內(nèi)容: Propolis is a resinous complex mixture made from plant resins collected by worker bees and mixed with their own secretions. It is rich in polyphenols and flavonoids and thus has a wide range of biological activities and is considered a functional source for promoting human health. However, propolis and its bioactive compounds have poor water solubility, rapid and intense metabolism, and low oral bioavailability, which limits their wide application. In this paper, the main bioactive substances in propolis were summarized, and the biological characteristics and therapeutic potential of propolis and its bioactive substances were discussed. In addition, this paper discussed the factors affecting the bioavailability of propolis and its functional ingredients, focusing on the research progress in improving the bioavailability and bioactivity of propolis and its functional ingredients using nanoencapsulation technology. Finally, the current situation of the global propolis market and the applications of propolis products in the pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic and other industrial fields were discussed, providing useful references for promoting the development of the propolis industry.

內(nèi)容: Gastrodia elata Blume has a rich history of use in Asian. However, there is still a need for systematic analysis regarding the relationship and in-depth development between its components and functions. Through comprehensive analysis utilizing databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, the practical components, biological activities, and product development of G. elata have been investigated. It has been found that the main active components of G. elata, such as gastrodin and G. elata polysaccharides, possess functionalities in improving conditions such as epilepsy, hypertension, and osteoporosis. These active components exhibit phenolic hydroxyl groups, molecular weight, conformation, and spatial arrangement, contributing to their enhanced ability to scavenge free radicals. Additionally, G. elata is known to have organic acids and esters, which exhibit potential immune regulatory and antiviral properties. Compounds with multiple acidic functional groups exhibit even more vigorous activity. Steroidal compounds like β-sitosterol, due to their presence of alcohol and ketone groups, along with a multi-ring structure, exhibit superior cholesterol-lowering activity.G. elata has already been recognized in the traditional chinese medicine and food homology list, showcasing its potential for development in line with the health demands of the current era. However, challenges regarding quality evaluation, peculiar odor, and the extraction process of the practical components still require immediate attention. Constructing a robust evaluation system and optimizing product processing techniques will be crucial for the future advancement of the G. elata industry.

內(nèi)容: Legume foods are not only trendy but also rich in nutrients and offer unique health benefits. Nevertheless, allergies to soy and other legumes have emerged as critical issues in food safety, presenting significant challenges to the food processing industry and impacting consumer health. The complexity of legume allergens, coupled with inadequate allergen identification methods and the absence of robust detection and evaluation systems, complicates the management of these allergens. Here, we provide a comprehensive and critical review, mentioning various aspects related to legume allergies, including the types of legume allergens, the mechanisms behind these allergies, and the immunoglobulin E (IgE)-binding epitopes involved, summarizing and discussing the detection techniques and the impact of different processing techniques on sensitization to legume proteins. Furthermore, this paper provides an overview of research advances in diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for legume allergens and discusses current challenges and prospects for studying legume allergens.

內(nèi)容: Aluminum is the most abundant environmental pollutant. Recent studies suggest that aluminum exposure increases the risk of multiple diseases, including intestinal barrier dysfunction. We investigated whether?Pueraria lobata?extract (PLE) is effective in safeguarding against aluminum chloride exposure-exacerbated intestinal barrier dysfunction. Using an experimental colitis model of aluminum-exacerbated dextran sulphate sodium (DSS)-treated mice, clinical and pathological evidence suggested that the administration of PLE counteracted aluminum exposure-induced intestinal barrier damage. In addition, we found that aluminum toxicities, including loss of tight junction molecules (TJs), upregulated pro-inflammatory cytokines, and enhanced myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, were significantly suppressed by PLE administration. Furthermore, PLE administration was identified to inhibit activation of MAPKs and NF-κB signal pathways, which contribute to upregulation of myosin light-chain kinase (MLCK) in inflamed intestine. Taken together, these results suggest that PLE might be a potential candidate for aluminum exposure-related intestinal barrier dysfunction.

