Desertification sensitivity and its impacts on land use change in the Tarim Basin, Northwest China.

Desertification poses a major challenge in the northwestern arid areas of China. Land use activities are increasingly endangered by desertification, including direct impact (e.g.

Synergistic effect of chitosan and β-carotene in inhibiting MNU-induced retinitis pigmentosa.

In this study, N-Methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) was intraperitoneally injected to construct a mouse retinitis pigmentosa (RP) model to evaluate the protective effect of chitosan and β-carotene on RP. The results demonstrated that chitosan synergized with β-carotene significantly reduced retinal histopathological structural damage in RP mice. The co-treatment group of β-carotene and chitosan restored the retinal thickness and outer nuclear layer thickness better than the group treated with the two alone, and the thickness reached the normal level.

Bu-Shen-Ning-Xin decoction inhibits macrophage activation to ameliorate premature ovarian insufficiency-related osteoimmune disorder via FSH/FSHR pathway.

Limited studies are associated with premature ovarian insufficiency (POI)-related osteoimmune disorder currently. Bu-Shen-Ning-Xin decoction (BSNXD) displayed a favorable role in treating postmenopausal osteoporosis. However, its impact on the POI-related osteoimmune disorder remains unclear.

Effect of Plasma-Activated Water (PAW) on the Postharvest Quality of Shepherd's Purse ().

Plasma-activated water (PAW) treatment is an effective technique for the quality retention of fresh vegetables with cold atmospheric plasma using controllable parameters. This study investigated the effect of PAW on the postharvest quality of shepherd's purse (). The results displayed that PAW treatment with an activation time of 5, 10, 15, and 20 min reduced the yellowing rate and weight loss of the shepherd's purse during 9 days of storage.

Polysaccharides affect the utilization of β-carotene through gut microbiota investigated by in vitro and in vivo experiments.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of six polysaccharides on the utilization of β-carotene from the perspective of gut microbiota using both in vitro simulated anaerobic fermentation systems and in vivo animal experiments. In the in vitro experiments, the addition of arabinoxylan, arabinogalactan, mannan, inulin, chitosan, and glucan led to a 31.07-79.

Lutein combined with EGCG improved retinitis pigmentosa against -methyl- nitrosourea-induced.

In order to investigate the synergistic improving effect of lutein (LUT) and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) treatment on retinitis pigmentosa (RP), an -methyl--nitrosourea (MNU)-induced mouse model was conducted in the present study. Compared to the LUT alone treatment group, in the LUT combined with EGCG (LUT-EGCG) treatment group, the accumulation content of LUT was significantly increased by 50.24% in the liver.

Identification of carotenoids from fruits and vegetables with or without saponification and evaluation of their antioxidant activities.

This study investigates the composition and form of carotenoids in typical fruits and vegetables obtained through saponification or non-saponification and evaluates the correlation between carotenoids and antioxidant capacity. The results showed that the content of the total carotenoids in non-saponified broccoli was the highest, reaching 1505.93 ± 71.

High-Performance, Degradable, Self-Healing Bio-Based Nanocomposite Coatings with Antibacterial and Antioxidant Properties.

The purpose of this study is to obtain a bio-based coating with good functional activity and self-healing ability, demonstrating its potential in food, materials, and other application fields. Plastic coatings can cause serious environmental pollution. It was a good solution to replace plastic coatings with degradable coatings.

Evaluation of the digestibility and antioxidant activity of protein and lipid after mixing nuts based on in vitro and in vivo models.

This study aimed to evaluate the change of digestibility and antioxidant activity of protein and lipid after mixing walnuts, cashews, and pistachios using in vitro and in vivo models. The results showed that mixed nuts significantly reduced the digested particle size and the degree of hydrolysis of protein and triacylglycerol compared to single nuts in vitro. As a consequence of co-digestion, bioaccessibility and antioxidant activity for amino acids and fatty acids were increased by 1.

Rheological property, β-carotene stability and 3D printing characteristic of whey protein isolate emulsion gels by adding different polysaccharides.

Emulsion gels with unique structural and mechanical properties have promising applications in 3D food printing. The purpose of this paper was to investigate the rheological property, β-carotene stability and 3D printing characteristic of whey protein isolate (WPI) emulsion gels by adding guar gum (GG), locust bean gum (LBG), xanthan gum (XG) and gum arabic (GA). The results showed that all samples exhibited shear thinning behavior and elastic characteristic.

Comparative study of the properties of lutein nanoliposomes coated with chitosan/(-)-epigallocatechin- 3-gallate (EGCG) complexes.

Background: Numerous positive effects have been attributed to lutein, a lipophilic nutrient, including resisting ultraviolet radiation and protecting retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells against blue light damage. It also has preventive effects against cardiovascular disease and cancer. However, its use could be limited by its poor stability and low bioaccessibility in the human digestive system.

Concurrent Production of α- and β-Carotenes with Different Stoichiometries Displaying Diverse Antioxidative Activities via Lycopene Cyclases-Based Rational System.

α- and β-carotenes belong to the most essential carotenoids in the human body and display remarkable pharmacological value for health due to their beneficial antioxidant activities. Distinct high α-/β-carotene stoichiometries have gained increasing attention for their effective preventions of Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. However, it is extremely difficult to obtain α-carotene in nature, impeding the accumulations of high α-/β-carotene stoichiometries and excavation of their antioxidant activities.

Study on the Interaction between Four Typical Carotenoids and Human Gut Microflora Using an Fermentation Model.

Recent studies indicated a strong relationship between carotenoids and gut microflora. However, their structure-activity relationship remains unclear. This study evaluated the interaction between four typical carotenoids (β-carotene, lutein, lycopene, and astaxanthin) and gut microflora using an fermentation model.

