Search Results (20,428)

To elucidate the regional flavor characteristics of sun-dried green tea (SDT) and their underlying influencing factors, a comprehensive analysis was conducted using metabolomics and flavoromics approaches. This study systematically examined SDT samples and their corresponding tea garden soils from 13 distinct regions in Yunnan Province. The results revealed that the SDT samples could be classified into two distinct groups based on their flavor profiles. Compared to the regions of Pa Sha (PS), Bang Dong (BD), Dong Ban Shan (DBS), Dong Guo (DG), Su Hu (SH), Gua Feng Zhai (GFZ), and Wu Liang Shan (WLS), the regions of Xin Nong (XN), Ba Ka Nuan (BKN), Mang Ang (MA), Man Nuan (MN), Bing Dao (BDao), and Bin Shan (BS) exhibited a significant upregulation of the tea polyphenols (TP)/free amino acids (FAA) ratio. The former group was characterized by a sweet mellow taste, while the latter displayed a stronger taste profile. Furthermore, the analysis of volatile compounds demonstrated that geraniol and linalool were significantly upregulated in the PS, BD, DBS, DG, BS, and BDao regions, which were associated with tender and floral aromas. In contrast, isophorone, 2-pentyl furan, 1-octanol, D-limonene, and benzaldehyde were markedly enriched in the XN, BKN, MA, MN, SH, GFZ, and WLS regions, contributing to sweet and honey-like aromatic profiles. Altitude and mineral element phosphorus are potential key factors affecting the regional flavor differences in SDT. Specifically, SDT cultivated at higher altitudes and in soils with elevated available phosphorus content exhibited a greater likelihood of accumulating sweet mellow and floral compounds. This study provides scientific evidence for understanding the characteristic flavor profiles of SDT across different regions, offering valuable insights into the factors contributing to regional flavor differentiation in tea production. Full article

The utilization of gelatin capsule waste (GCW) poses a challenge for the industry. This study investigates its potential as a functional food ingredient by evaluating the physico-chemical, rheological, and techno-functional properties of gelatin capsule waste powder (GCWP). To achieve this, the gelatin capsule waste (GCW) was mixed with maltodextrin at varying ratios (1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, and 1:5) and subjected to spray drying. The findings highlight maltodextrin’s crucial role in stabilizing the drying process, reducing stickiness, and enhancing handling and storage properties. All the obtained GCWP samples appeared light white and had a slightly sticky texture. The 1:5 (w/w) GCW-to-maltodextrin ratio produced the highest powder recovery with minimal stickiness, indicating enhanced drying efficiency. Increasing maltodextrin reduced gel strength, texture, and foaming properties while raising the glass transition temperature. The FTIR analysis indicated a decline in protein–protein interactions and increased polysaccharide interactions at higher maltodextrin levels. The rheological analysis demonstrated lower elastic and loss moduli with increased maltodextrin, affecting GCWP’s structural behavior. For overall properties, the GCW mixed with maltodextrin at a 1:1 ratio (GCW-1M) is recommended for future applications, particularly for its gelling characteristics. The GCW-1M, being rich in amino acids, demonstrates its potential as a functional food ingredient. However, certain properties, such as gel strength and powder stability (hygroscopicity and stickiness), require further optimization to enhance its industrial applicability as a functional food ingredient. Full article

Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum L.), as a kind of combination of medicine and food, is rich in antioxidant components. However, the deep-processed products of wolfberry need to be developed to improve its added value. This study aimed to investigate the nutrients, active antioxidant ingredients, and liver-protective mechanism of mixed-culture fermented wolfberry vinegar (MFV). The results showed that MFV had significantly higher protein and significantly lower fat content than wolfberry juice before fermentation, indicating that MFV was a healthy product. The active ingredient content, which included total phenolics, total flavonoids, polysaccharides, betaine, and antioxidant activities, was significantly increased in MFV after mixed-culture fermentation. Moreover, MFV improved histopathological changes and reduced liver biochemical indicators in alcohol-treated mice, indicating the improvement of liver function. In addition, MFV effectively alleviated alcohol-induced liver injury by increasing the expression of alcohol metabolizing enzymes and inhibiting CYP2E1 activity. MFV regulated the equilibrium between pro-oxidant and antioxidant levels by downregulating pro-oxidant markers and upregulating antioxidant markers. Furthermore, MFV reduced the levels of inflammatory indexes by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway. These results suggest that MFV is a healthy food for liver protection, which provides a strategy for deep-processed products of wolfberry. Full article

