Pyrethroids can be ingested by humans through eating contaminated oysters, which is potentially harmful to health. This study aimed to investigate the effects of raw, steaming, and roasting on cypermethrin (CP) and fenpropathrin (FP) in oysters during simulated digestion. Results showed that the amount of released CP and FP was different from raw (CP: 0.617 µg·g−1, FP: 0.266 µg·g−1), steaming (CP: 0.498 µg·g−1, FP: 0.660 µg·g−1), and roasting (CP: 1.186 µg·g−1, FP: 0.588 µg·g−1) at the end of simulated digestion. The share of cis-CP and low-efficiency CP increased significantly (p < 0.05), and the share of high-efficiency trans-CP did not maintain a high level for a long time during simulated digestion. The fluorimetric titration and isothermal titration calorimetry confirmed that CP and FP could spontaneously interact with oyster actin, and CP could bind with oyster actin more tightly than FP. This study reveals that cooking methods affect the binding capacity of CP and FP to oyster tissues and influence the changes of CP and FP in oysters during digestion. Furthermore, the current study provides a reference for assessing the potential harm of pyrethroids in oysters to consumers.

Recently, there has been a growing focus on researching ways to delay aging and protect against age-related illnesses. Small molecular exogenous peptides, sourced from dietary elements like animals, plants, and microorganisms, have demonstrated considerable potential in exerting anti-aging effects. Notably, natural food-derived peptides have exhibited enhanced stability, safety, absorption efficiency, and heightened biological activity. These attributes position them with a greater potential for mitigating aging-related disorders compared to alternative anti-aging drugs or phytochemicals. This review summarizes the origins, structural attributes, and isolation methods of natural food-derived peptides with anti-aging properties. It also explores how these external peptides improve aging-related conditions such as neurodegenerative diseases, skin aging, and metabolic disorders. The underlying mechanisms dictating their impact on well-conserved signaling pathways—encompassing oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, and collagen synthesis—are meticulously elucidated. This paper engages in an insightful exploration of the key challenges and pivotal trajectories, grounded in ongoing research endeavors. As a result, this review is poised to offer authoritative scientific guidance and invaluable support for the practical implementation of natural food-derived peptides in the realm of anti-aging applications within the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries.

The current study set out to find out how shrimp quality in cold storage (4 °C) for 21 d was impacted by antimelanosic treatments (10% acerola fruit extract (AF) and 1.25% sodium metabisulphite (SMS) solutions for 10 min) in combination with modified atmosphere packaging (MAP, including vacuum): Atmospheric air (AIR), MAP1 [70% N2 : 25% CO2 : 5% O2], MAP2 [25% N2 : 70% CO2 : 5% O2], and vacuum (VAC). Untreated samples were considered as Control (C). Every three days, microbiological, physicochemical, and sensory investigations were conducted. Overall, the findings show that MAP improve the shelf-life of shrimp stored under 4 °C. In the battle to control melanosis, SMS's effectiveness – either alone or in combination with MAP – was overwhelming. Notwithstanding, the AF was also efficient and can be an effective and a natural substitute in the control of melanosis. When considering the results of the physico-chemical and microbiological results, the SMS often did not differ from the treatment with AF, demonstrating the excellent viability of the AF on the quality of the shrimp stored under refrigeration. However, given that acerola's high levels of vitamin C and phenolic compounds are known to have antioxidant activity, it is advised that additional studies be conducted. Preferably, these studies should aim to isolate specific fruit parts (peel, pulp, seeds) to determine where the highest concentration of phenolic compounds is found, or even to purify acerola extracts to comprehend the fruit's true antimelanosic potential.

Volatile flavor has prompted a great amount of influence in acceptance and view points in fruit products. Melon (Pyrus communis) is an aroma-dense fruit, thus, the evaluation of volatile flavor is crucial to melon-breeding. The volatile compounds present in nine varieties of Xinjiang muskmelons were identified and analyzed using the headspace solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry methods. In addition, transcriptomics were used to discover the differential genes in fatty acid degradation pathways. It was found that a total of 170 volatile substances, including 52 alcohols, 41 esters, 24 aldehydes, 32 ketones, 14 acids and seven phenols, were identified in the nine melons. Results of PCA showed that 3-nonanol, 2-nonanol, bis (2-ethylhexyl) adipate, and 2-methylpropanal contributed more to the flavor of melon. It was verified that high activities of acyl-coenzyme A cholesterol acyltransferase (AAT) promoted the conversion of alcohols to esters, so that the melons have a high content of esters. Four genes of long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase were mainly responsible for the large difference in volatile substances. This practice may further undermine the primary rationale for the breeding and promotion in different cultivars of muskmelon.

With the increasing demand for environmentally friendly, safe, preservative and intelligent food packaging, there is a growing trend towards using plant-derived natural colorants that posses green, non-toxic, antioxidant, antibacterial, and pH-sensitive properties. As a result, the development of active intelligent packaging films containing plant-derived natural colorants has become a research priority in the realm of food packaging. As a novel packaging approach, it can serve as an active and intelligent packaging system to prolong shelf life and monitor food quality. On the basis of introducing several widely used natural colorants derived from plants, this review examines the preparation, structural characterization, physical properties, and functional aspects of these plant-derived pigments. The preparation procedures of various film forming substrates and natural pigment based films are also comprehensively discussed. Furthermore, the utilization of natural pigment-based films as active and intelligent packaging materials in food is discussed in depth, providing valuable insights into the future development of this cutting-edge research area.

