that natural dehydration can better preserve the flavor of Pugionium. Most aldehydes and alcohols increased following different dehydration procedures, whereas esters decreased, and the dehydrated Pugionium samples have more harmonious and less pungent aroma than the fresh Pugionium. PLS-DA model analysis revealed that the marker compounds (VIP scores > 1) discriminating the flavor of the four samples for HS/GC-IMS and SPME/GC-MS were 24 and 15 compounds, respectively, such as 2-phenylethyl isothiocyanate, 1-butene-4-isothiocyanate and other isothiocyanates, 2-propanone, nonanal, gamma-butyrolactone, 2,3-butanediol, 3-methyl-2-butenenitrile, and pentanal. Analysis of volatile compounds might be useful for monitoring the quality of Pugionium and guiding the cooking methods and processing technologies. More study is required to discover if the various volatile flavor compounds have biological or physiological impacts on nutrition.

The complete chloroplast genome sequence of Tussilago farfara (Asteraceae).

Tussilago farfara is a member of the family Asteraceae. In this paper, we reported the complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequence of T. farfara. The results showed that T. farfara complete chloroplast genome comprises 151,325 bp, containing a largen single copy (LSC) region of 83,370 bp, a small single copy (SSC) region of 18,273 bp, and a pair of inverted repeats (IRs) region of 24,841 bp. The genome has a GC content of 37.4%. The LSC, SSC, and IR regions represent 35.5%, 30.6%, and 43.0% of the T. farfara chloroplast genome length. We annotated 132 genes, comprising 87 protein-coding genes (PCGs), eight rRNA genes, and 36 tRNA genes. A phylogenetic analysis based on 31 cpDNA genomes suggested that the T. farfara is closely related to Farfugium japonicum.