內(nèi)容: It has been reported that sea cucumber intestine hydrolysates (SCIH) could promote glutamine metabolism in mice, while there is a close connection between glutamine metabolism and insulin sensitivity. However, the effect of SCIH on insulin resistance is still unclear. The results showed that SCIH hydrolyzed by flavor protease had significant activity using the insulin-induced HepG2 cell model. Animal experiments exhibited that SCIH supplementation significantly improved the high-fat and high-sucrose diet-induced impaired glucose tolerance, reduced fasting serum glucose and glycosylated serum protein. Besides, SCIH ameliorated islet vacuolization and decreased the pancreas TNF-α and IL-6 by 32.1% and 36.2%, respectively. Immunofluorescence staining results showed that SCIH promoted insulin secretion. Interestingly, SCIH significantly increased the liver glutamine levels and upregulated the expression of glutaminase1 (GLS1) and glutamate dehydrogenase 1 (GLUD1). Furthermore, SCIH increased liver acetyl-CoA levels to enhance histone acetylation and activate the gene transcription and translation on glucose metabolism-related IRS/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, thereby attenuating insulin resistance. The present findings proposed the potential value for developing functional foods in SCIH utilization.

內(nèi)容: Although it is known that the accumulation of methylglyoxal (MGO) and advanced glycosylation end products (AGEs) results in oxidative injury, the comparison between caffeic acid (CA) and chlorogenic acid (CGA) against oxidative damage remains unclear. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare the effects of CA and CGA using PC12 cells and?Caenorhabditis elegans.?The antioxidant regulatory targets for CA and CGA were primarily detected in the NRF2 pathway as predicted by network pharmacology. First, CA exerted higher effects than CGA in increasing cell viability and mitochondrial membrane potential, reducing ROS production and apoptosis, and promoting the expression of NRF2 translocation and downstream genes, which were consistent with the results of molecular docking, molecular dynamics, and covariance matrix simulations. Second, treatment with ML385 (Nrf2?inhibitor) eliminated the anti-cytotoxic effect and ROS accumulation reduction effect of CA and CGA. Third, CA exhibited stronger capacities in extending lifespan, inhibiting ROS production, and increasing SKN-1 proportion than CGA in?C. elegans. Multi-spectroscopy analysis also revealed a stronger inhibitory effect of CA on the formation of AGEs than that of CGA, which might be related to the alteration of the protein?α-helix. Therefore, considering the higher antioxidant effects of CA, it can be used as a promising antioxidant natural drug resource.

內(nèi)容: Histamine (HA) is a biogenic amine formed during the metabolism of microorganisms, excessive intake of which can cause headache, diarrhea, and, in severe cases, food poisoning. The commonly used instrumental detection methods are expensive and time-consuming, making it challenging to realize on-site inspection. In this work, we reported a colorimetric test strip-based detection method for HA by chemical recognition of the amine and imidazole groups of HA. Polydopamine-coated gold nanoparticles that were modified with carboxyl group-terminated polyethylene glycol (Au@PDA-C NPs) were utilized as labels to capture HA through the?N-hydroxysuccinimide/1-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride (NHS/EDC) reaction between HA and the carboxyl group of the Au@PDA-C NPs. The chelate from nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and Cu2+?at the T-line could then specifically bind the imidazole moiety of HA in the complex of HA and Au@PDA-C NPs, enabling the T-line to present the colorimetric characteristics of Au@PDA-C NPs. The gray value of the T-line in the test strip showed a good linear relationship with the HA concentration in the range of 0–100 μg/mL, with the standard curve equation of?Y?= 27.94X?+ 463.0 and the correlation coefficient of?R2?= 0.944. The detection limit and quantification limit of HA were 1.16 μg/mL (signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) = 3) and 3.88 μg/mL (S/N = 10), respectively. The two-site chemical recognition method could also achieve specific detection of HA in commercially available samples, showing potential application as an on-site analysis tool for HA.

