Composition Changes in Lycium ruthenicum Fruit Dried by Different Methods

Impact of Drying-Induced Structural Modifications on Flavor Release of Star Anise During Boiling

Star anise, a traditional seasoning, plays a significant role in influencing consumer preferences through its flavor release during cooking. This study examines how drying techniques-hot air drying (HAD), heat pump drying (HPD), Far-infrared drying (FIRD), and microwave vacuum drying (MVD)-affect the visual appearance and flavor release of star anise. Among these techniques, HAD required the longest drying time (20.5 h) and had the highest fracture rate (11.97%), while MVD achieved the shortest drying time (70 min) and FIRD had the lowest fracture rate (9.84%). Color analysis of dried star anise fruits revealed no significant differences among HAD, HPD, and FIRD (p* > 0.05), but MVD resulted in poorer color quality. Following boiling, 26 aroma compounds were identified, with trans-anethole and anisic aldehyde being the most prominent. Compared to other techniques, HPD exhibited the highest volatile oil content and trans-anethole levels in star anise after cooking. Overall, HPD produces star anise with superior visual quality and enhanced flavor release during cooking, making it a more suitable option for large-scale drying.

Effects of dietary supplementation with different amounts of Lycium ruthenicum (black goji berry) branch roughage on plasma biochemical indices and rumen microflora of sheep

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation with roughage derived from black goji berry (Lycium ruthenicum) branches on plasma biochemical indices, and rumen microbiota in sheep. Forty male F1 lambs of Dupo×Hu sheep crossbreeds, approximately 4 months of age with similar body weight (29.58 ± 2.06 kg) and in good health, were selected and randomly divided into four groups (n = 10 per group). The control group was fed a full-mixed pelleted ration, and the experimental groups received the same diet supplemented with 10% (H1), 20% (H2) or 30% (H3) L. ruthenicum branch roughage. The addition of different amounts of L. ruthenicum roughage to the feed significantly increased the apparent digestibility of neutral detergent fiber, and antioxidant and immune indices of the sheep without negative effects on liver function. Additionally, the relative abundance of the gut bacteria NK4A214_group in the Oscillospiraceae family increased linearly and quadratically with the amount of L. ruthenicum roughage added to the diets. This findings suggest that bioactive components (e.g., flavonoids, terpenoids, organic acids) in L. ruthenicum branches may strengthen nutrient digestibility and immune performance by altering the type and abundance of rumen microbiota associated with fiber digestion and immunoregulation. Addition of 20-30% L. ruthenicum branch roughage to sheep fodder remarkably improved the growth performance and overall health.

Genome-wide identification and analysis of autophagy-related (ATG) genes in Lycium ruthenicum Murray reveals their crucial roles in salt stress tolerance

Autophagy is a highly conserved intracellular degradation system that is crucial for nutrient recycling, thus regulating plant growth and development as well as in response to various stresses. Halophytic plant Lycium ruthenicum Murray (L. ruthenicum) is considered as a potential model plant for studying the physiological mechanisms of salt stress tolerance in plants. Although the genome sequence of L. ruthenicum is available, the characteristics and functions of the salt stress-related genes remain largely unknown. In the present study, a total of 36 AuTophaGy-related (ATG) genes were identified in L. ruthenicum and detailed characteristics of them were given. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that the expression of 25 LrATGs was significantly upregulated after salt stress treatments. Furthermore, the autophagic marker line pSuper:GFP-LrATG8g was generated and used to demonstrate the salt stress-induced autophagy, as revealed by measuring autophagic flux and observing autophagosome formation. The pSuper:LrATG5-GFP overexpression (OE) lines were also generated and further phenotypic analysis showed that OE-LrATG8g and OE-LrATG5 plants exhibited better salt tolerance than that of WT plants. To the best of our knowledge, this study firstly reports a detailed overview of LrATGs-mediated autophagy in L. ruthenicum response to salt stress. These findings contribute to a global understanding of the characteristics of ATG genes in L. ruthenicum and lay a foundation for future functional study.

Plant leaf proanthocyanidins: from agricultural production by-products to potential bioactive molecules

Proanthocyanidins (PAs) are a class of polymers composed of flavan-3-ol units that have a variety of bioactivities, and could be applied as natural biologics in food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. PAs are widely found in fruit and vegetables (F&Vegs) and are generally extracted from their flesh and peel. To reduce the cost of extraction and increase the number of commercially viable sources of PAs, it is possible to exploit the by-products of plants. Leaves are major by-products of agricultural production of F&Vegs, and although their share has not been accurately quantified. They make up no less than 20% of the plant and leaves might be an interesting resource at different stages during production and processing. The specific structural PAs in the leaves of various plants are easily overlooked and are notably characterized by their stable content and degree of polymerization. This review examines the existing data on the effects of various factors (e.g. processing conditions, and environment, climate, species, and maturity) on the content and structure of leaf PAs, and highlights their bioactivity (e.g. antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anticancer, and anti-obesity activity), as well as their interactions with gut microbiota and other biomolecules (e.g. polysaccharides and proteins). Future research is also needed to focus on their precise extraction, bioactivity of high-polymer native or modified PAs and better application type.