Prevalence of kidney stones has increased continously over several decades worldwide, the major causes of which are largely unknown. To explore the dietary causes of kidney stones, and reveal mechanisms underlying dietary risk factors inducing kidney stones, animal experiments using mice as the disease model were performed. Eight-week old male CD-1 mice were treated by ethylene glycol, cholesterol or/and apple tannins for 3 d, respectively. In the present study, the crystalline analysis in urine and kidney tissues, HE staining kidney sections as well as observation of micro-stones, tannins and cholesterol deposition in kidneys of mice in different groups were conducted. We found that gavage with ethylene glycol, cholesterol and tannins resulted in mice urine solute supersaturation in renal tubules and forming kidney stones. Significant cholesterol and tannin deposits in mouse kidney were observed by laser confocal microscopy and crystals were shown either adhered with or co-deposited with cholesterol and tannin deposits. The primary crystals were found in renal cortex, medullar, especially papilla in the kidney sections under polarized microscope. These findings demonstrate that interaction of cholesterol and tannins in kidney plays a critical role in the formation of kidney stones.

While high-hydrostatic pressure (HHP) has successfully been applied to the pasteurization of fruit and vegetable juice beverages, their quality-stable shelf life during storage has not been fully elucidated. Therefore, we investigated the effect of HHP (550 MPa/10 min) treatment on polyphenols, carotenoids, ascorbic acids, and antioxidant capacity in tomato juice and their changes during 4-week refrigerated storage. High-temperature short-time (HTST, 110 °C/8.6 s) treatment was used as a control. The results revealed a significantly greater presence of polyphenols, carotenoids, ascorbic acid content, and antioxidant capacity in tomato juice after HHP processing than after HTST processing. However, the total carotenoids and total phenolic content in HHP-treated tomato juice decreased dramatically and approached that in the HTST-treated tomato juice after 1 week of storage. Therefore, HHP’s advantage in maintaining antioxidant compounds and capacity was only evident during the first week of storage in tomato juice. Nevertheless, the post-storage caffeic acid, quercetin, ferulic acid, and p-coumaric acid concentrations were 8.31, 4.77, 1.86, and 6.84 μg/g higher in the HHP-treated than in HTST-treated tomato juice, respectively. This study provides a new perspective for predicting HHP products' quality-stable shelf life.

Ferritin, as an iron storage protein, has been considered to be a well-utilized iron supplement. However, the typical thermal processing of food rich in ferritin may affect the structure and function of ferritin as an iron supplement. Here, a plant ferritin (soybean seed ferritin, SSF) and an animal ferritin (donkey spleen ferritin, DSF) were used to analyze the changes in fundamental structure and iron content after thermal treatments (68 °C for 30 min, 100 °C for 10 min). Then, SSF and DSF after thermal treatment were administered intragastrically to mice to further evaluate its digestive stability and absorptivity after thermal processing. Results showed the secondary structure, oligomeric states, iron content, and digestive stability of DSF were maintained better than that of SSF after thermal treatments, indicating that DSF has a higher thermostability than SSF. Both SSF and DSF after thermal treatment exhibited higher absorptivity than untreated ferritins. SSF showed higher absorptivity than DSF whether heated or not.

The Leuconostoc citreum SJ-57 strain isolated from the sweet potato starch production showed great potential as a microbiological flocculant, but its underlying flocculation mechanisms are yet unknown. In this study, infrared spectroscopy and thermodynamic analysis were performed to elucidate the short-range and long-range interactions between Leuc. citreum SJ-57 and starch granules, revealing that bacteria cells bond starch granules via metal-bridging ionic bonds. A high repulsive energy barrier of ~8 × 10−18 J must be overcome to initiate the flocculation process. Heat, protease, lipase, lysozyme, dextranase, and guanidine hydrochloride were used to treat the bacterial cell, confirming that its flocculation ability originated from surface proteins, including GW structural domain proteins, DnaK, GroEL, elongation factor Tu, and lysozyme M1. The primary flocculation mechanisms of Leuc. citreum was proposed to provide a deep understanding of microbiological flocculants and a foundation for future industrial applications in starch production.

Strong κ-carrageenan (KC) hydrogels were fabricated via solvent replacement with sorbitol, and the effects of KC mass fraction and solvent replacement on the structural characteristics encapsulation capability of the hydrogels were evaluated. Microstructural observation showed that the 3D network structures of hydrogels exhibited a complete and continuous skeleton. FTIR spectra of KC hydrogels revealed the formation of intermolecular hydrogen bonds after sorbitol replacement. The stability against heating and freeze-thawing of hydrogels was enhanced due to the addition of sorbitol and the rise in KC mass fraction. The hydrogel with 1.5 wt% KC after sorbitol replacement presented the best stability. Frequency sweep tests suggested that storage modulus of the samples were influenced by sorbitol replacement and KC concentration. Swelling tests revealed that the hydrogels after replacement with a higher KC content (1.25, 1.50 wt%) presented higher swelling capacity, and they were more stable in alkaline and acidic solutions. When epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) was incorporated within the hydrogels, the hydrogels after sorbitol replacement offered higher protection capability. The information obtained in this study indicated that sorbitol replacement strengthened KC hydrogels, and they could act more appropriately as accountable carriers for bioactives.