Objective To determine the content of 8 kinds of heavy metals, copper (Cu), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), and chromium (Cr) in Astragalus membranaceus and soil samples, and conduct the risk assessment. Methods Thirty-five batches of samples were collected in 5 provinces, namely Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Gansu, Ningxia and Shaanxi, for the determination of 8 kinds of heavy metals in the soils of Astragalus and Astragalus origin using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The health risks of Astragalus membranaceus in different intake groups were evaluated by calculating 3 kinds of different risk assessment models, namely, the estimated daily intake, the carcinogenic risk, and the target hazard quotient. Results The recoveries were in the range of 99.1%-108.8% with the relative standard deviations in the range of 0.445%-5.720%, which indicated that the accuracy and precision of the method were good. The average heavy metal content of the 35 batches of Astragalus membranaceus was Zn>Cu>Cr>Ni>Pb>As>Cd and Hg, and no exceedance of heavy metals complied with the limit standards for heavy metals in Chinese herbal medicines in the 2020 edition of Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China. The results of the 3 kinds of risk assessments showed that the health risk of heavy metal content of Astragalus membranaceus for different groups of people was within the acceptable range. Conclusion The contamination of heavy metals in Astragalus membranaceus is widespread, and the development of the Astragalus membranaceus industry is still potentially risky. In order to ensure the medicinal safety of Astragalus membranaceus, the prevention and control of heavy metals in Astragalus membranaceus shall be carried out in the future from the planting source of Astragalus membranaceus, the processing method, and other aspects of Astragalus membranaceus.

Objective To establish an analytical method for the rapid determination of 5 kinds of peptide toxins in samples from wild mushroom poisoning incidents by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Methods The remaining mushrooms and patient urine samples were extracted by methanol, purified by 250 mg N-propyl ethylenediamine (PSA), and separated by Waters CORTECS C₁₈⁺ liquid chromatography column. The mobile phase consisted of methanol and 2 mmol/L ammonium acetate (containing 0.1% formic acid) under gradient elution. They were determined by HPLC-MS/MS. Results The 5 kinds of peptide toxins had a good linear relationship (r>0.997) at the concentration 10.0-500.0 µg/L. The limits of detection (LODs) of 5 kinds of peptide toxins in the mushroom samples were 2.0-3.0 µg/kg, the limits of quantification (LOQs) were 5.0-10.0 µg/kg. In the urine samples, the LODs of 5 kinds of peptide toxins were 0.8-1.2 µg/L, the LOQs were 2.0-4.0 µg/L. The recoveries of method were 60.1%-94.9%, and the relative standard deviations were 2.0%-17.7% (n=6). Conclusion This method is accurate and rapid, and suitable for determination of peptide toxins in residual mushroom and patient urine samples from wild mushroom poisoning incidents.

Objective To investigate the residual characteristics of neonicotinoids pesticides in vegetables and the dietary exposure risk of residents in Hubei Province from 2022 to 2023. Methods A total of 887 vegetable samples were collected from 17 cities in Hubei Province, and neonicotinoid pesticide residues were determined. Dietary exposure was assessed according to the vegetable consumption of residents in Hubei Province. Results The overall detection rate of neonicotinoids in vegetables in Hubei Province was 33.4%, and the exceeding standard rate was 1.58%. The top 3 neonicotinoids exceeding the standard rate were clothianide (1.01%), acetamidine (0.23%) and imidacloprid (0.23%). The top 3 vegetable varieties exceeding the standard rate were fresh beans (6.06%), roots and tubers (4.48%), and melon vegetables (2.00%). The results of dietary exposure assessment showed that the chronic exposure hazard quotient of different neonicotinoids in Hubei Province was less than 1, the chronic exposure risk was low. The cumulative exposure of 8 kinds of neonicotinoids accounts for 2.78% of the acceptable daily intake of the indicator compound imidacloprid, indicating a low cumulative exposure risk. Conclusion The chronic exposure risk of neonicotinoid pesticides through vegetables for residents in Hubei Province from 2022 to 2023 is relatively low. However, there are cases of neonicotinoid pesticide residues exceeding the standard in vegetables, and the types of vegetables with excessive residues are different from those of traditional pesticides. It is suggested that relevant regulatory authorities further strengthen the supervision of neonicotinoid pesticides in fresh beans, root and tuber vegetables, and gourd vegetables.

