Effects of Cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) Powder Addition on the Physicochemical Properties and Oxidation Stability of Jiangsu-Type Sausage during Refrigerated Storage.

Effects of different levels (1%, 3% and 5%) of cherry powder on the physiochemical properties and antioxidant activity of Jiangsu-type sausages were investigated at 4 °C for 30 days. The results show that the sensory evaluation values and physicochemical properties of the sausages had no significant differences compared to the control group when cherry powder addition was 1%, and the alcohols, aldehydes and esters were increased after the addition of cherry powder improved the flavor of sausages. However, higher concentration of cherry powder (3% and 5%) exerted adverse influences on sensory evaluation values and physicochemical properties of sausages compared with the control. The addition of cherry powder could better inhibit lipid and protein oxidation of sausages, and the cherry powder concentration has a positive correlation with its effect on the inhibition of lipid and protein oxidation. In addition, cherry powder could effectively control TVB-N values of sausages during chilled storage. All these results indicate that 1% cherry powder could not only guarantee the physicochemical properties of sausages, but also inhibited the oxidation of sausages during chilled storage.

Contribution of gut microbiomes and their metabolomes to the performance of Dorper and Tan sheep.

Background: Livestock is an excellent source of high nutritional value protein for humans; breeding livestock is focused on improving meat productivity and quality. Dorper sheep is a distinguished breed with an excellent growth performance, while Tan sheep is a Chinese local breed famous for its delicious meat. Several studies have demonstrated that the composition of gut microbiome and metabolome modulate host phenotype. Methods: In the present study, we performed 16S amplicon sequencing and metabolomic analyses of the rumen and hindgut microbiome of 8-month-old Dorper and Tan sheep, raised under identical feeding and management conditions, to explore the potential effects of gut microbiome and its metabolites on growth performance and meat quality. Results: Our study identified Lactobacillus, a marker genus in the rumen, to be significantly associated with the levels of fumaric acid, nicotinic acid, and 2-deoxyadenosine (P-value < 0.05). Statistical analysis showed that nicotinic acid was significantly negatively correlated with body weight (P-value < 0.01), while 2-deoxyadenosine was significantly positively correlated with fatty acids content (P-value < 0.05). There was a biologically significant negative correlation between Phascolarctobacterium and deoxycytidine levels in the hindgut. Deoxycytidine was significantly positively correlated with body weight, protein, and amino acid content. Differences in rumen fermentation patterns that are distinctive among breeds were identified. Tan sheep mainly used Lactobacillus and fumaric acid-mediated pyruvic acid for energy supply, while Dorper sheep utilize glycogenic amino acids. The difference of iron metabolism in the hindgut of Dorper sheep affects lipid production, while Phascolarctobacterium in Tan sheep is related to roughage tolerance. The accumulation of nucleosides promotes the growth performance of Dorper sheep. Conclusion: These findings provide insights into how the microbiome-metabolome-dependent mechanisms contribute to growth rate and fat contents in different breeds. This fundamental research is vital to identifying the dominant traits of breeds, improving growth rate and meat quality, and establishing principles for precision feeding.

The Impacts of Different Pea Protein Isolate Levels on Functional, Instrumental and Textural Quality Parameters of Duck Meat Batters.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of pea protein isolate (PPI) on the functional, instrumental and textural quality parameters of duck meat batters (DMB). Ground duck breast meat was mixed with different concentrations of PPI (0%, 3%, 6% or 9%, w/w) to prepare DMB. The color, cooking yield, water-holding capacity, water distribution and migration, rheological properties and texture profile of the DMB were evaluated. The results showed that the L* value of the gel decreased and the b* value increased with the increasing pea protein addition. The cooking yield and water-holding capacity showed a gradual increase, but the difference was not significant (p > 0.05). Compared with the control, the storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G″) were higher at the beginning and at the end and increased with the addition of pea protein, which was in accordance with the Fourier series relationship. The hardness, chewiness and gumminess of the gels gradually increased; on the contrary, the springiness and cohesiveness first increased and then decreased, respectively, reaching a maximum value of 0.96 and 0.81 when the addition amount reached 6%. Adding pea protein to the gels not only increased the area of immobilized water but also decreased the area of free water, thus improving the water-holding capacity of the batters. Therefore, pea protein can promote the formation of a stable and elastic network structure of duck meat batters.

Effect of oxidation on the process of thermal gelation of chicken breast myofibrillar protein.

In this study, the effect of protein oxidation on the thermal gelation of chicken breast myofibrillar proteins (MPs) was investigated. MP samples treated with different degrees of oxidation were heated (1.5 °C/min) to different end-point temperatures to simulate the thermal gelation process. The results showed that the water-holding capacity (WHC) significantly decreased with increasing temperature, and higher oxidation degree resulted in worse WHC of heat-induced gel. Compared with high degrees of oxidation, low degrees of MP oxidation reduced the migration of immobile water, inhibited its release as free water, enhanced WHC and favored the formation of ß-sheet and ß-turn structures. Therefore, low oxidation promoted the formation of ß-sheet and ß-turn structures to form a better gel microstructure with less formation of free water on the thermal gelation and therefore increased the WHC. High oxidation was just the opposite, and high temperature aggravated this negative effect.

