To explore the effects of different pretreatment methods on the structure and physicochemical properties of soluble dietary fiber (SDF) from millet bran and to achieve its high-value utilization. This study used millet bran as the raw material and SDF yield as the indicator. Single-factor and orthogonal experiments were employed to determine the optimal pretreatment conditions for the different pretreatment methods (ultrasound, superfine grinding, and ultrasound-superfine grinding combination). The effects of different treatment methods on the structure and physicochemical characteristics of millet bran SDF were analyzed by measuring indicators such as monosaccharide composition, molecular weight distribution, infrared spectra, internal particle structure, micro-morphology, thermogravimetric, water holding capacity, oil holding capacity, swelling capacity, and solubility. The results showed that under the conditions of grinding particle size of 800 mesh, solid-liquid ratio of 1:40 (g/mL), ultrasonic power of 330 W, and ultrasonic time of 50 min, the highest SDF yield of millet bran reached 20.44%±0.17%, representing a 2.68-fold increase in yield. Compared with conventional grinding, ultrasound, and superfine grinding, their combination altered the relative content of monosaccharide components in millet bran SDF. The combination of both methods increased the proportion of high molecular weight components to 45.42%, forming a loose and porous structure on the crystal surface, and had the most obvious effect on reducing its orderliness and thermal stability. Meanwhile, analysis of physicochemical characteristics indicated that the ultrasound-superfine grinding combination significantly improved the water-holding capacity, oil-holding capacity, swelling capacity, and solubility of millet bran SDF (P<0.05). Therefore, the combined treatment of ultrasound and superfine grinding enhances the physicochemical characteristics by improving its structure, thereby improving the processing performance and increasing the potential utilization value of millet bran SDF.

To investigate the changes in nutritional characteristics of Amanita caesarea under different drying treatments, in this study, we used fresh A. caesarea as raw material and subjected them to three drying methods: vacuum freeze drying, hot air drying, and natural sun drying. The 10 kinds of minerals, 18 kinds of amino acids, volatile substances, fatty acids, crude protein, total sugar, crude fat, crude fiber, ash and riboflavin in Amanita caesarea after different drying treatments were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry, high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, gas chromatography, Coomassie brilliant blue method, phenol-sulfuric acid method, Soxhlet extraction method, acid-base hydrolysis method of fiber analyzer, determination method of total ash in food and fluorescence spectrophotometry. The results showed that vacuum freeze drying yielded the highest levels of crude protein, total sugar, and riboflavin, different drying methods had a significant impact on riboflavin content, while their effects on crude fat, crude fiber, and ash were relatively small. The mineral calcium (Ca) content was highest in hot air drying, whereas iron (Fe), sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), zinc (Zn), and manganese (Mn) were highest in vacuum freeze drying. The total amino acid content, amino acid score, and essential amino acid index were ranked as follows: vacuum freeze drying>natural sun drying>hot air drying. The number of volatile compounds was highest in vacuum freeze drying, followed by natural sun drying and hot air drying. The types and contents of fatty acids were vacuum freeze drying>natural sun drying>hot air drying. Based on the above three drying methods, it could be seen that vacuum freeze drying had the best retention effect on the types and contents of nutritional in A. caesarea, followed by natural sun drying and hot air drying. Therefore, vacuum freeze drying was more suitable for drying A. caesarea. This study provides a theoretical basis for more scientific and rational drying of A. caesarea and other edible fungi by investigating the retention basic nutrients and volatile substances under three different drying treatments.

In this study, lard, whey protein, sucrose fatty acid ester, and glucose syrup were employed as raw materials to optimize the preparation of powdered fat through orthogonal experimental design, with encapsulation efficiency as the evaluation index. The effect of powdered fat on the physicochemical properties of dumpling wrappers were systematically investigated. The results demonstrated that the powdered fat prepared under optimized conditions exhibited an embedding rate of 85.36% with uniform particle distribution. The incorporation of powdered fat gradually reduced the hardness and tensile strength of the dumpling wrappers, while the tensile distance reached a maximum value of 135.51 mm at a 4% addition level. According to the rheological study, the dumpling wrappers' energy storage modulus and loss modulus peaked at 4% powdered fat (87314 Pa and 46281 Pa, respectively). The incorporation of powdered fat initially reduced moisture mobility in dumpling wrappers, followed by a subsequent increase. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that at a 4% powdered fat concentration, the dumpling wrappers formed a compact and continuous gluten network structure. However, this structural integrity was compromised at higher concentrations. Therefore, an appropriate addition of powdered fat can enhance the sensory qualities of dumpling wrappers while stabilizing the gluten network. These results provide a theoretical basis for improving dumpling wrappers quality.