Objective To investigate the effects of light and air on the storage quality and volatile flavor compounds of rice bran. Methods Fresh and high temperature and pressure steam stabilized rice bran were used as raw materials to investigate the effects of light and air on the changes of acid value, peroxide value, γ-oryzanol content, chromaticity and other physicochemical indexes as well as volatile flavor compounds during storage. Results During the storage process, light and air exerted insignificant influences on the acid value and γ-oryzanol content of stabilized rice bran, and had limited effects on the chromaticity indices L^*, a^* and b^* values. However, they had a significant impact on the peroxide value. For the stabilized rice bran, the peroxide value could increase by up to 25 times in the presence of light and air. As the storage time extended, the types of volatile flavor substances in rice bran samples kept increasing. The treatments of avoiding light and vacuum could effectively prevent the generation of oxidation products such as aldehydes, ketones, and alcohols. In the presence of light and air, the concentrations of aldehydes and ketones in the stabilized rice bran increased by 6 times and 26 times. Conclusion The acid value of rice bran stabilized using high temperature and high pressure steam exhibits minimal changes when exposed to light and air during storage. However, the peroxide value and its oxidation products increases substantially, this indicates that avoiding light and vacuum treatment is the key to extending the shelf life of stabilized rice bran, providing a theoretical basis for its storage and industrial application.

Objective To establish a method for the simultaneous detection of multiple amino acids in each part of pork by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Methods The samples were extracted by acidizing high-temperature hydrolysis, acidizing microwave hydrolysis and alkalization high-temperature hydrolysis, determined by HPLC-MS/MS, electrospray ionization in positive ion mode, multiple reaction monitoring (MRM), used formic acid solution-methanol acetonitrile (1:4, V:V) solution of formic acid as mobile phase with gradient elution. Results It was extracted by acidizing microwave hydrolysis with short time and high efficiency. The detection method had a good relationship in the linear range, r² was between 0.9905 and 0.9956, the limits of detection were 0.012-0.133 ng/mL, the limits of quantitation were 0.038-0.444 ng/mL, the average recoveries were in the range 85.58% and 98.84%, the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 0.68%-6.71%. Conclusion The method has simple process, good repeatability and stability, and can not only be used for simultaneous detection of multiple amino acids in each part of pork to achieve the purpose of high-throughput and rapid detection, but also can effectively monitor the adulteration behavior of pork products.

Objective To establish an ultra performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detector method to analysis 3 kinds of furanocoumarins in dried citrus slices. Methods The samples were ultrasonically extracted with 40 mL ethyl acetate for 40 min twice. Vortex-assisted extraction were then repeated twice using 20 mL of ethyl acetate for 10 min. The ethyl acetate extracts were combined, concentrated to dryness in a rotary evaporator at 30 °C. The determination was carried out using an Acquity UPLC HSS C₁₈ SB column (2.1mm×150 mm, 1.8 μm) with a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min, column temperature of 30 ℃, and detector wavelength of 310 nm. A gradient elution was performed with mobile phase A water and acetonitrile as mobile phase B. Results The 6’,7’-dihydroxybergamottin, epoxybergamottin and bergamottin showed good linearity within 3.00~300.00 μg/mL, 4.32-432.00 μg/mL and 4.12-412.00 μg/mL with correlation coefficients greater than 0.999. The limits of detection were 0.09-0.17 μg/g. The limits of quantitation were 0.31-0.57 μg/g. The average recoveries with 3 concentration levels were 94.4%-99.1%. The relative standard deviations were between 2.7% and 4.7% (n=6). This method could separate 3 kinds of furanocoumarins in dried citrus slices well in 25 minutes. The developed method was successfully applied to determine 3 kinds of furanocoumarins in 18 kinds of dried citrus slices and powders. The content of 6’,7’-dihydroxybergamottin was between 1.52 and 159.04 μg/g. The content of epoxybergamottin was between 49.57 and 60.09 μg/g. The content of bergamottin was between 1.49 and 248.71 μg/g. Conclusion The established method has good repeatability and high accuracy, and can be used for the 3 kinds of furanocoumarins determination in dried citrus slices.