Bioactive Components of Lycium barbarum and Deep-Processing Fermentation Products

Lycium barbarum, a homology of medicine and food, contains many active ingredients including polysaccharides, polyphenol, betaine, and carotenoids, which has health benefits and economic value. The bioactive components in Lycium barbarum exhibit the effects of antioxidation, immune regulation, hypoglycemic effects, and vision improvement. Recently, the development of nutrition and health products of Lycium barbarum has been paid more and more attention with the increase in health awareness. A variety of nutrients and bioactive components in wolfberry can be retained or increased using modern fermentation technology. Through fermentation, the products have better flavor and health function, which better meet the needs of market diversification. The main products related to wolfberry fermentation include wolfberry fruit wine, wolfberry fruit vinegar, and lactic acid fermented beverage. In this review, the mainly bioactive components of Lycium barbarum and its deep-processing products of fermentation were summarized and compared. It will provide reference for the research and development of fermented and healthy products of Lycium barbarum.

Dynamics of Physicochemical Properties, Functional Compounds and Antioxidant Capacity during Spontaneous Fermentation of Lycium ruthenicum Murr. (Qinghai–Tibet Plateau) Natural Vinegar

Functional fermented fruit drinks are known worldwide for their health-promoting potential. Black wolfberry (BW) has high nutritional value, and its relative product development can be enriched through fermentation technology, so that its market might be broadened. Total acid, sugars, proteins, enzymes, anthocyanins, flavonoids, polyphenols, organic acids and DPPH free radical scavenging ability (DPPH) were tracked and determined by colorimetric method and HPLC during spontaneous fermentation of BW vinegar. The antioxidant capacity in vitro of BW vinegar was evaluated based on the dynamics of antioxidant contents and DPPH. The results showed that total acid continuously increased during fermentation, yet total sugar and reducing sugar shared a similar decreasing trend. The composition of samples differed in terms of total anthocyanins, total flavonoid, total polyphenol, total protein, superoxide dismutase (SOD), amylase, organic acids and DPPH through spontaneous fermentation. Functional compounds including total polyphenol, total flavonoid and three organic acids (γ-aminobutyric acid, lactic acid and gallic acid) played the main roles in antioxidation. Unexpectedly, SOD and ascorbic acid as antioxidants did not correlate with DPPH, but they were rich in the final products at 754.35 U/mL and 3.39 mg/mL, respectively. Generally, the quality of BW vinegar has been improved based on analyzing dynamics on functional compounds, organic acids and antioxidant capacity, which proves that BW vinegar obtained by spontaneous fermentation should be a potential source of fermented food with antioxidant effects for consumers.

The Promising Therapeutic and Preventive Properties of Anthocyanidins/Anthocyanins on Prostate Cancer

As water-soluble flavonoid derivatives, anthocyanidins and anthocyanins are the plants pigments mostly rich in berries, pomegranate, grapes, and dark color fruits. Many bioactivity properties of these advantageous phytochemicals have been reported; among them, their significant abilities in the suppression of tumor cells are of the promising therapeutic features, which have recently attracted great attention. The prostate malignancy, is considered the 2nd fatal and the most distributed cancer type in men worldwide. The present study was designated to gather the preclinical and clinical studies evaluating potencies of anthocyanidins/anthocyanins for the treatment and prevention of this cancer type for the first time. In general, findings confirm that the anthocyanins (especifically cyanidin-3-O-glucoside) indicated higher activity against prostatic neoplasms compared to their correlated anthocyanidins (e.g., delphinidin); in which potent anti-inflammatory, apoptosis, and anti-proliferative activities were analyzed. Complementary anti-prostate cancer assessment of diverse naturally occurred anthocyanidins/anthocyanins and their synthetically optimized derivatives through preclinical experiments and eventually confirmed by clinical trials can promisingly lead to discover natural-based chemotherapeutic drug options.

Health Benefits and Applications of Goji Berries in Functional Food Products Development: A Review

Goji berries have long been used for their nutritional value and medicinal purposes in Asian countries. In the last two decades, goji berries have become popular around the world and are consumed as a functional food due to wide-range bioactive compounds with health-promoting properties. In addition, they are gaining increased research attention as a source of functional ingredients with potential industrial applications. This review focuses on the antioxidant properties of goji berries, scientific evidence on their health effects based on human interventional studies, safety concerns, goji berry processing technologies, and applications of goji berry-based ingredients in developing functional food products.

In Situ Stability of Anthocyanins in Lycium ruthenicum Murray

In this research, the effects of drying method, storage temperature, and color protector glucose on anthocyanin preservation in the Lycium ruthenicum Murr. fruit were studied. Compared with hot-air drying, vacuum freeze-drying preserved about 5.8-fold more anthocyanins. The half-life of anthocyanins in the freeze-dried fruit samples with glucose was 3.6 days, 1.8 days, and 1.7 days at 4 °C, 20 °C, and 37 °C, respectively. On the other hand, the half-life values without glucose addition were 2.2 days, 2.3 days, and 2.1 days at each temperature, respectively, indicating that glucose protected anthocyanins at low temperature. The composition and contents of anthocyanins and anthocyanidins in the freeze-dried Lycium ruthenicum Murr., stored for 20 days, were investigated with a HPLC-MS/MS setup. It was found that most anthocyanidins in Lycium ruthenicum Murr. are linked with coumaroyl glucose to form anthocyanins, while glycosylated and acetyl-glycosylated anthocyanins were also detected. Five anthocyanidins were detected: delphinidin, cyanidin, petunidin, malvidin, and peonidin, and delphinidin accounts for about half of the total amount of anthocyanidins. It is much more economic to conserve anthocyanins in situ with freeze-drying methods and to store the fruits at low temperatures with glucose.