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Protein Z (PZ) derived from barley malt has been identified as one of the key proteins contributing to foam stability. Recently, PZ was also recognized as an effective carrier, a functionality attributed to its serpin-like activities. This study investigated key structural-functional changes in PZ during thermal processing (mashing and boiling). The structural modifications of PZ variants were analyzed using FT-IR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy). The results indicated that the secondary structure of PZ, after mashing, did not change significantly, whereas the β-turn content of PZ after boiling increased to 24.08% ± 0.34%. Interfacial adsorption kinetics, coupled with structural analysis, revealed that PZ, after mashing, exhibited the highest foamability (41.4 ± 0.38%), which was associated with the highest diffusion rate constant (K_diff) (1.05 ± 0.03). In contrast, PZ after boiling demonstrated superior foam stability (68.54 ± 1.12%), which correlated with the highest rearrangement rate constant (K_R) (-6.13 ± 0.06). Moreover, PZ, after mashing, exhibited enhanced inhibitory activity, an effect associated with the removal of glycosylation at Thr344 and Thr350 (located in the reactive center loop of PZ) via enzymatic hydrolysis during the mashing process. In contrast, PZ after boiling resulted in a loss of thrombin inhibitory activity, consistent with protein denaturation at high temperatures. These findings elucidate how structural modifications affect the function of PZ during brewing, thereby providing a scientific foundation for its potential applications across multiple fields.

Bamboo shoots are a valuable source of dietary fiber and antioxidants; however, their high levels of soluble oxalates and uric acid require reduction prior to consumption. This study evaluated the effects of washing, soaking, and boiling on soluble oxalate content, uric acid content, antioxidant activity, and the phenolic and flavonoid profiles of bamboo shoots. Washing resulted in only slight reductions in soluble oxalates and uric acid. Prolonged soaking (7-10 h) produced more pronounced decreases, while extended boiling (60 min) was the most effective treatment, reducing uric acid and soluble oxalate levels by 86% and 89%, respectively. Processing also led to significant reductions in total phenolic content, antioxidant activity, and individual phenolic and flavonoid compounds, primarily due to leaching and thermal degradation. FTIR analysis indicated that processing mainly affected soluble components, whereas the core polysaccharide structure remained relatively stable. After selecting the optimal pretreatment, the resulting dried powders exhibited markedly reduced antinutritional factors while maintaining desirable nutritional, physicochemical, and functional properties. These findings demonstrate that processed bamboo shoot powder can be safely incorporated into food products and has strong potential as a functional ingredient for health-oriented applications.

Hyperlipidemia is a metabolic disease of significant current concern. Research has demonstrated that hyperlipidemia is a primary risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Furthermore, hyperlipidemia significantly increases the risk of intracellular lipid peroxidation, which further contributes to the development of CVD. Dietary bioactive interventions, including polysaccharides, polyphenols, and organic acids, have demonstrated significant potential in regulating lipid metabolism and preventing chronic diseases. This study investigated the hypoglycemic effects of Yongchun aged vinegar powder (YAVP) using an in vitro model. Considering that the bioactivity of dietary components is influenced by gastrointestinal transit, YAVP was first underwent simulated gastric and intestinal digestion in vitro. The resulting digests were applied to a sodium oleate-induced high-fat HepG2 cell model. The results demonstrated that digested YAVP significantly inhibited intracellular lipid accumulation in a dose-dependent manner. Specifically, YAVP intervention substantially lowered concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), while simultaneously elevating high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels relative to the model group. These findings suggest that YAVP retains its bioactivity after simulated digestion and exerts potent hypoglycemic effects by regulating lipid profiles in HepG2 cells, supporting its potential as a functional dietary supplement for lipid management.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of carotenoid-biofortified Pexeso wheat compared with those of common Tercie wheat on performance characteristics, nutrient retention, and tissue antioxidant concentrations in broiler chickens. A total of 180 one-day-old Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly allocated to 2 dietary treatments (i.e., Tercie vs. Pexeso), with 6 replicate pens and 15 chicks per pen. Pexeso wheat, characterized by increased lutein and zeaxanthin concentrations, in combination with rapeseed oil as the primary dietary fat source, significantly improved the feed conversion ratio (FCR; p < 0.001), despite not affecting the body weight of the chickens at 35 days of age or feed intake. This improved efficiency was consistent with the significantly increased retention of crude protein (p = 0.004). Specifically, the concentrations of γ-tocopherol (p = 0.006) and lutein (p = 0.004) in the breast meat and γ-tocopherol (p = 0.047), lutein (p < 0.001), and zeaxanthin (p < 0.001) in the liver significantly increased in the Pexeso group. This accumulation was supported by the significantly greater retention of these antioxidants (p = 0.008, p < 0.001, and p < 0.001, respectively). In conclusion, the inclusion of carotenoid-biofortified Pexeso wheat effectively improved the FCR and enhanced the antioxidant profile of chicken tissues. These findings suggest that Pexeso wheat represents a viable strategy for improving nutrient utilization and the nutritional quality of poultry meat.

