Research Publications (Food Safety)

In this study, a rapid and reliable method based on ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with Q Exactive HF-X mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QE/MS) was established for the simultaneous quantification and validation of acrylamide, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, and 14 heterocyclic aromatic amines in thermally processed foods.

Four novel chimeric lysins (P361, P362, P371, and P372), which were the fusion of Salmonella phage lysins and novel antimicrobial peptide LeuA-P, were obtained using bioinformatics analysis and in silico design. The recombinant chimeric lysins were expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3) strain and showed highly specific inhibition against Salmonella. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of P362 and P372 to S. typhi CMCC 50071 were 8 and 16 μg/mL, respectively.

The metabolism of chlorogenic acid (CGA) through the intestinal tract was studied. As cadmium is a well-known toxic heavy metal, this study was carried out to investigate the comparative protective effect of CGA and its representative intestinal metabolite (3-(3-hydroxyphenyl) propionic acid, HPPA) against Cd-induced erythrocyte cytotoxicity in vitro and in vivo.

Plant uptake and translocation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) are critical for food safety and raise major concerns. However, those processes are associated with many undisclosed mechanisms, especially when PFOS coexist with heavy metals. In this study, we investigated the effect of copper (Cu) on PFOS distribution in maize tissues by assessing the PFOS concentration and enantioselectivity.

Cannabis is an excellent natural source of fiber and various bioactive cannabinoids. So far, at least 120 cannabinoids have been identified, and more novel cannabinoids are gradually being unveiled by detailed cannabis studies. However, cannabinoids in both natural and isolated forms are especially vulnerable to oxygen, heat, and light. Therefore, a diversity of cannabinoids is associated with their chemical instability to a large extent.

A recent work revealed that egg white (EW) at 45 °C exhibits powerful bactericidal activity against S. enterica serovar Enteritidis, which is surprisingly little affected by removal of the >10 kDa EW proteins. Here, we sought to identify the major EW factors responsible for this bactericidal activity by fractionating EW using ultrafiltration and nanofiltration and by characterizing the physicochemical and antimicrobial properties of the resulting fractions.

In this work, a stable isotope dilution ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–QqQ-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML), Nε-(carboxyethyl)lysine (CEL), and acrylamide (AA) in baked and fried foods. Ground food samples were extracted with acetone followed by two parallel assays.

Pesticide residues in food have been a grave concern to consumers. Herein, we have developed a dual-mode SERS chip using Cu2O mesoporous spheres decorated with Ag nanoparticles (MCu2[email protected] NPs) as both sensing and degradation/clearing unit for rapid detection of pymetrozine and thiram pesticides in tea samples. Three kinds of chemometric algorithms were comparatively applied to analyze the collected SERS spectra of pesticides.

The purpose of this study was to construct a delivery system using a microfluidic chip to protect procyanidins (PCs) and to achieve their pH-controlled release in simulated gastrointestinal fluid. The microfluidic chip was designed and fabricated to generate water-in-water-in-oil (W/W/O) templates for the preparation of sodium alginate/chitosan microparticles with a uniform size and core–shell structure, using an internal–external gelation method.

It is commonly known that the widespread use of antibiotics has led to their existence in food products as residues and ingestion of these food products may create a selection pressure on bacteria inhabiting the human body.

As one of the most toxic forms of arsenic, inorganic As(III) is easy to accumulate in rice, leading to severe public health problems. Effective control of As(III) requires the development of fast analytical methods for its detection with high sensitivity and specificity. Toward this end, in this work, we report the fabrication of an As(III) electrochemical sensor based on a solution-gated graphene transistor (SGGT) platform with a novel sensing mechanism.

In this research, six neonicotinoid analogs derived from l-proline were synthesized, characterized, and evaluated as insecticides against Xyleborus affinis. Most of the target compounds showed good to excellent insecticidal activity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report dealing with the use of enantiopure l-proline to get neonicotinoids. These results highlighted the compound 9 as an excellent candidate used as the lead chiral insecticide for future development.

Cadmium (Cd) is a heavy metal, which is widely used in the industry and daily life. It has a long half-life, so large amounts of Cd can accumulate in humans and become toxic. Chlorogenic acid (CGA) can eliminate free radicals and inhibit lipid peroxidation and is mainly used to prevent metal toxicity. In the present study, mice are given CGA by intraperitoneal injection or gavage, respectively, to explore the mechanism of preventing Cd toxicity.

