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The giant freshwater prawn (GFP), Macrobrachium rosenbergii, is one of the largest freshwater shrimps in the world, being widely cultured because of its high economic value. In this study, complete mitogenomes of two GFP individuals from different selective breeding populations, ‘South Taihu No.2’ (ST) and ‘Shufeng’ (SF), were newly sequenced, compared with each other, and with those of other published Macrobrachium species. The total length is 15,767 bp (ST) and 15,766 bp (SF), including 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes, and one control region. The phylogenetic analyses based on whole mitogenome sequences suggest that ‘Shufeng’ has a slightly distant relationship with ‘South Taihu No.2’, with a pairwise genetic distance of 0.011. This study can provide a genetic background for the GFP selective breeding, and add significantly to the knowledgebase regarding crustacean biology and aquaculture as well.

Abstract The benefits of fermented milk have been known to mankind since the ancient days of civilization. The important role of fermented milk in human nutrition has been well documented through the ages, from the original unpredictable souring of milk caused by the microorganisms inherent in milk to modern microbiological processes, leading to fermented milk with the greater nutritional value produced under controlled conditions. The bioactive peptides synthesized by the microbial degradation of proteins in fermented milk and the addition of supplements, such as probiotics and prebiotics endow them with various physiological functions, including the regulation of the gut microbiota, cholesterol lowering, and immunomodulation, making them potential functional foods that are notable in healthy diets. Here, we summarized the development of fermented milk into four stages and also summarized their impact on health and diseases during different developmental stages. In addition, we described the characteristics and limitations of fermented milk in different eras. Accordingly, we integrated the future trends in the development of fermented milk as functional foods. It is hoped that the efforts to develop the potential of fermented milk as functional foods will help manage the health risks faced by many countries.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different lactic acid bacteria and yeast strains on the volatile composition of fermented sweet melon juice. Headspace gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) coupled with chemometrics was performed to identify the potential volatiles for the discrimination of different fermented sweet melon juice. In total, 70 volatile compounds were found in the fermented sweet melon juices. Of them, 45 compounds were annotated according to the GC-IMS database and classified into esters, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones and furans. Results from the multivariate analysis reveal that sweet melon juice fermented by different combinations of microbial strains could be distinctly separated from each other. A total of 15 volatiles with both variable importance in projection value > 1 and P < 0.05 were determined as potential markers for the discrimination of fermented sweet melon juice. This study confirms the effect of microorganisms on the flavor of the fermented sweet melon juice and shows the potential of HS-GC-IMS combined with chemometrics as a powerful strategy to obtain volatile fingerprints of different fermented sweet melon juice.

The gut microbiota and related metabolites are positively regulated by soluble dietary fiber (SDF). In this study, we explored the effects of SDF from pear pomace (PP) on the regulation of gut microbiota and metabolism in high-fat-diet-fed (HFD-fed) C57BL/6J male mice. The results showed that PP-SDF was able to maintain the HFD disrupted gut microbiota diversity with a significant increase in Lachnospiraceae_UCG-006, Akkermansia, and Bifidobacterium spp. The negative effects of high-fat diet were ameliorated by PP-SDF by regulating lipid metabolisms with a significant increase in metabolites like isobutyryl carnitine and dioscoretine. Correlation analysis revealed that gut microbiota, such as Akkermansia and Lachnospiraceae_UCG-006 in the PP-SDF intervention groups had strong positive correlations with isobutyryl carnitine and dioscoretin. These findings demonstrated that PP-SDF interfered with the host's gut microbiota and related metabolites to reduce the negative effects caused by a high-fat diet.

This work aimed to explore the influence of four different cooking methods (Boiling, roasting, frying, and microwaving) on the sensory characteristics of scallop muscles. Headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) and electronic nose (e-nose) were combined to analyze the aroma of scallops. Combined with the results of free amino acids and electronic tongue (e-tongue), the taste changes of different samples were analyzed. Furthermore, texture profile and microstructure analysis jointly showed the influence of cooking methods on texture. The results showed that frying was the most suitable cooking method for scallop muscle because it resulted the best tasted products, boiled scallops retain the highest similarity to fresh scallops. Besides, a higher level of lipid oxidation and Maillard reaction resulted in significant increase in aldehydes, ketones, furans, umami, and sweet amino acid. For the boiled sample, the loss of water-soluble compounds and less fat oxidation resulted in fewer flavor substances and free amino acids, along with looser organizational structure and poorer sensory quality. The research showed that besides the texture of scallop muscle, volatile organic compounds and free amino acids as well as their mutual roles in taste and smell were also important to sensory receptivity.

Boiling is an effective way to enhance the shellfish flavor. Headspace-Gas Chromatography-Ion Mobility Spectrum (HS-GC-IMS) coupled with multivariate analyses was applied to illustrate the effect of boiling on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of Ruditapes philippinarum. Quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) was applied to evaluate the aroma profile of Ruditapes philippinarum during boiling. The correlation between VOCs and aroma properties of Ruditapes philippinarum was also built through partial least-squares regression (PLSR) model. In this study, the flavor fingerprint was built to distinguish raw and different boiled samples through HS-GC-IMS. The 62 VOCs were totally identified, including 21 alcohols, 10 aldehydes, 10 ketones, 9 esters and 4 sulfur-containing compounds. Boiling significantly enhanced the pleasant seafood-like aroma by producing esters and reduced the sea sand-like aroma by decreasing the concentration of sulfur-containing compounds. The 10–15 min was the transitional stage for producing flavor, while heating over 20 min produced more unpleasant odorants. These results indicated that boiling was vital to improve the flavor quality of shellfish.