Objective To optimize the new product formulations of zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasoning based on the quantitative descriptive analysis and consumer preference testing. Methods Quantitative descriptive analysis was used to confirm the main attributes of four zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasonings. The consumer preferences of the overall flavor were evaluated through 9-point hedonic tests. The intensity perception of the attributes of the zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasoning were evaluated by 5-point just-about-right (5-JAR) method. Results The Luoshenhua flavor performed best for consumer overall likings, followed by the Sichuan style spicy flavor zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasoning. The fruity flavor and the Japanese style original flavor got the lowest acceptance scores among the four zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasoning. According to the JAR analysis, the attributes needed to be adjusted such as the strength of the color, aroma, acidity, saltiness, and aftertaste of the Japanese original flavor and fruity flavor zero-fat oil vinegar liquid seasoning samples, and the flavor of Luoshenhua and Sichuan style spicy samples needed to be fine-tuned for individual attributes. Conclusion By utilizing quantitative descriptive analysis and consumer sensory testing, the sensory attributes of products can be combined with consumer preferences, which could effectively reflect the consumer acceptance of each attributes of the product. This provided guidance and reference for new product development and formula adjustment.

Objective To gain a more intuitive understanding of the academic context and evolutionary trends of the ion mobility spectrometry applied in the field of food science. Methods This study took the literature from the Web of Science core database over the past 15 years as the research object, and used bibliometric analysis methods to reveal the current status, hotspots and development trends of research in this field. Results Our study had shown that the number of publications on the application of ion mobility spectrometry in food science research is constantly increasing, which involves the interdisciplinary fields such as chemistry, nutrition, biochemistry, agriculture, spectroscopy, environment and pharmacy beyond food science and technology. The number of the China’s publication was far ahead, and its institutions had great international discourse power, but the personal academic influence of Chinese authors still needs to be improved. At present, the main hotspots included the studies on different food qualities and flavors, metabolomics, volatile (organic) compounds and enrichment, optimization of instrument parameters and conditions, statistical methods, sample identification and classification, and multiple instrument combination analysis based on the application of ion mobility spectrometry. The co-occurrence, clustering and emergence analysis of the keywords further reveal the evolution process and mutation situation of research hotspots. Conclusion This study can provide theoretical basis for experts and scholars in the fields of food science and analytical chemistry to grasp the international application status and future development trends of ion mobility spectrometry.

Postbiotics refer to microecological preparations made from inactivated microbial cells (dead bacterial bodies), cell lysates and fermentation metabolites, which are beneficial to the health of the host. They have attracted much attention in the fields of food and medicine due to their various biological functions such as improving intestinal health, antibacterial, anticancer and immune enhancement. The preparation of postbiotics mainly includes several steps such as fermentation, inactivation and bacterial cell disruption. The choice of fermentation strains and different inactivation methods can affect the activity of postbiotics. The active substances in postbiotics mainly include teichoic acid, proteins, peptides, short-chain fatty acids, exopolysaccharides, organic acids, etc. This paper summarized the definition, preparation methods, main components and active functions of postbiotics in combination with the research progress at home and abroad. It focused on elucidating the latest research results of postbiotics in maintaining intestinal health, enhancing immune function, and maintaining oral health, and reviewed the application progress of postbiotics in the fields of drugs, food and food preservation. At the same time, it analyzed the challenges of postbiotics in the application of the health industry from aspects such as production, product standardization, and regulatory and evaluation systems. This review aims to provide references for the development of postbiotics-related functional products and for innovation in research and application in the field of human health.

Objective To screen lactic acid bacteria from Viili fermented milk and explore the proportion of bacteria in the compound starter cultures. Methods Lactic acid bacteria were isolated using streak plating, and their taxonomic classification was determined through phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA sequences. The composition of strain ratios in mixed cultures was designed with reference to the bacterial abundance observed in Viili fermented milk. Comprehensive analyses were performed to evaluate the acidity, exopolysaccharide production, textural properties and volatile flavor compounds of the mixed fermentation groups. Results Diversity analysis identified 4 bacterial genera, among which Lactococcus, Streptococcus and Leuconostoc were the dominant genera, comprising 49.12%, 40.67% and 10.21% of the total bacterial composition, respectively. Lactococcus lactis H2, Streptococcus thermophilus H17, Leuconostoc mesenteroides H30 and Lactobacillus paracasei H33 were isolated and screened. A total of 20 fermentation trials with different strain compositions were designed to conduct a comprehensive assessment of key parameters, including pH, coagulation time, textural properties, exopolysaccharide content and flavor profile. The results indicated that formulations S13 (H2:H17:H30:H33=11:4:4:1) and S17 (H2:H17:H30:H33=30:35:16:19) demonstrated the highest similarity to Viili fermented milk in terms of physicochemical and sensory properties. Conclusion The blended formulations S13 (H2:H17:H30:H33=11:4:4:1) and S17 (H2:H17:H30:H33=30:35:16:19) exhibit promising potential as compound starter cultures. This study provides a theoretical basis for developing compound starter cultures in Viili fermented milk production.