Thirteen commercially available fermented rice cakes were selected to assess their quality. We evaluated the color, specific volume, texture, and volatile flavor compounds. The differences and correlations among these indicators were also investigated. Furthermore, a comprehensive evaluation was conducted using principal component analysis (PCA) to identify key indices representing overall quality. The results showed that 13 commercially available fermented rice cakes exhibited variations in specific volume, color, texture, types and contents of volatile flavor substances, and sensory characteristics. In the correlation analysis between specific volume, color index, and sensory evaluation indice: rice white color was significantly negatively correlated with b^* value (P<0.05), and extremely significantly positively correlated with L^* value and specific volume (P<0.01). In the correlation analysis between texture and sensory evaluation indices: moderate stickiness and uniform air pores were significantly correlated with adhesiveness, cohesiveness, springiness, gumminess, and chewiness (P<0.05). In the correlation analysis between flavor substances and sensory evaluation indices: isoamyl alcohol and phenylethanol were extremely significantly positively correlated with fermented flavor (P<0.01), and isoamyl alcohol was significantly positively correlated with cereal flavor (P<0.05). Through principal component analysis, four principal components were ultimately identified with a cumulative variance contribution rate of 91.166%, namely cohesiveness, viscosity, isoamyl alcohol content, and b^* value, which could serve as core quality indicators for fermented rice cake and characterize the overall quality characteristics of fermented rice cake.

This study aimed to screen lactic acid bacteria (LAB) starters with high exopolysaccharides (EPS) production and to analyze their metabolic mechanisms. By assessing the EPS content in fermented skim milk co-cultured with nine laboratory-isolated EPS-producing LAB strains and commercial strains, the optimal starter (designated as the SW group) was identified as a composite of the laboratory-isolated Lactobacillus pentosus strain 15 and commercial strains. The EPS content and viscosity of skim milk fermented by the SW group were significantly (P<0.05) higher than those observed in the control group (S group). Through the integration of physicochemical analysis and LC-MS-based untargeted metabolomics, a total of 67 differential metabolites were identified, comprising 40 upregulated and 27 downregulated metabolites. Metabolic analysis indicated activation of the arginine biosynthesis pathway, as demonstrated by the upregulation of arginine and its precursor N-acetylglutamate-5-semialdehyde (NAGSA), alongside the downregulation of ornithine. Concurrently, the essential amino acid L-leucine was significantly upregulated. Organic acids, including 2-hydroxyhexanoic acid and hydrocinnamic acid, were found to modulate acidity, while the accumulation of benzoic acid contributed positively to shelf life extension. Furthermore, the upregulation of EPS synthesis precursors, specifically UDP-glucose and glucuronic acid, indicated that EPS synthesis predominantly involved glycosidic bond linkages among UDP-glucose, UDP-glucuronic acid, and GDP-mannose. Pathway enrichment analysis demonstrated that the cofactor biosynthesis pathway was the primary driver of the metabolic flux of EPS, with phenylalanine metabolism supplying essential nutrients and arginine biosynthesis facilitating the accumulation of functional components. Collectively, this study elucidated that the SW group enhanced nutritional value, antibacterial efficacy, and EPS production through multi-pathway metabolic regulation, thereby improving product texture and nutritional fortification. These findings offer a theoretical foundation for optimizing the quality of fermented foods.

Starch, the primary source of carbohydrates in food, plays a crucial role in nutrition and health owing to its digestive properties and functional regulation and has been a subject of extensive research. Recently, researchers have non-covalently combined polyphenols with starch, which significantly altered its structural and functional properties. As research has progressed, it has been observed that polyphenols can form covalent bonds with starch chains through chemical agent coupling, free radical grafting, enzymatic catalysis, and acid-mediated pathways. Synthesized covalent conjugates exhibit superior structural and functional performance compared to non-covalent complexes and have become a focal point in the field of starch functional regulation, achieving significant advancements. This review aims to comprehensively summarize the binding mechanisms of starch and polyphenols through non-covalent and covalent interactions, compare them with non-covalent interaction mechanisms, and analyze the advantages of covalent interactions in binding modes and structural characteristics using structural characterization techniques. Additionally, by analyzing the functional characteristics of both, it emphasizes the significant advantages of covalent conjugates in thermal stability, digestion resistance, and antioxidant activity. Subsequent researchers can focus on starch-polyphenol covalent binding technology, which is expected to provide innovative approaches for the combination of natural ingredients and functional foods and contribute to the sustainable development of the food industry.

The synergistic sterilization approach, which combines ultrasound with light, serves as an emerging green non-thermal sterilization technology that can effectively overcome the limitations of single technology application and markedly enhance antibacterial efficacy against foodborne pathogens. This enhancement in antibacterial efficacy is achieved through the direct synergistic effects of physical energy, without the need for exogenous sono/photosensitizers, and offers distinct advantages in terms of efficiency and environmental sustainability. This paper provides an overview of the current progress regarding the sterilization efficacy, mechanisms and practical applications of ultrasound, light (including UV light, blue light, infrared light and pulsed light) as well as their combination (primarily UV and blue light) on various microorganisms. Studies have demonstrated that ultrasound-light synergistic sterilization technology can not only remarkably improve the inactivation efficiency against foodborne pathogens, but also well preserve food product quality, thus providing a novel technical approach for food non-thermal sterilization. Future research should aim to further clarify the underlying synergistic mechanisms, expand the application scope, and accelerate the industrialization of this technology in the food sector. Overall, this paper provides a solid theoretical reference for the development and practical application of ultrasound-light synergistic sterilization technology.

This study focused on 14 edible fungi species—including Flammulina velutipes, Volvariella volvacea, Pleurotus ostreatus, Lyophyllum decastes, Agrocybe cylindracea, Lentinula edodes, Phallus indusiatus, etc. The ash content, protein content, crude polysaccharide content, amino acid composition and content of these edible fungi were systematically determined and analyzed. The volatile flavor substances were analyzed using HS-SPME/GC-MS, while the non-volatile flavor components such as free amino acids and 5'-nucleotides were also evaluated. The results showed that among the 14 edible fungi, the protein content of Agrocybe cylindracea was the highest, reaching 40.12 g/100 g, the ash content of Volvariella volvacea was significantly higher than that of other species (P<0.05). Agaricus subrufescens contained the highest polysaccharide content, reaching 11.77 g/100 g. More than 150 volatile substances were detected, with 60 kinds of volatile components being the richest in Tricholoma matsutake, and the key flavor substances of 14 edible fungi were mainly alcohols and aldehydes, including 1-octen-3-ol and isovaleraldehyde. The results of the determination of non-volatile substances showed that the total content of flavor nucleotides ranged widely, with the highest total content in Volvariella volvacea, followed by Agaricus bisporus, Tricholoma matsutake and Pleurotus ostreatus, with contents of 3.45, 2.50, 2.42 and 2.35 mg/g respectively, all categorized as medium levels. Agaricus bisporus had the highest Glu content, and its equivalent umami concentration (EUC) reached 1142.12 g MSG/100 g, belonging to the top umami grade. The main organic acid was succinic acid, which had the highest content in Volvariella volvacea, Agrocybe cylindracea and Agaricus subrufescens. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis indicated that there were significant differences in the nutritional and flavor components of different edible fungi. Volvariella volvacea, Agrocybe cylindracea and Agaricus bisporus formed independent clusters due to their unique nutrient compositions. This study revealed the nutritional composition and flavor characteristics of different edible fungi through multi-faceted analysis, providing a theoretical basis for the development of high-value-added products and functional food design.