Tricholoma mongolicum Imai is an edible fungus rich in various health-promoting compounds, such as polysaccharides, polypeptides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, etc., and among them, polysaccharides have gotten more attention in recent research trends. This study explored the extraction of polysaccharides from T. mongolicum Imai by five extraction methods, including hot water extraction, ultrasound extraction, enzyme-assisted extraction, 0.1 M HCL extraction, and 0.1 M NaOH extraction. The effects of these extraction methods on the yield, chemical structure, apparent morphology, and the antioxidant activities of Tricholoma mongolicum Imai polysaccharides (TMIPs) were investigated in this study. The data showed that 0.1 M NaOH extraction produced the highest extraction yield compared to the other extraction methods. The results of high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that different extraction methods had significant effects on the molecular weight and morphology of TMIPs. The results of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis showed that the extraction methods had no significant difference in functional groups, crystal structure, and thermal stability of TMIPs. The antioxidant activity of TMIPs extracted by ultrasound extraction was more prominent among the five polysaccharides, which might be related to a large number of low-molecular-weight components in molecular weight distribution.

The utilization of myofibrillar proteins (MPs) from the scallop mantle was limited due to its poor digestibility in vitro. In this study, structural properties and in vitro digestibility of MP were evaluated after modified by ultra-high pressure (UHP) at different pressures (0.1, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 MPa). The results showed that high pressure could significantly increase the ordered structure content like α-helix, inhibit the formation of disulfide bonds, and decrease surface hydrophobicity. Moreover, MP possessed the optimal solubility and in vitro digestibility properties at 200 MPa due to the minimum particle size and turbidity, relatively dense and uniform microstructure. The results indicated that the UHP treatment was an effective method to improve the digestibility of MP from scallop mantle and lay a theoretical basis for the functional foods development of poor digestion people and comprehensive utilization of scallop mantles.

Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 (BB-12) is an extensively studied probiotics species, which has been reported to improve the human gut microbiota. This study aimed to confirm the effects of BB-12 on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced gut microbiota disorders. The probiotic BB-12 was consumed by human microbiota-associated rats and changes in gut microbiota were compared using next generation sequencing of the fecal samples collected from the normal chow group, the HFD group, and the BB-12-supplemented group. The enterotypes switched from Prevotella dominant to Akkermansia dominant as a result of switching diet from normal chow to HFD. BB-12 conferred protection on the gut microbiota composition of the rats by increasing the abundance of Prevotella and decreasing the abundance of Clostridium, Blautia, and Bacteroides in 0–3 weeks. In addition, Prevotella-dominant enterotype was maintained, which provides improve obesity effects. A decrease in body weight and the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio were also observed at week 3. While in 4–8 weeks, the enrichment of short-chain fatty acids-producing bacteria such as Eubacterium and Parabacteroides and probiotics such as Bifidobacterium was observed. The results revealed that BB-12 against obesity by regulating gut microbiota in two phases. After a short-term intervention, BB-12 supplementation suppressed the transition from the healthy to obesity state by protecting Prevotella-dominant enterotype, whereas after a long-term intervention, BB-12 ameliorates obesity by enriching beneficial bacteria in the gut.

In this study, scallop mantle protein was treated by ultrasound at different powers, and then analyzed by ANS fluorescent probes, circular dichroism spectroscopy, endogenous fluorescence spectrum, DNTB colorimetry and in-vitro digestion model to elucidate the structure–function relationship. The results indicated that ultrasound can significantly affect the secondary structure of scallop mantle protein like enhancing hydrophobicity, lowering the particle size, increasing the relative contents of α-helix and decreasing contents of β-pleated sheet, β-turn and random coil, as well as altering intrinsic fluorescence intensity with blue shift of maximum fluorescence peak. But ultrasound had no effect on its primary structure. Moreover, the functions of scallop mantle protein were regulated by modifying its structures by ultrasound. Specifically, the protein had the highest performance in foaming property and in-vitro digestibility under ultrasonic power of 100 W, oil binding capacity under 100 W, water binding capacity under 300 W, solubility and emulsification capacity under 400 W, and emulsion stability under 600 W. These results prove ultrasonic treatment has the potential to effectively improve functional properties and quality of scallop mantle protein, benefiting in comprehensive utilization of scallop mantles.

This study aimed to develop and characterize a fermented persimmon juice with potential anti-hangover and anti-hypertensive effects using gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-producing lactic acid bacteria. Results showed the co-fermentation of Lactobacillus plantarum C17 and Lactobacillus pentosus Lp-B produced the highest yield of 2.102 mmol/L of GABA. After 48 h of fermentation, GABA was produced at the conversion rate of 69.32% from glutamate. The alcohol dehydrogenase activation rate, acetaldehyde dehydrogenase activation activity and hydroxyl inhibition rate of fermented persimmon juice were 38.91%, 34.72%, and 16.79%, respectively, which displayed higher anti-hangover activity compared to unfermented persimmon. Moreover, the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition ability of fermented persimmon juice was 42.34% and the expression level of human endothelin-1 was reduced to 34.64 μg/mL. These findings indicated GABA-enriched fermented persimmon juice had potential anti-hangover and anti-hypertensive properties.