Oxidative characteristics and gel properties of porcine myofibrillar proteins affected by l-lysine and l-histidine in a dose-dependent manner at a low and high salt concentration

This study investigated the effects of l -lysine (Lys) and l -histidine (His) on the oxidative characteristics and gel properties of porcine myofibrillar proteins (MP). Results showed that Lys and His had a strong ferrous ion-chelating ability and hydroxyl radical-scavenging activity. Moreover, Lys and His inhibited the protein carbonyl formation and MP aggregation at 0.2 M and 0.6 M NaCl, respectively, in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, 2 and 4 mg mL⁻¹ Lys and His decreased the oxidation-induced loss of the tertiary structure of MP accompanied by the lower surface hydrophobicity. The water-holding capacity and gel strength of MP gels increased with increasing Lys and His concentrations due to more regular and lamellar structures with smaller and homogeneous pores at 0.6 M NaCl and more orderly crosslinking via fibrous filament at 0.2 M NaCl. In summary, Lys and His chelated the ferrous ions and scavenged hydroxyl radicals, decreased the oxidation-induced physicochemical changes, thus preventing oxidative damage during the formation of a three-dimensional gel network, which resulted in better gel quality.     

Ferulic acid and EGCG alter the structural characteristics of ovalbumin and its application in mineral loading

This study aims to fabricate mineral-loading nanocarriers using natural materials. The interaction patterns between ovalbumin (OVA) and four water-soluble polyphenols, namely ferulic acid (FA), (-)-Epigallo-catechin 3-gallate (EGCG), gallic acid (GA) and epicatechin (EC), were investigated. Results showed that the optimised conditions for preparing stable OVA–polyphenol complexes are at the OVA–polyphenol ratio of 4:1 at pH 6, under which OVA–FA and OVA–EGCG showed the highest stability and mineral-loading capacity among four OVA–polyphenol complexes. The fluorescence results indicated that the addition of EGCG and FA induced a significant fluorescence quenching to OVA. The interaction between OVA and polyphenols involved hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interaction and electrostatic interaction. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis suggested that both FA and EGCG enhanced the stability and orderliness of the structure of OVA. The transmission electron microscopy images also exhibited the spherical structure of OVA after the addition of FA and EGCG. Furthermore, scanning electron microscope–energy dispersive X-ray spectrum results suggested that OVA–FA and OVA–EGCG complexes were better mineral carriers than OVA–GA and OVA–EC. This study may serve as the theoretical support for the promising application of OVA in the fabrication of mineral-loading nanocarriers in functional food and pharmaceutic.     

Effect of microwave heating time on the gel properties of chicken myofibrillar proteins and their formation mechanism

The present work was conducted to illustrate the mechanism of gel formation of myofibrillar proteins (MPs) under different microwave heating times. The results showed that the denaturation enthalpy (ΔH) of the MPs significantly decreased when the heating time increased from 3 to 9 s and then completely disappeared as the heating time progressed, indicating that the MPs gradually denatured and subsequently aggregated with increasing heating time, which was further verified by the changes in the secondary structure, electrophoretic bands, and gel properties (e.g., water holding capacity and textural profiles) of the MPs. Microstructural images indicated that the MP gel formed under 12 s had the most compact network, indicating that extended microwave heating time could induce quality deterioration of MP gels. Moreover, the hydrophobic forces, electrostatic forces, and disulphide bonds of the MPs gradually intensified with increasing microwave heating time, suggesting that both non-covalent and covalent bonds could promote molecular denaturation and subsequent aggregation of MPs. In addition, correlation analysis revealed that the changes in the molecular conformation of MPs induced by different microwave heating times could effectively regulate the formation of MP gels and their related properties.     

红外辐射联合回火与冷激杀菌技术对胡萝卜粉品质的影响

首先研究不同红外辐射温度(100,110,120℃)及辐射时间(2.5,5,10 min)对胡萝卜粉微生物及品质的影响,然后根据栅栏效应原理研究红外辐射-回火、红外辐射-冷激联合杀菌对胡萝卜粉微生物、色调值、类胡萝卜素含量等品质的影响。结果表明:100℃、10 min的红外辐射处理使细菌和真菌分别降低了1.9 lg(CFU/g)和2.32 lg(CFU/g),110℃、5 min的红外辐射处使细菌和真菌分别降低了1.58 lg(CFU/g)和2.57 lg(CFU/g)。在上述两种处理条件下胡萝卜粉的水分活度从0.238分别降至0.123和0.147,胡萝卜粉中总类胡萝卜素含量从308.8μg/g降至227.8μg/g和238.8μg/g,色差值(ΔE)为9.11和7.89。与红外辐射单独作用相比,联合回火后的处理没有显著影响细菌数目,处理后保持在5.40~5.80 CFU/g,霉菌、酵母数却在处理过程中显著减少,然而减少量较低,总数仍不低于4.5 lg(CFU/g)。红外辐射-冷激联合处理相比红外辐射单独处理,100℃、10 min联合冷激7 d处理可将细菌数量降低0.25 lg(CFU/g),可将霉菌与酵母数量降低0.28 lg(CFU/g),110℃、5 min联合冷激7 d处可将细菌数量降低0.26 lg(CFU/g),可将霉菌、酵母数量降低0.40 lg(CFU/g),且这些处理下胡萝卜粉的色调值、水分活度、类胡萝卜素含量变化不显著。本试验结果表明,红外辐射-冷激处理具有协同效应,且处理过程中胡萝卜粉的色调值及总类胡萝卜素含量不受影响,这为低水分粉体食品红外辐射联合杀菌提供了参考。     

Coupling Characteristics of a Co-flow Water Mist System and Normal Temperature Counter Air Jets

Fire Technology - A co-flow water mist system is considered a clean and efficient emergency handling measure for preventing and controlling the leakage of hazardous gas. To reveal the coupling...     