With the growing interest in health and fitness, whey protein supplements are becoming increasingly popular among fitness enthusiasts and athletes. The surge in demand for whey protein supplements highlights the need for cost-effective methods to characterise product quality throughout the food supply chain. This study presents a rapid and low-cost method for authenticating sports whey protein supplements using smartphone video imaging (SVI) combined with machine learning. A gradient of colours ranging from purple to red is displayed on the front screen of a smartphone to illuminate the sample. The colour change on the sample surface is captured in a short video by the front-facing camera. Then, the video is split into frames, decomposed into RGB colour channels, and converted into spectral data. The relationship between video data and sample labels is established using machine learning models. The proposed method is tested on five tasks, including identifying 15 brands of whey protein concentrate (WPC), quantifying fat content and energy levels, detecting three types of adulterants, and quantifying adulterant levels. Moreover, the performance of SVI was compared to that of hyperspectral imaging (HSI), which has an equipment cost of around 80 times that of SVI. The proposed method achieves accuracies of 0.933 and 0.96 in WPC brand identification and adulterant detection, respectively, which are only around 0.05 lower than those of HSI. It obtains coefficients of determination of 0.897, 0.906 and 0.963 for the quantification of fat content, energy levels and milk powder adulteration, respectively. Such results demonstrate that the combination of smartphones and machine learning offers a low-cost and viable preliminary screening tool for verifying the authenticity of whey protein supplements. Full article

The high hydrophilicity of biopolymer–anthocyanin intelligent packaging films seriously limits their applications in high-humidity environments. Here, a surface hydrophobization technique was adopted to overcome the hydrophilicity of purple sweet potato (PSP)-based intelligent packaging films through stearic acid (SA) coating combined with heat pressing treatments. The structural characteristics, physical properties, and color changeability of the films were investigated. After SA coating treatment, the surface of the films was loosely covered by thick SA layers. As compared with the untreated PSP films, the SA-coated films displayed lower transparency, mechanical property, moisture content, surface wettability, anthocyanin leaching potential, and color changeability. When the SA-coated films were further heat-pressed, the SA-coated layers were closely bound to the films. The heat-pressed films had a higher transparency, mechanical property, and water vapor blocking ability than the SA-coated films. Notably, the color and color changeability of the heat-pressed films were affected by the heat pressing temperature. The films heat-pressed at 100 °C showed a vivid purple color and elevated color changeability, whereas the films heat-pressed at 150 °C showed a brown color and lost color changeability. This study demonstrates that SA coating combined with heat pressing is effective in constructing surface-hydrophobized intelligent packaging films. Full article

Drying methods play a crucial role in the formation of green tea aromas. This study investigated the aroma characteristics and volatile component profiles of large-leaf green tea under hot-air drying, pan-fired drying, and sun drying. The results revealed significant differences in the sensory aroma characteristics and volatile components of the large-leaf green tea among the three drying methods. The pan-fire-dried green tea (PDGT) exhibited a distinct roasted aroma, while the hot-air-dried green tea (HDGT) and sun-dried green tea (SDGT) displayed a faint scent and lasting aroma characteristics, with the SDGT additionally featuring a noticeable sun-dried odor. A total of 48 differential volatile components were identified, among which β-Ionone, (E)-β-Ionone, 2,2,6-Trimethylcyclohexanone, Dihydroactinidiolide, BenzeneacetAldehyde, 2-Pentylfuran, 1,1,6-Trimethyl-1,2-dihydronaphthalene, δ-Cadinene, β-Myrcene, Geranylacetone, o-Cymene, 6-Methyl-5-hepten-2-one, (E)-β-Ocimene, and BenzAldehyde were identified as the primary contributors to the aroma differences among the three large-leaf green teas. Additionally, 43 differential volatile compounds were found to be significantly correlated with at least one of the aroma types (floral, sweet, green, faint scent, nutty, or roasted). The findings of this study provide a theoretical foundation for understanding the formation of aroma qualities in large-leaf green tea and offer valuable insights for improving its aromatic characteristics. Full article