Mushrooms are a rich source of dietary fiber. This study aimed to characterize the modulation of colonic microbiota in Zucker rats after supplementing their diet with a biotechnologically produced oyster mushroom (Pleurotus sajor-caju). Microbiota composition and short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the colon and bile acids in the plasma of the rats were analyzed to assess the effects of P.

Concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) and its analogues (together with their chlorinated derivatives are referred to as BPs) were measured in 181 breastmilk samples collected from 9 provinces in China in 2014. Twelve BP types were found. The BP concentrations ranged from not detected to 5.912 μg/L. BPA was the predominant BP, followed by bisphenol F (BPF) and bisphenol S (BPS). The mean BPA, BPF, and BPS levels were 0.444, 0.107, and 0.027 μg/L, respectively.

A case of baled alfalfa hay contaminated with multiple weeds induced hepatotoxicity and death in cattle. The hepatotoxic compounds were isolated by bioassay-guided fractionation using a mouse model and identified as salviarin, salvianduline D, rhyacophiline, and 7-hydroxyrhyacophiline. The structure of 7-hydroxyrhyacophiline has not been previously reported. All compounds were found to induce severe acute hepatic necrosis within 24–48 h after a single oral dosage (260–280 mg/kg).

2-O-β-d-Glucopyranosyl l-ascorbic acid (AA-2βG) is a stable, bioavailable vitamin C (AA) derivative. We report the distribution and seasonal variation of AA-2βG in apples and its occurrence in other domesticated crops and in wild harvested Ma̅ori foods. Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analyses showed high AA-2βG concentrations in crab apples (Malus sylvestris) but low concentrations in domesticated apples.

Nowadays, films with antibacterial activity and applied for freshness monitoring by colorimetric response have been drawing growing attention in food packaging. However, the development of versatile antibacterial and colorimetric agents is still highly desirable. Herein, WO3 nanorods are incorporated in a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) matrix to develop a novel composite film with photothermal antibacterial activity and freshness monitoring faculty.

In this work, 26 methylated acylphloroglucinol meroterpenoids with diverse skeletons, including 18 new ones (bellumones A-R, 1–18), were identified from the flowers of Hypericum bellum. Their structures including absolute configurations were elucidated by detailed spectroscopic data, calculated electronic circular dichroism (ECD), and X-ray diffraction (XRD).

Luo Han Guo fruit extract (Siraitia grosvenorii), mainly composed of mogroside V (50%), could be considered a suitable alternative to free sugars; however, its commercial applications are limited by its unpleasant off-notes.

4-Hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD, EC 1.13.11.27) has been recognized as one of the most promising targets in the field of herbicide innovation considering the severity of weed resistance currently. In a persistent effort to develop effective HPPD-inhibiting herbicides, a structure-guided strategy was carried out to perform the structural optimization for triketone-quinazoline-2,4-diones, a novel HPPD inhibitor scaffold first discovered in our lab.

Products of dark brown sugar (DBS) from different production processes and raw materials may bring different risks and benefits to human health. Therefore, this study was aimed to evaluate the quality of natural and commercial DBS products. Results showed that physicochemical properties, including pH value, turbidity, and browning degree have no significant difference between natural and commercial DBS products.

Fungal infections could cause tremendous decreases in crop yield and quality. Natural products, including flavonoids and (iso)quinolines, have always been an important source for lead discovery in medicinal and agricultural chemistry. To promote the discovery and development of new fungicides, a series of 3-(iso)quinolinyl-4-chromenone derivatives was designed and synthesized by the active substructure splicing principle and evaluated for their antifungal activities.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are the most commonly used signal materials in lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA). However, the assay sensitivity of traditional AuNP-based LFIA is usually limited by the incomplete competition between free target analytes and immobilized antigens for the binding of AuNP-labeled antibodies. To unfreeze this limitation, here, asymmetric Au–SiO2 Janus NPs (about 66 nm) were designed and synthesized.

According to a simple guest-replacement fluorescence turn-on mechanism, we constructed a fluorescent probe system based on cucurbit[10]uril (Q[10]) and protonated acridine (AD) to detect the pesticide dodine (DD). Formation of a homoternary inclusion complex AD2@Q[10] in both aqueous solution and solid state was studied by means of 1H NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography.