Food Chemistry: X最新文献

A multifunctional packaging film was developed by incorporating blueberry anthocyanins (BA) and seaweed-residue-derived carbon dots (CDs) into a chitosan/fish gelatin (CS/FG) matrix. The CS/FG/BA/0.1CDs film exhibited well-balanced rheology, UV shielding ability, and thermal stability. It also showed improved mechanical strength, enhanced structural uniformity, lower oxygen permeability (4.14 × 10^-11 g·m/(m²·s·Pa)), and superior antioxidant (ABTS: 97.15%; DPPH: 81.88%) and antibacterial activity. Importantly, the film displayed stable and visible colorimetric responses to pH (2-12) and ammonia vapor, enabling real-time freshness monitoring. When applied to large yellow croaker fillets stored at 4 °C, the film effectively delayed spoilage as indicated by reduced pH rise (6.89 ± 0.11), total volatile basic nitrogen content (28.9 ± 1.44 mg N/100 g), and microbial growth after 12 days. Treated samples also retained better texture, water-holding capacity, and sensory scores. These results demonstrate the synergistic effects of BA and CDs in supporting both preservation and intelligent monitoring, offering a sustainable packaging strategy for high-value aquatic products.

Developing reduced-salt shrimp sauce has become an inevitable trend, while increases the risk of spoilage during its storage. The current quality control criteria for shrimp sauce fails to provide accurate and holistic quality assessment. The establishment of new quality control standards is need and necessitates clarifying the quality evolution patterns of low-salt shrimp sauce. During storage, pH, total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), histamine, tartaric acid, succinic acid, hypoxanthine and aromatic compounds increased significantly, while total acidity, inosine monophosphate, alcohols, and aldehydes decreased. Correlation analysis and machine learning found that the level of histamine, total acidity and TVB-N could more accurately reflect shrimp sauce spoilage. Moreover, acetic acid and isoleucine were closely associated with flavor deterioration, while nonanal was strongly linked to odor decline. These findings clarified the relationship between physicochemical changes and flavor evolution, providing a foundation for establishing a robust and enhanced quality evaluation system for low-salt shrimp sauce.

Zhuyeqing is made from Fenjiu base liquor infused with extracts from 12 Chinese herbs. Its medicinal aroma is a unique feature of Zhuyeqing. However, this particular characteristic has not yet been thoroughly studied. Utilizing a normal phase liquid chromatography-sensomics-integrated strategy, we sequentially identified 110 potential odorants in the fraction with characteristic medicinal aroma via GC × GC-TOF MS, then these compounds were narrowed down to 25 sensorially active compounds through GC-O validation. Quantitative analysis identified 10 odorants with odor activity values (OAVs) ≥ 1. Omission experiments indicated that eugenol, sotolon, trans-isoeugenol, guaiacol, anisaldehyde, and acetoin were the key aroma compounds affecting the medicinal characteristic. Innovatively, we revealed the enantioselective distribution patterns of sotolon in Zhuyeqing and elucidated its dynamic evolution correlated with medicinal aroma attenuation. This study establishes the first molecular-level scientific framework for quality modulation of Zhuyeqing, bridging theoretical insights with practical applications.

The growing global dependence on major cereals such as rice and wheat has intensified concerns over food and nutrition security, particularly among marginalized populations facing supply and climate challenges. This underscores the urgent need to diversify cropping systems by promoting resilient alternatives. Minor millets including finger, foxtail, proso, barnyard, kodo, and little millets represent a group of underutilised cereals with exceptional adaptability to harsh environmental conditions and low-input agriculture. This review synthesizes recent findings on the agronomic, nutritional, and socio-economic potential of minor millets as sustainable staple crops in food-insecure and climate-vulnerable regions. Despite being a synthesis of existing studies, this review offers a novel integrative perspective by re-evaluating previous research through the lens of climate resilience, nutritional security, and livelihood improvement. It emphasizes underexplored aspects such as the comparative adaptability of different millet species and their role in localized food systems providing actionable insights for research, and development.

Industrially heat treating ('kilning') oats decreases the protein extractability, which is undesirable in oat-based liquid and semi-solid food applications. We investigated the mechanisms by which oat heat treatment influences protein extractability from both whole meal, and bran- and endosperm-enriched sieving fractions. Protein extractability (pH 9.0) decreased from 67% for non-heat-treated to 49% for lab-scale heat-treated and to 23% for industrially heat-treated oats, with similar trends for bran- (66%, 42% and 23%, respectively) and endosperm-enriched (78%, 57%, 23%, respectively) fractions. Prior cryogenic milling showed that heat treatment affected proteins beyond physical barrier-related effects. Interestingly, differential scanning calorimetry indicated no pronounced protein denaturation upon heat treatment. However, protein secondary structure analyses revealed reduced α-helix and random coil contents, accompanied by elevated intramolecular β-sheet formation. Furthermore, protein aggregation state analyses pointed towards aggregation through non-covalent interactions and disulfide bond formation. Thus, protein aggregation, although not denaturation-induced, explains how kilning influences oat protein extractability.