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(1) Background: Discarded young fig fruits (DYFFs) result in a waste of resources, such as sparse fruits and residual fruits, and there has been no research on the relationship between phenolic compounds and biological activity in DYFFs (2) Methods: Different deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and 80% ethanol were used to prepare DYFF extracts, and polyphenol extraction efficiency and bioactivities in the DYFFs extracts were compared. (3) Results: More than 1700 phytochemicals were identified in DYFFs, and thirteen of these typical phenolic compounds were analyzed quantitatively; chlorogenic acid, rutin, luteolin 8-C-glucoside, and epicatechin are the main polyphenols in DYFFs, especially chlorogenic acid with 2720–7980 mg/kg. Ferulic acid, caffeic acid, epicatechin, (+)-catechin, luteolin 8-C-glucoside, rutin, hesperetin, and chlorogenic acid showed different degrees of correlation with in vitro antioxidant activity. Moreover, the highest total phenol content found in the extracts of ChCl-Ethylene glycol (Choline chloride:Ethylene glycol = 1:2) was 8.88 mg GAE/g DW, and all quantitatively analyzed phenolic compounds had high levels in various DESs and 80% ethanol. The 80% ethanol and Choline chloride (ChCl) solvent system showed the greatest antioxidant properties, and the Choline chloride-Urea (Choline chloride: Urea = 1:2) extract of DYFFs exhibited the highest inhibitory activity. (4) Conclusions: DESs have demonstrated potential as promising green solvents, especially the ChCl solvent system, which facilitates the extraction of polyphenols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addressing the challenge of blood glucose fluctuations triggered by the ingestion of pea starch, we have adopted an eco-friendly strategy utilizing microwave irradiation to synthesize the novel pea starch–tea polyphenol complexes. These complexes exhibit high swelling capacity and low solubility, and their thermal profile with low gelatinization temperature and enthalpy indicates adaptability to various processing conditions. In vitro digestion studies showed that these complexes have a small amount of rapidly digestible starch and a large amount of resistant starch, leading to a slower digestion rate. These features are particularly advantageous for diabetics, mitigating glycemic excursions. Structurally, the pea starch–tea polyphenol complexes exhibited a B + V-shaped dense network with low crystallinity, high orderliness, and a prominent double helix content, enhancing its stability and functionality in food applications. In summary, these innovative complexes served as a robust platform for developing low glycemic index foods, catering to the nutritional needs of diabetics. It offers an environmentally sustainable approach to food processing, fostering human well-being and propelling innovation in the food industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the antioxidant activity of fermented tartaty buckwheat extract of Pleurotus eryngii in vitro as well as its protective effect on alcohol-induced liver and gastric mucosa injury in vivo. Methods: The study involved determining the contents of functional components in fermented tartary buckwheat extract and observing its antioxidant capacity. Mice models of chronic alcoholic liver and gastric mucosa injury were established using Lieber-DeCarli liquid feed. The protective effects of fermented tartary buckwheat extract at low and high doses (1.5 g/kg B.W., 3.0 g/kg B.W.) were investigated for both liver and gastric mucosa injury. Results: The extract of fermented buckwheat with Pleurotus eryngii contained more antioxidant components, the contents of polyphenols, flavonoids and triterpenes were 11.40±0.32 mg GAE/g DW, 17.19±0.30 mg RE/g DW and 7.59±0.24 mg/g, respectively. The contents of rutin and quercetin were as follows: 13.55±0.05 and 0.665±0.01 mg/g. The iron reducing antioxidant capacity and DPPH and ABTS+ free radical scavenging efficiency of Tartary buckwheat extract were 16.66±0.65, 33.49±1.26 and 15.68±1.17 µmol Trolox/g DW, respectively. Compared with the model group, both high-dose and low-dose groups significantly reduced malondialdehyde (P<0.05), aspartate aminotransferase (P<0.01), alanine aminotransferase (P<0.01), lactate dehydrogenase (P<0.05), and interleukin-1β (P<0.05) levels and significantly increased levels of superoxide dismutase (P<0.01) and glutathione peroxidase (P<0.01), downregulated protein expression levels of reactive oxygen species (P<0.01), rat sarcoma (P<0.01), rapidly accelerated fibrosarcoma (P<0.01), extracellular signal-regulated kinases (P<0.05), and mitogen activated protein kinase kinase (P<0.05). Conclusion: Fermented tartaty buckwheat extract of Pleurotus eryngii has good antioxidant activity, and has obvious protective effect on chronic alcoholic liver and gastric mucosa injury in mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soluble dietary fibers (SDFs) exist as the major bioactive components in legumes, which exhibit various biological functions. To improve the potential applications of legume SDFs as healthy value-added products in the functional food industry, the