Efficiency evaluation of healthcare services in China based on stochastic multicriteria acceptability analysis and directional distance function

Evaluating the efficiency of healthcare services accurately can help in analyzing the rationality of inputs and outputs in such services. Considering the consistency and equity of assessment criteria, this study conducts the stochastic multicriteria acceptability analysis (SMAA-2) with a directional distance function to evaluate the efficiency of healthcare services in 31 provincial administrative regions of mainland China, as observed in 2018. We use SMAA-DDF to explore all the projection directions to the efficient frontier instead of a certain projection direction. We measure the maximum and average efficiencies for each of the 31 provincial healthcare services. Our empirical findings show that only seven provinces achieve optimal healthcare service efficiency; the eastern area performed the best, followed by the central, western, and northeast areas. Furthermore, the path along the projection directions is provided to help inefficient provinces improve their efficiency and obtain the best possible positions.     

Influence of thermal runaway in styrene–acrylonitrile bulk copolymerization revealed by computational fluid dynamics modeling

The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and kinetic-based moment methods coupled approach is adopted to simulate the bulk copolymerization of styrene–acrylonitrile (SAN) in a stirred tank reactor. Numerical simulations are carried out to investigate the impacts of impeller speed, monomer ratio, initiator ratio, and initial reaction temperature on the copolymerization process and product properties. Particularly, the Chaos theory is selected as a criterion for evaluating the occurrence of the thermal runaway. The Flory's and Stockmayer's distributions are employed to calculate chain length distribution and copolymer composition distribution of copolymer. The simulation results highlight that the appearance of thermal runaway can be postponed by properly increasing the rotation speed, decreasing the initiator loadings, initial acrylonitrile contents and initial reactor temperature. Furthermore, significant differences exist in the product properties that predicted by the ideal and non-ideal models, which demonstrates that the temperature heterogeneity plays a crucial role in SAN copolymerization. This study could offer references for the safe operation and design of polymerization processes.     

Improved thermal stability of the near-infrared Al-modulated Zn3Ga2GeO8: Cr3+ phosphors for plant growth applications

The exploration of the high thermal stability near-infrared (NIR) phosphors is significantly crucial for the development of plant lighting. However, NIR phosphors suffer from the poor chemical and thermal stability, which severely limits their long-term operation. Here, the successful improvement of luminous intensity (149.5%) and thermal stability at 423 K of Zn₃Ga₂GeO₈ (ZGGO): Cr³⁺ phosphors is achieved for the introduction of Al³⁺ ions into the host. The release of carriers in deep traps inhibits the emission loss for the thermal disturbance. Furthermore, an NIR light emitting diodes (LEDs) lamp is explored by combining the optimized Zn₃Ga_1.1675Al_0.8GeO₈: 0.0325Cr³⁺ phosphors with a commercial 460 nm blue chip, and the emission band can match well with the absorption bands of photosynthetic pigments and the phytochrome (P_R and P_FR) of plants. The explored LEDs lamp further determines the growth and the pheromone content of the involved plants for the participation of the NIR emission originated from Cr³⁺ ions. Our work provides a promising NIR lamp as plant light with improved thermal stability for long-term operation.     

As the number falls,alternatives to the Hagberg–Perten falling number method: A review

This review examines the application, limitations, and potential alternatives to the Hagberg–Perten falling number (FN) method used in the global wheat industry for detecting the risk of poor end-product quality mainly due to starch degradation by the enzyme α-amylase. By viscometry, the FN test indirectly detects the presence of α-amylase, the primary enzyme that digests starch. Elevated α-amylase results in low FN and damages wheat product quality resulting in cakes that fall, and sticky bread and noodles. Low FN can occur from preharvest sprouting (PHS) and late maturity α-amylase (LMA). Moist or rainy conditions before harvest cause PHS on the mother plant. Continuously cool or fluctuating temperatures during the grain filling stage cause LMA. Due to the expression of additional hydrolytic enzymes, PHS has a stronger negative impact than LMA. Wheat grain with low FN/high α-amylase results in serious losses for farmers, traders, millers, and bakers worldwide. Although blending of low FN grain with sound wheat may be used as a means of moving affected grain through the marketplace, care must be taken to avoid grain lots from falling below contract-specified FN. A large amount of sound wheat can be ruined if mixed with a small amount of sprouted wheat. The FN method is widely employed to detect α-amylase after harvest. However, it has several limitations, including sampling variability, high cost, labor intensiveness, the destructive nature of the test, and an inability to differentiate between LMA and PHS. Faster, cheaper, and more accurate alternatives could improve breeding for resistance to PHS and LMA and could preserve the value of wheat grain by avoiding inadvertent mixing of high- and low-FN grain by enabling testing at more stages of the value stream including at harvest, delivery, transport, storage, and milling. Alternatives to the FN method explored here include the Rapid Visco Analyzer, enzyme assays, immunoassays, near-infrared spectroscopy, and hyperspectral imaging.