Effect of wooden breast myopathy on water-holding capacity and rheological and gelling properties of chicken broiler breast batters.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of wooden breast myopathy on water-holding, rheological, and gelling properties of chicken broiler breast batter. As to water-holding capacity, wooden breast myopathy significantly increased cooking loss and thawing loss of meat batter compared with that of a normal sample (P < 0.05). With regard to rheological properties, the viscosity, storage modulus, and loss modulus of meat batter gradually reduced as wooden breast myopathy worsened. Similarly, lightness, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness of heat-induced meat gels reduced with wooden breast myopathy worsening. Severe wooden breast myopathy significantly reduced lightness, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness of heat-induced meat gels (P < 0.05). Water distribution of heat-induced meat gels showed that the relaxation times of T2b1, T2b2, and T21 generally increased, whereas T22 gradually decreased when wooden breast myopathy worsened. The corresponding proportions (P2b1, P2b2, and P21) of T2 populations (T2b and T21) generally decreased, and the P22 gradually increased. Severe wooden breast myopathy significantly reduced the relaxation time of T22 and increased proportion (P22) of T22 peak (P < 0.05), but no significant difference was found in immobilized water of heat-induced meat gels. The light microscopy revealed the looser structure of gels with many big bubbles in wooden breast groups when compared with that of normal breast heat-induced gels. It is concluded that the incidence of wooden breast myopathy worsens water-holding capacity and rheological and gelling properties of breast batter of chicken broiler, reducing the further processing property.

Effects of Casein, Chicken, and Pork Proteins on the Regulation of Body Fat and Blood Inflammatory Factors and Metabolite Patterns Are Largely Dependent on the Protein Level and Less Attributable to the Protein Source.

The impact of meat protein on metabolic regulation is still disputed and may be influenced by protein level. This study aimed to explore the effects of casein, pork, and chicken proteins at different protein levels (40% E vs 20% E) on body weight regulation, body fat accumulation, serum hormone levels, and inflammatory factors/metabolites in rats maintained on high-fat (45% E fat) diets for 84 d. Increased protein levels resulted in a significant reduction in body fat mass and an increase in the serum levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10, independent of protein source. Analysis of blood via untargeted metabolomics analysis identified eight, four, and four metabolites significantly altered by protein level, protein source, and a protein level-source interaction, respectively. Together, the effects of casein, chicken, and pork protein on the regulation of body fat accumulation and blood metabolite profile are largely dependent on protein level and less attributable to the protein source.

An EAV-HP insertion in the 5' flanking region of SLCO1B3 is associated with its tissue-expression profile in blue-eggshell Yimeng chickens (Gallus gallus).

We previously reported that blue eggshell color in chickens is associated with a partial endogenous retroviral (EAV-HP) insertion in the promoter region of the solute carrier organic anion transporter family member 1B3 (SLCO1B3) gene. The EAV-HP sequence includes numerous regulatory elements, which may modulate the expression of adjacent genes. To determine whether this insertion influences the expression of neighboring genes, we screened the expression of solute carrier organic anion transporter family members 1C1, 1B1 (SLCO1C1, SLCO1B1), and SLCO1B3 in 13 and 10 tissues from female and male Yimeng chickens, respectively. We observed that the insertion only significantly modulated the expression of SLCO1B3 and did not majorly affect that of SLCO1C1 and SLCO1B1. High expression of SLCO1B3 was detected in the shell gland, magnum, isthmus, and vagina of the oviduct in female blue-eggshell chickens. We also observed ectopic expression of SLCO1B3 in the testes of male chickens. SLCO1B3 is typically highly expressed in the liver; however, the EAV-HP insertion significantly reduces SLCO1B3 expression. As a liver-specific transporter, a reduction in the expression of SLCO1B3 may affect liver metabolism, particularly that of bile acids. We also detected higher ectopic expression of SLCO1B3 in the lungs of birds heterozygous for the EAV-HP insertion than in homozygous genotypes. In conclusion, we confirmed that the EAV-HP insertion modifies SLCO1B3 expression, and showed, for the first time, similar expression profile of this gene in all parts of the oviduct in females and testis in males. We also observed different levels of SLCO1B3 expression in the liver, which were associated with the EAV-HP insertion, and significantly higher expression in the lungs of birds with heterozygous genotype. The effects of these changes in the SLCO1B3 expression pattern on the function of the tissues warrant further investigation.

Meat quality and cooking attributes of thawed pork with different low field NMR T(21).

A relationship of low field NMR T(2) components to meat quality and cooking attributes of pork was investigated. Longissimus muscle was removed from 23 pig carcasses at 24h postmortem for meat quality measurements and cooking test. Frozen samples were classified into three groups by LF-NMR T(21) of thawed samples: A (<40ms), B (40-44ms) and C (>44ms). There were significant differences (P<0.05) in pH, lightness (L* value) and pressing loss among the three groups. Cooking time to attain 70°C was slightly lower in group C than the other groups. Shear force value of cooked samples was not affected by T(21). The component T(21) correlated (P<0.05) with L* value, muscle pH and pressing loss, while L* value correlated (P<0.05) with thawing loss and muscle pH. Therefore, combined LF-NMR and color measurements could be a good way to differentiate water holding capacity of pork.