內(nèi)容: Semen Platycladi?(SP) is the dried ripe kernel of?Platycladus orientalis?(L.) Franco, has been used for insomnia treatment for bimillennium in China, which mechanism is not fully understood. The aim of this study was to explore the sleep-promoting mechanism of essential oil and saponins from SP. As 2 main bioactive constituents of SP, essential oil (SPO) and saponin (SPS) were extracted, then was given to?p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA)-induced insomnia mice by intragastric administration. Then, the behavioral tests, neurotransmitter receptors, cytokines and hormone in brain were investigated. Behavior test showed that SPO and SPS exhibited sleep-enhancing effect through suppressing depression, shortening the onset time while prolonging the sleep duration in insomnia mice. Also SPO and SPS up-regulated serotonin (5-HT) receptors in serotonergic neurons, increased glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) content in GABAergic neurons, and stimulated?γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors expression to enhance the synaptic inhibition. Moreover, they could down-regulated the cytokines and rebalanced hormone expressions. Although both SPO and SPS exerted sleep-promoting, they had different focusing targets. SPS had stronger effect on neurotransmitter receptors regulation while SPO had better hormone rebalanced ability. Briefly, SPO and SPS exerted sedative-hypnotic effect in insomnia mice through modulating multi-targets in serotonergic and GABAergic system.

內(nèi)容: Insulin resistance is a key pathological process in the development of type 2 diabetes, which can also lead to depression, anxiety and other symptoms. With the accelerated pace of life, food with high-energy and additives is becoming more and more common in people's diet. Propionate is a naturally existing short-chain fatty acid salt widely used as a food preservative, but studies have found that low concentrations of propionate can induce insulin resistance. Theaflavins (TFs) are characteristic components of black tea, which have hypoglycemic and lipid-lowering effects. In the present study, propionate combined with high-fat diet was used to induce insulin resistance in mice and treated them with TFs. The results showed that propionate could aggravate insulin resistance and anxiety induced by high-fat diet in mice. TFs alleviated insulin resistance and anxiety induced by propionate combined with high-fat diet by improving the disorder of metabolic gene expression and inflammation in the adipose and liver tissue, as well as neuroinflammation in the brain. Our study suggests that the food additive propionate combined with a high-fat diet may be harmful to organismal health. As a natural drug, TFs have the potential to alleviate insulin resistance induced by propionate combined with high-fat diet.

內(nèi)容: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a disease of glucose intolerance that first occurs during pregnancy. Accumulating evidence underlined a link between gut microbiota dysbiosis and GDM, and microbial metabolites represent a unique way to explore microbiota-host interactions. However, the associations between changes in the gut microbiota and microbial metabolites and immune homeostasis in the GDM pathogenesis remain largely unclear. In this prospective study, the characteristics of gut microbiota in both first trimester (T1) and second trimester (T2) were investigated in 46 GDM patients and 44 matched controls. We comprehensively profiled the microbial metabolites using non-targeted metabolomics and quantitatively targeted metabolomics, measurements of inflammatory cytokines and biomarkers of intestinal barrier function, and combined with correlation analysis in T2. Gut microbiota dybiosis was observed in GDM patients in both T1 and T2, and was characterised by the enrichment of multiple potentially harmful bacteria, such as UBA1819 and?Erysipelatoclostridium. Besides, alterations in the microbiota were accompanied by a disturbance in tryptophan metabolism, mainly manifested as a shift towards the production of more kynurenine and less indole derivatives. Most importantly, correlation network analysis indicated that overgrowth of potential pathogens and tryptophan metabolism disorder were associated with inflammatory imbalance and disrupted epithelial barrier in GDM patients. These findings provide a greater understanding of the pathogenesis and new targets for microecological interventions by mediating tryptophan metabolism in GDM.