The nutritional effects of fruit juices, combined with the added value of a probiotic, provide a plant-based fortified functional food. Some process-related drawbacks are caused by the pH parameter, which will affect the survival of probiotics during their industrial processing and storage. By means of developing a monitoring method for probiotic activity, the present study aims to investigate the application of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) as a correlative analytical method for fermentation process tracking, in association with the different absorption patterns of bound water, explained by aquaphotomics. The data evaluated in the wavelength range of 1300–1600 nm indicate classification accuracies of 99–100% and 99–93% during calibration and validation, respectively, when applying PCA-LDA for discriminating the fermentation times, for each one of the single and mixed bacterial groups. During PLSR prediction, according to the fermentation times, the validation models developed for pH show coefficients of determination in the range of 0.96 to nearly 1 and root mean square errors of 0.05 and 0.19. On the other hand, for the PLSR prediction of log cell count (CFU/mL), validation modeling shows a coefficient of determination of 0.85 and a root mean square error of 0.23. All things considered, the results support the applicability of combining NIR and aquaphotomics as a bioprocess monitoring tool, which can be further implemented in different studies and industrial contexts. Full article

Soft rotting caused by Rhizopus stolonifer is one of the most important postharvest decays in Kokei No. 14 organic sweet potato roots. While various methods have been explored for controlling this pathogen, there remains a need for effective, safe, and applicable alternatives, particularly using essential oils (EOs). This study evaluated the efficacy of EOs, specifically carvacrol, thymol, and thyme oil, in controlling Rhizopus soft rot. We conducted both in vitro and in vivo tests to assess their effects on fungal mycelial growth, spore germination, and the incidence and severity of soft rot in sweet potatoes, along with quality evaluations of the roots. The results indicated that the vapor phase of carvacrol, thymol, and thyme oil was more effective than the contact phase in inhibiting fungal growth and spore germination. In vivo tests revealed that all three EOs significantly reduced the incidence and severity of soft rot, with thymol and thyme oil at 300 mg/L, and carvacrol at 500 mg/L being the most effective. Quality assessments showed minimal impact on properties such as firmness, weight loss, color, starch, carotenoids, and flavonoids, although residual odors increased. GC/MS analysis confirmed that thyme oil contained high levels of both thymol and carvacrol, along with other antimicrobial compounds, suggesting that the cumulative activity of these volatile compounds enhanced their bacteriostatic effects. Thyme oil demonstrated greater efficacy in reducing soft rot development compared to its individual components, making it a promising biofumigant for controlling postharvest diseases in Kokei No. 14 organic sweet potato roots. These findings emphasized the potential for using thyme oil as a safe and effective approach to managing postharvest decay. Full article

(1→3)-α-d-Glucan is an important component of the cell wall of most fungi. The polymer has many applications, including as a therapeutic agent in the prevention or treatment of various diseases, as well as a heavy metal sorbent and a component of new materials used in the plastics industry. The presence of (1→3)-α-d-glucan (water-insoluble, alkali-soluble polysaccharide) in the cell wall of Pleurotus djamor (pink oyster mushroom) was confirmed using specific fluorophore-labeled antibodies. Therefore, the water-insoluble fraction (WI-ASF) of P. djamor B123 fruiting bodies was isolated by alkaline extraction and used for further analyses. The structural features of the WI-ASF were determined by composition analysis, linkage analysis, Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy, ¹H and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, as well as viscosity, specific rotation, and gel permeation chromatography. These studies revealed the presence of glucose units linked by α-glycosidic bonds and scanty amounts of mannose and xylose. Furthermore, methylation analysis of WI-ASF demonstrated that the (1→3)-linked glucopyranose (Glcp) is the primary moiety (86.4%) of the polymer, while the 3,4- and 3,6-substituted hexoses are the branching residues of the glucan. The results of chemical and spectroscopic investigations indicated that the analyzed WI-ASF is a (1→3)-linked α-d-glucan type with a molecular weight of 552 kDa. Full article

Oat starch plays a crucial role in the stability of oat milk. Enzyme-hydrolyzed oat starch has been demonstrated to be an effective means of improving the stability of oat milk. The effects of different enzyme combinations on the stability of oat milk and the properties of starch in oats were investigated by adding α-amylase, amyloglucosidase, and different ratios of pullulanase and isoamylase. The results showed that as the degree of hydrolysis increased, the molecular weight, amylose content, and side chain length distribution of the starch decreased significantly. Moreover, compared with oat starch, the rheological and emulsifying properties of the starch hydrolysates were improved, and the characterization of emulsion stability showed that a 1:2 ratio of pullulanase to isoamylase promoted effective debranching and thus improved the stability of oat milk. This study demonstrated that debranching enzymes enhance the enzymatic hydrolysis of beverages and improve the physicochemical properties and stability of oat milk. Full article