This study evaluates a non-invasive and feasible nutritional strategy as a realistic intervention to prevent or mitigate T2DM in one-year-old female Wistar rats. This strategy is based on replacing a commercial pâté (CP) with a functional one, either a silicon-enriched commercial pâté (Si-CP), a reduced-fat pâté formulated with a biopolymeric emulsion (BP), or a silicon-enriched and reduced-fat biopolymeric pâté (Si-BP). After consumption of a high-saturated fat high-cholesterol diet, CP rats exhibited elevated fecal excretion, fasting serum glucose, insulin, and LDL cholesterol, and altered islet morphology. Versus the CP group, the Si-CP consumption group exhibited significantly reduced fecal output (1.17 ± 0.02 vs. 2.09 ± 0.44) and serum insulin (12.06 ± 7.89 vs. 20.74 ± 7.44), triglycerides (47.51 ± 4.46 vs. 58.24 ± 9.97), LDL cholesterol (34.63 ± 5.14 vs. 42.20 ± 4.98), and ghrelin (32.49 ± 24.66 vs. 78.35 ± 22.85). Although BP rats also exhibited some positive effects, Si-BP animals presented the most promising results. Compared to the CP group, Si-BP consumption significantly reduced fecal excretion (1.44 ± 0.24) and serum glucose (129.1 ± 10.40 vs. 154.9 ± 15.76), insulin (9.49 ± 6.06), triglycerides (46.91 ± 5.13), and estradiol (528.2 ± 45.00 vs. 634.4 ± 98.87), preserved islet circularity (0.88 ± 0.02 vs. 0.82 ± 0.01), and significantly increased tibia length (4.09 ± 0.12 vs. 3.95 ± 0.09) and wet weight (0.65 ± 0.07 vs. 0.56 ± 0.06). This study demonstrates the antidiabetic effects of silicon from diatomaceous earth (4 mg Si/kg body/day) incorporated into pâté in middle-aged female rats. Replacing CP with a functional alternative improved the health status of diabetic female rats, supporting its potential as an effective nutritional adjuvant.

The spherical pectin is an important bioactive component of chrysanthemum tea infusion, but its biological function, primary structure, and structure-activity relationship remain unclear. The present study evaluated the immunostimulatory activity of spherical pectin from Chrysanthemummorifolium Ramat. 'Hangbaiju' tea infusion in RAW264.7 cells and preliminarily investigated its structure-immunostimulatory activity relationship. The rhamnogalacturonan-I (RG-I) domain played a key role in the immunostimulatory activity of spherical pectin. Terminal and branched arabinose residues together accounted for 73.8% of the total arabinose residues in spherical pectin, indicating that the arabinan chains of spherical pectin were highly branched. The backbone of these arabinan chains consisted of →5)-α-Araf-(1→ repeats, and additional →5)-α-Araf-(1→ branches were linked to the backbone via α-1,3-glycosidic linkages. The spherical pectin rich in highly branched arabinan chains activated RAW264.7 cells via recognition by toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). Molecular docking analysis revealed that →5)-α-Araf-(1→ branches in spherical pectin could bind to toll-like receptor 4/myeloid differentiation protein-2 (TLR4/MD-2) complexes and stabilize the dimer structure, which represents an important mechanism for its immunostimulatory activity. This study provides new insights into the structure-function relationship of spherical pectin.