physicochemical properties and biological functions of SDFs from ten selected traditional legumes, including mung bean, adzuki bean, red bean, red sword bean, black bean, red kidney bean, speckled kidney bean, common bean, white hyacinth bean, and pea, were studied and compared. Results showed that the physicochemical properties of SDFs varied in different species of legumes. All legume SDFs almost consisted of complex polysaccharides, which were rich in pectic-polysaccharides, e.g., homogalacturonan (HG) and rhamnogalacturonan I (RG I) domains. In addition, hemicelluloses, such as arabinoxylan, xyloglucan, and galactomannan, existed in almost all legume SDFs, and a large number of galactomannans existed in SDFs from black beans. Furthermore, all legume SDFs exhibited potential antioxidant, antiglycation, immunostimulatory, and prebiotic effects, and their biological functions differed relative to their chemical structures. The findings can help reveal the physicochemical and biological properties of different legume SDFs, which can also provide some insights into the further development of legume SDFs as functional food ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, one of the dominant pathogens, which caused postharvest diseases such as anthracnose, was isolated from decayed ‘Hongyang’ kiwifruit. It was identified as Colletotrichum acutatum by its morphological characteristics and standard internal transcribed spacer ribosomal DNA sequence. Further, the efficacy and possible mechanism of cinnamon essential oil on inhibition of C. acutatum were investigated. Results showed that C. acutatum was dose-dependently inhibited by cinnamon essential oil. Meanwhile, the mycelial growth and spore germination of C. acutatum were completely inhibited at the concentrations of 0.200 μL/mL and 0.175 μL/mL (v/v), respectively. Indeed, both minimal inhibitory and minimum fungicidal concentrations of cinnamon essential oil were measured as 0.200 μL/mL. Additionally, the possible antifungal mechanism of cinnamon essential oil on C. acutatum was demonstrated. Results showed that the cinnamon essential oil could destroy the cell membrane integrity of C. acutatum, and the structure of cell membrane was changed. Indeed, the cell cytoplasm including soluble protein, sugar, and nucleic acid was released, which significantly changed the extracellular conductivity. Results suggested that the cinnamon essential oil exerted great potential to be used as a natural and efficient preservative for kiwifruit postharvest storage, which were helpful for the better understanding of the efficacy and mechanism of cinnamon essential oil on inhibition of pathogens isolated from decayed ‘Hongyang’ kiwifruit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy metal lead, which enters the human body through food intake, endangers human health. Microbe has the ability of adsorbing heavy metal, among which lactic acid bacteria are promising microbes to adsorb and remove Pb2+. The purpose of this study was to screen lactic acid bacteria from Ya'an pickle water to effectively remove Pb2+. The 7 strains having strong ability to effectively remove Pb2+ were detected. These strains were identified by microscopic examination and 16S rDNA sequencing, 4 strains of Lactobacillus plantarum and 3 strains of Lactobacillus brevis were obtained. Then the bacteria had a blind adsorption effect on Pb2+. After microwave digestion, the Pb2+ concentration was measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The highest removal reached 82.25%. The adsorption mechanism of lactic acid bacteria was mainly divided into biosorption and bioaccumulation. The 7 strains of lactic acid bacteria could provide potential for detoxification of contaminated foods and reduction of the Pb2+ accumulation in the human diet and animal feed. At the same time, this study was helpful to further understand the mechanism of Pb2+ being adsorbed by lactic acid bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy metal lead, which enters the human body through food intake, endangers human health. Microbe has the ability of adsorbing heavy metal, among which lactic acid bacteria are promising microbes to adsorb and remove Pb2+. The purpose of this study was to screen lactic acid bacteria from Ya'an pickle water to effectively remove Pb2+. The 7 strains having strong ability to effectively remove Pb2+ were detected. These strains were identified by microscopic examination and 16S rDNA sequencing, 4 strains of Lactobacillus plantarum and 3 strains of Lactobacillus brevis were obtained. Then the bacteria had a blind adsorption effect on Pb2+. After microwave digestion, the Pb2+ concentration was measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The highest removal reached 82.25%. The adsorption mechanism of lactic acid bacteria was mainly divided into biosorption and bioaccumulation. The 7 strains of lactic acid bacteria could provide potential for detoxification of contaminated foods and reduction of the Pb2+ accumulation in the human diet and animal feed. At the same time, this study was helpful to further understand the mechanism of Pb2+ being adsorbed by lactic acid bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]