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic disease influenced by a complex interplay of factors, including genetics, environmental, and gut microbiota. This study aimed to explore the therapeutic potential of the natural polyphenolic compound hydroxytyrosol (HT) in modulating dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis in mice. The findings demonstrate that oral administration of HT significantly alleviated colitis symptoms, as evidenced by a reduction in the disease activity index and improvements in colonic pathology. HT was found to inhibit the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, enhance antioxidant status, and mitigate oxidative stress. Furthermore, HT contributed to the restoration of the gut barrier by reinstating tight junction proteins, reducing the inflammatory marker lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and suppressing inflammation-related genes. This compound also modulated the NLRP3-Cas-1-GSDMD-IL-1β inflammatory pathway and inhibited the NF-κB (nuclear factor kappa B) pathway, thereby alleviating colitis. Gut microbial analysis revealed that HT enriched the abundance of Bacteroidota and altered the balance between Bacteroidota and Firmicutes in mice. Correlation analysis between bacterial microbiota and inflammatory factors suggested that HT may alleviate colitis by modulating the relative abundance of Alistipes, Bacteroides, and unclassified_f__Muribaculaceae. These findings underscore the potential of HT as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of colitis. Full article

In addition to its flavor and nutritional value, the origin of kelp has become a crucial factor influencing consumer choices. Nevertheless, research on kelp’s origin traceability by volatile organic compound (VOC) analysis is lacking, and the application of deep learning in this field remains scarce due to its black-box nature. To address this gap, we attempted to identify the origin of kelp by analyzing its VOCs in conjunction with explainable deep learning. In this work, we identified 115 distinct VOCs in kelp samples using gas chromatography coupled with ion mobility spectroscopy (GC-IMS), of which 68 categories were discernible. Consequently, we developed a comprehensible one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1D-CNN) model that incorporated 107 VOCs exhibiting significant regional disparities (p < 0.05). The model successfully discerns the origin of kelp, achieving perfect metrics across accuracy (100%), precision (100%), recall (100%), F1 score (100%), and AUC (1.0). SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis highlighted the impact of features such as 1-Octen-3-ol-M, (+)-limonene, allyl sulfide-D, 1-hydroxy-2-propanone-D, and (E)-2-hexen-1-al-M on the model output. This research provides deeper insights into how critical product features correlate with specific geographic information, which in turn boosts consumer trust and promotes practical utilization in actual settings. Full article

The objective of this work was to investigate the effect of location on the composition and quality of wines from the viticultural zone PGI Drama. Grapes from two white (Sauvignon blanc, Assyrtiko) and three red varieties (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Agiorgitiko) were collected from nine locations within the zone during 2022. The vineyards span distances ranging from several hundred meters to 100 km, and their altitudes vary from 90 to nearly 820 m. Vinification was performed following the same protocol according to the type of wine. Wines were analyzed for quality parameters such as pH, total acidity, alcohol, and residual sugar content. In addition, elemental composition, phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and sensory attributes of the wines were assessed. The obtained results suggested that besides the type of wine and variety, the location significantly affects the quality parameters of the wine. PCA analysis revealed that location is an important factor affecting the wine quality. The areas north and northwest proved more suitable for specific varieties, as they produce wines with more distinct organoleptic characteristics. The results provide insights into the behavior of international and native varieties in the face of global warming and assist in decisions concerning the most suitable plant material. Full article

This review presents an in-depth analysis of the latest methods used for the determination of sucralose (E955), focusing on research conducted over the past 10 years. As a widely used sugar substitute in the food and pharmaceutical industries, sucralose has raised concerns about its environmental persistence, potential genotoxicity, and health impacts. This study examines several spectrophotometric, chromatographic, and electrochemical techniques, evaluating their sensitivity, selectivity, and limitations in differentiating sucralose from natural carbohydrates and other sweeteners. The review highlights the pressing need for novel detection methods that not only improve accuracy in trace detection but also address growing concerns about its bioaccumulation and conversion into harmful metabolites. Advancing these analytical techniques is essential for enhancing food safety, public health surveillance, and environmental risk assessment. Chromatographic methods are dominant in sucralose determination in foods and environmental objects, as they allow the determination of sucralose at micro- and nanomolar levels. However, spectrophotometric and electrochemical methods are frequently used as complementary to chromatographic methodologies, sensitizing them. On the other hand, purely spectrophotometric methods are less popular, and electrochemical methods remain underdeveloped. Therefore, the advancement of sucralose determination must be due to cheaper chromatographic and classical electrochemical methods. Full article