Effects of different hydrocolloids on the water migration, rheological and 3D printing characteristics of β-carotene loaded yam starch-based hydrogel.

The effects of guar gum (GG), xanthan gum (XG), carrageenan gum (CG), xanthan-guar gum blend (XG-GG), chitosan (CS), gum arabic (GA) on the water migration, rheological and 3D printing properties of β-carotene loaded yam starch-based hydrogel (BCH) were investigated to expand product form of β-carotene. The results showed that CS addition promoted the migration of weakly bound water to tightly bound water in BCH. Addition of GG, CG, XG-GG, CS and GA enhanced apparent viscosity, G', G'', hardness and gumminess of BCH.

A spatial directivity-based sensitivity analysis to farmland quality evaluation in arid areas.

Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) is an important means for evaluating resources and environment, and sensitivity analysis can enhance understand the robustness of evaluation results. Spatial visualization has been used in sensitivity analysis of MCDM, but the sensitivity results are still generally summarized by presenting traditional statistical measurements that omit the spatial information. To address this issue, this paper proposed a novel spatially measurement approach of sensitivity analysis by introducing the spatial barycenter model (SBM), which overcame the limitations of existing statistical methods and provided the spatial directivity of uncertainty for the MCDM results.

Glycosylated zein as a novel nanodelivery vehicle for lutein.

Glucosamine-glycosylated zein (GLZ) generated by transglutaminase was developed as a novel delivery vehicle to prepare lutein-loaded glycosylated zein nanoparticles (GLZ-LUT). GLZ-LUT exhibited a polydispersed spherical microstructure, lutein was embedded into GLZ to form nanocomplexes via self-assembly, they had a lower zeta potential and an average particle size of less than 200 nm. Compared to lutein-loaded zein nanoparticles (Zein-LUT), the lutein entrapment efficiency of GLZ-LUT was increased from 81.

Effect of Ca cross-linking on the properties and structure of lutein-loaded sodium alginate hydrogels.

In order to construct nano-lutein hydrogels with sustained release properties, the basic properties and structure of nano-lutein hydrogels cross-linked with different concentrations of Ca were investigated. The results showed that the highest loading capacity for lutein reached 770.88 μg/g, while the encapsulation efficiency was as high as 99.

Study on physicochemical characteristics of lutein nanoemulsions stabilized by chickpea protein isolate-stevioside complex.

Background: Chickpea protein isolate (CPI) originating from chickpeas has the advantages of facilitating the stability of food emulsions. Stevioside (STE) exhibits a notable surface activity and can improve the water solubility of numerous hydrophobic nutrients. STE and protein mixtures show great potential as emulsions stabilizers.

Hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of blueberry anthocyanins by AMPK activation: In vitro and in vivo studies.

Blueberries are rich in bioactive anthocyanins, with a high level of malvidin, which is associated with antioxidant benefits that contribute to reducing the risk of diabetes. The objective of this study was to investigate the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of blueberry anthocyanin extract (BAE), malvidin (Mv), malvidin-3-glucoside (Mv-3-glc), and malvidin-3-galactoside (Mv-3-gal) in both human hepatocarcinoma cell line HepG2 and in a high-fat diet combining streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. High glucose treatment significantly increased hepatic oxidative stress up to 6-fold and decreased HepG2 cell viability.

Effect of exogenous methyl jasmonate on physiological and carotenoid composition of yellow maize sprouts under NaCl stress.

Carotenoid content in maize sprouts can be increased by NaCl stress, although high NaCl concentrations negatively impact plant growth. The effects of exogenous methyl jasmonate (MeJA) on contents of carotenoid and antioxidant capacity of yellow maize sprouts under NaCl stress were investigated. Our results showed that treatments of NaCl both alone and combined with MeJA enhanced the carotenoid accumulation in maize sprouts.

Study on the bioavailability of stevioside-encapsulized lutein and its mechanism.

This study aims to develop novel lutein nanoparticles encapsulized by stevioside (LUT-STE, 165 ± 2 nm average particles size) and systematically evaluate its bioavailability. Multiple spectroscopy and NMR analyses showed lutein and stevioside could interact through hydrogen bonds, CHπ interaction and van der Waals forces. Molecular docking simulation showed lutein was well distributed in the hydrophobic cavity of stevioside.

Effects of pre-drying treatments combined with explosion puffing drying on the physicochemical properties, antioxidant activities and flavor characteristics of apples.

The purpose of this research was to study the effect of hot air drying, microwave vacuum drying and freeze drying combined with explosion puffing drying (HDEPD, MDEPD and FDEPD) on physicochemical properties, antioxidant activities and flavor characteristics of apples. The results showed that MDEPD and FDEPD products had better color and textural properties, exhibited a homogeneous porous structure. MDEPD and FDEPD better preserved scavenging abilities of DPPH, hydroxyl radical and FRAP, retained values of TFC and TPC.

Multivariate analyses of the volatile components in fresh and dried turnip ( L.) chips via HS-SPME-GC-MS.

Turnip is a vegetable that has many health promoting effects. To diversify the usage and increase the consumption of turnip, the effects of hot air drying, infrared drying, explosion puff drying and freeze drying (FD) on the volatiles of turnip chips were studied. The volatiles of fresh turnip and dried turnip chips were isolated by HS-SPME-GC-MS and a total of 67 volatiles were identified.

Comparison on chemical compositions and antioxidant capacities of the green, oolong, and red tea from blueberry leaves.

Blueberry leaves, by-products of the blueberry industry, could be explored as source of functional foods, such as teas. Three different types of tea, including nonfermented green tea, semifermented oolong tea, and fully fermented red tea from blueberry leaves, were investigated on their chemical compositions and antioxidant capacities here. The contents of individual amino acids in three types varied, while the total amounts retained constant.