Fermentation with various microorganisms modifies the quality of coffee. In animal-digested coffee, enzymatic activity also affects coffee characteristics. However, limited information is available on in vitro coffee modification employing both mechanisms simultaneously in controlled conditions. In this study, robusta green beans were modified with selected bacterial species (Bacillus subtilis, Gluconobacter sp., Lactiplantibacillus plantarum) and pepsin, which was introduced at the soaking or fermentation stage. The characteristics of green and roasted coffee were analyzed, including the amount of basic aroma precursors, antioxidant activity, acrylamide concentration and volatile organic compound (VOC) content. The number of bacterial cells increased by 1.95-2.64 logCFU/mL during the modification process; pepsin addition did not affect their growth significantly. The use of acid-producing bacteria (APB) resulted in higher consumption of sucrose but also in greater retention of bioactive compounds and higher antioxidant activity. The acrylamide content in fermented and roasted beans was below 10 μg/100 g dry matter; the lowest values were reported after modification with L. plantarum. The combination of tested bacterial and enzymatic processes changed the content and composition of VOCs. Further research should focus on sensory attributes as the result of the combined modification process.

This study reports the first successful isolation and characterization of exosome-like nanoparticles from walnut kernels (WELNs). The isolated WELNs exhibited a typical cup-shaped morphology with an average diameter of 139.7 ± 67.5 nm, a concentration of 7.4 × 10¹¹ particles/mL, and a zeta potential of -17.47 ± 4.06 mV. Proteomic and small RNA sequencing analyses confirmed the presence of diverse proteins and microRNAs within WELNs. In vitro assays demonstrated their potent antioxidant capacity, with radical scavenging rates of 67.54% against ABTS⁺ and 48.59% against DPPH⁺ at 102 μg/mL and IC₅₀ values of 89.7 μg/mL and >102 μg/mL for scavenging of ABTS⁺ and DPPH⁺ radicals, respectively. Cytotoxicity assays indicated no adverse effects on RAW264.7 macrophage viability at concentrations up to 60 μg/mL. In LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages, WELN treatment (20-60 μg/mL) dose-dependently mitigated oxidative stress by reducing intracellular ROS levels (down to 81.22% of the control at 60 μg/mL) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content while restoring the activities of antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Furthermore, WELNs significantly suppressed the production of nitric oxide (NO) and pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β (reduced to approximately 30.8%, 22.7%, and 23.6% of LPS-induced levels, respectively, at 60 μg/mL). Mechanistic investigation revealed that the anti-inflammatory effect was mediated through the inhibition of the MAPK signaling pathway, as evidenced by decreased phosphorylation of p38, ERK, and JNK. In conclusion, WELNs exhibit dual anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This study provides the first evidence of bioactivity for walnut-derived exosome-like nanoparticles, advancing the mechanistic understanding of walnuts' health benefits and highlighting their potential as a natural component for functional food applications.

Fermentation is increasingly used as a controlled bioprocessing approach to modify medicinal plant extracts by selectively transforming phytochemicals while maintaining safety and compositional integrity. Controlled in vitro fermentation has gained attention as a practical method to generate stable, cell-independent bioactivity consistent with postbiotic concepts. This review examines Scopus-indexed studies on fermented medicinal plant extracts, focusing on microbial platforms, fermentation strategies, dominant biotransformation pathways, and functional outcomes. Evidence indicates that fermentation is not a uniform process but follows platform-specific enzymatic pathways that reshape phenolics, flavonoids, alkaloids, and polysaccharides. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are most frequently applied due to their safety profile and enzymatic capacity, while yeasts and filamentous fungi enable complementary matrix restructuring and deeper chemical modification. Across systems, fermentation-driven biotransformation produces bioactive profiles that persist independently of microbial viability, supporting a postbiotic-oriented interpretation. Applications have been reported in food, nutraceutical, cosmetic, and animal nutrition contexts, although clinical translation remains limited. Remaining challenges include incomplete mechanistic understanding, limited standardization, and unclear regulatory positioning.