Effects of Agaricus bisporus on gel properties of chicken myofibrillar protein

The gel-forming ability of myofibrillar protein (MP) is highly correlated with the characteristics of emulsified meat products. Incorporation of Agaricus bisporus (Ab) powder into MP gels may enhance its gel properties to facilitate the development of a novel and safe meat product. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of Ab powder on gel strength, water holding capacity (WHC), texture, rheological behaviour, LF-NMR spin–spin relaxation (T₂), microstructure and protein secondary structure of the MP gel system. The results indicated that the gel strength, WHC, G' value and G" value were significantly improved when the addition of Ab powder increased from 0% to 6% (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, the T₂ relaxation time was shortened, and free water was transformed into immobilised water. The texture of the gel was improved when 1%–4% Ab powder was added compared to the control. Furthermore, Ab filled in the gel network and promoted the unfolding of MP α-helix and the formation of MP β-sheet during the thermal denaturation of MP, leading to a dense aggregated network structure. The study suggested that Ab could be a promising ingredient in improving chicken MP's gel properties and developing fat-reduced meat products.     

Improving water retention of chicken breast meats by CaCl2 combined with pulsed electric fields

Frozen poultry meat is the most widely consumed animal-based food. However, water loss often leads to quality loss of poultry meat. Therefore, the present study sought to investigate the combined effect of calcium chloride (CaCl₂) and pulsed electric fields (PEF) treatment on chicken breast meats and the mechanisms underlying protein degradation. The results showed that the synergistic effect was superior to the single treatment. Compared with the untreated group, the combination of CaCl₂ and PEF increased water holding capacity of chicken breast meats by 16.61% and decreased cooking loss by 28.93%. Low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) results indicated that the synergistic treatment promoted water molecules' binding capacity in myofibrils of poultry meat, which exhibited higher immobilised water. Additionally, the combination of CaCl₂ and PEF led to increased degradation of proteins of high-molecular weight and surface hydrophobicity of myofibrillar protein. Furthermore, the extension of the protein molecule and microenvironmental changes promoted interaction between protein and water. In conclusion, the synergistic treatment of CaCl₂ and PEF enhanced water retention and improved physicochemical properties of the myofibrillar protein in chicken breast meats.     

Vapor linker exchange of partially amorphous metal–organic framework membranes for ultra-selective gas separation

Metal–organic framework (MOF) membranes are promising for efficient separation applications. However, the uncontrollable pathways at atomic level impede the further development of these membranes for molecular separation. Herein we show that vapor linker exchange can induce partial amorphization of MOF membranes and then reduce their transport pathways for precisely molecular sieving. Through exchanging MOF linkers by incoming ones with similar topology but higher acidity, the resulted metal-linker bonds with lower strength cause the transformation of MOF membranes from order to disorder/amorphous. The linker exchange and partial amorphization can narrow intrinsic apertures and conglutinate grain boundary/crack defects of membranes. Because of the formation of ultra-microporous amorphous phase, the MOF composite membrane shows competitive H₂/CO₂ selectivity up to 2400, which is about two orders of magnitude higher than that of conventional MOF membranes, accompanied by high H₂ permeance of 13.4 × 10⁻⁸ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹ and good reproducibility and stability.     

内含实体对H型垂直轴风力机气动性能的影响

以H型垂直轴风力机及其内含圆柱形实体为研究对象,对NACA0018翼型的五叶片H型垂直轴风力机的气动性能进行数值模拟和实验验证。分析8种不同直径的内含圆柱体,在内含实体截面积占风轮迎风面积之比分别为21.2%、50.0%和76.9%时,风力机风能利用率的峰值分别下降8.04%、20.7%及74.3%。结果表明：随着内含实体直径的增大,风能利用率的峰值逐渐减小,开始较为缓慢,达到一定值时快速下降。小直径内含实体主要影响叶片在下风区的转矩,对风能利用率的影响较小,而大直径内含实体还会影响叶片在上风区的转矩,其风能利用率迅速减小。对于内含固定直径的实体,比如在现有建筑物外侧安装风力机时,其风轮半径的选择需综合考虑风能利用率和风力机的建造成本两方面的因素。研究结果可为建筑物与垂直轴风力机进行有效结合以提高风能的利用提供参考。     

Adaptive Synchronization-Based Approach for Finite-Time Parameters Identification of Genetic Regulatory Networks

Neural Processing Letters - This paper presents an approach to identify the unknown parameters of genetic regulatory network (GRN) in finite-time. The adaptive synchronization-based method is used...     

Scallops as a new source of food protein: high-intensity ultrasonication improved stability of oil-in-water emulsion stabilised by myofibrillar protein

In this study, the effect of high-intensity ultrasound (HIUS) (200 and 400 W for 0, 5, 10 and 15 min respectively) on conformational changes, physicochemical, rheological and emulsifying properties of scallop (Patinopecten yessoensis) myofibrillar protein (SMP) was investigated. HIUS-treated SMP had lower α-helix content and higher β-sheet content compared with the native SMP. HIUS treatment induced the unfolding of SMP and increased the surface hydrophobicity. The particle size of SMP decreased and the absolute zeta-potential increased after ultrasonication, which in turn increased the solubility of SMP. The conformational changes and the improvement of physicochemical properties of SMP increased the ability for SMP to lower the interfacial tension at the oil–water interface and increased the percentage of adsorbed protein. As a result, the emulsifying properties, rheological properties of SMP and storage stability of emulsions were also improved. In conclusion, HIUS treatment has future potential for improving the emulsifying properties of SMP.     

Adaptive response and tolerance to weak acids in Saccharomyces cerevisiae boulardii: a metabolomics approach

Weak acids inhibit the growth of probiotics, such as Saccharomyces boulardii. We explored the tolerance of S. boulardii to different weak acids. S. boulardii had better fermentation ability under lactic acid conditions compared with acetic and butyric acid conditions; however, the budding of S. boulardii was significantly stronger than that of Saccharomyces cerevisiae under acetic acid conditions. Although the surface structure of S. boulardii was destroyed, it produced more daughter cells. S. boulardii metabolites were also significantly different from S. cerevisiae under acidic stress. The growth of S. boulardii under weak acid conditions differed significantly from that of S. cerevisiae. S. boulardii-mediated fingerprints under weak acid conditions were identified as latent biomarkers, related to fructose and mannose metabolism, tricarboxylic acid cycle, and the glycolysis pathway. Identified biomarkers will aid in the genetic engineering of S. boulardii and other Saccharomyces strains for improved acid resistance and biomass yield.