Cultured meat and seafood (CM) provides an opportunity to help meet growing global demand for nutritious, sustainable, and safe protein sources. Demonstrating safety is critical to bringing CM products to market and gaining public acceptance. However, the lack of standardized safety methods and data requires start-ups to conduct duplicative, resource-intensive research and regulators to rely on a case-by-case approach to safety evaluations. Building upon prior work from the Cultured Meat Safety Initiative (CMSI), this paper presents outcomes from a 2024-2025 workshop series aimed at developing a coordinated safety research action plan and initiating research collaborations. The four workshops engaged 97 international participants. Discussions focused on defining specific research questions, examining challenges to conducting research, and identifying solutions. These efforts culminated in preliminary action plans to address key safety topics, including genetic drift, genetic modifications, growth factors, food safety plans, manufacturing safety tools and methods, and final product evaluation. Participants emphasized the need for cross-sector, multi-disciplinary collaboration, along with open databases and standardized testing methods. By convening CM stakeholders to discuss research priorities and identify concrete next steps, the workshops serve as an important first step towards a coordinated effort to develop open data and methods, ultimately advancing CM safety demonstration.
Taste perception is a crucial factor in the development of innovative strategies for pharmaceutical and food design, as represented by the five primary tastes such as sweet, bitter, umami, salty, and sour. However, relying on human sensory evaluation for taste assessment is time-consuming and costly. Consequently, developing the five tastes predictive model presents a more efficient and practical alternative. Key challenges include the multi-label nature of taste perception, whereby a single compound can exhibit more than one basic taste, severe class imbalance, and the integration of structurally distinct small molecules and peptides within a unified predictive framework. To address this issue, a novel taste predictive model was proposed, incorporating molecular structure analysis and natural language processing. Additionally, tree-based machine learning models, including random forest, XGBoost, LightGBM, and CatBoost, were trained based on feature extraction techniques such as descriptors, fingerprints, FastText, and Word2vec. Experimental results indicated that the proposed model significantly improved classification performance, with LightGBM achieving the highest F1-score of 74.91%. This research not only advances in five basic tastes predictions but also provides key insights of crucial factors for understanding molecular structure of taste perception. These findings are intended to support researchers in computational food science and those involved in the development of healthier food products.
Antioxidant-enriched fresh vegetables are an emerging segment of the functional food market, yet consumer acceptance of fresh produce that combines health enhancement with technological modification remains poorly understood. Building on cognitive–motivational models of food choice, this study examines how consumer knowledge - both objective and subjective - shapes the intention to buy antioxidant-enriched tomatoes, considering health interest and naturalness interest as mediating mechanisms. Data were collected in May 2025 through an online (CAWI) survey of 1,159 adult consumers, recruited via quota sampling to reflect the Italian population, and were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that objective knowledge strengthens health interest, which in turn supports purchase intention, and increases naturalness interest, which instead exerts a negative effect on purchase intention. Subjective knowledge follows a different pattern, reducing naturalness interest and exerting a strong positive direct effect on purchase intention. Indeed, both forms of knowledge retain significant direct effects on purchase intention, with these direct effects generally stronger than the indirect paths. These findings indicate that consumer acceptance of enriched fresh vegetables reflects a cognitive trade-off between perceived health benefits and concerns about naturalness. Accordingly, industry stakeholders should pair clear health-benefit communication with transparent, reassuring messaging about the natural origin of the enrichment, tailoring strategies for fresh produce where naturalness is a salient quality cue.
Food serves as a foundation of human existence, while healthy dietary choices are a cornerstone of individual health. A significant amount of edible food is not consumed and consequently wasted within households globally. Minimising this avoidable food waste can foster more sustainable consumption patterns, aligning with the overarching goal of enhancing environmental sustainability. However, existing literature on this issue remains limited and fragmented. Using PRISMA guidelines, this review synthesises 22 eligible peer-reviewed English-language journal articles published up to March 2025, identified across five databases: Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Emerald Insight, and SpringerLink. The methodological quality of included studies was assessed with the MMAT. The review findings were summarised using descriptive analysis and narrative synthesis. Findings revealed four major themes: definitions and measurement of healthy food and food waste; influencing factors of food waste; intervention strategies; and the nexus among food waste, nutrition, and environmental health. The evidence indicates that healthy food selections can mitigate waste with proper management practices, may exacerbate waste with fresh perishables, and yield varying results depending on context. This review proposes a behavioural framework linking healthy food choices, purchasing decisions, and post-purchase food management practices to household food-waste outcomes. Future research should align national nutritional goals with global sustainability targets through healthy eating, whilst simultaneously reducing avoidable food waste. The study concludes with suggestions for behavioural nudges related to food purchasing and subsequent household food management, as well as circular-economy approaches, that hold promise for supporting both healthy food choices and reduced household food waste.
Pineapple processing generates millions of tons of agro-industrial side-streams annually, yet their circular upcycling into functional food ingredients demands rigorous validation—a task frequently constrained by modest experimental sample sizes. While traditional dairy processing relies on standardized chymosin-rennet systems, this study addresses the fundamental biophysical interactions governing alternative, direct-acidified matrices. By shifting the analytical focus from direct industrial substitution to the engineering of novel plant-augmented systems, this work introduces a Multi-Method Convergence Framework (MMCF). This low-compute, data-driven architecture integrates zero-order kinetic modeling, machine learning (ML) ensemble forecasting, and multivariate dimensional reduction to derive robust, predictive conclusions from resource-constrained datasets (N = 5 biological replicates). The framework was deployed to systematically evaluate six direct-acidified whole-milk curd trajectories over a 28-day refrigerated storage window. The optimized bromelain-enriched pineapple extract (T6) is hypothesized to operate via an enzymatic-acidification convergence (EAC) mechanism, achieving a 17.90% curd yield, 19.46% protein content, and 8.62 N matrix hardness at Day 0. Temporal kinetic profiles demonstrated highly predictable, near-linear maturation pathways (R2 ≥ 0.96). Concurrently, a stacked ensemble ML model forecast protein stability at Day 35 within the same treatment set with exceptional precision (R2 = 0.98), while principal component analysis captured 95.4% of the total cumulative variance, confirming T6’s distinct, optimized multivariate quality space. This framework successfully mitigates sampling uncertainty without requiring expanded replicate numbers, offering a validated, reproducible template to accelerate the agile screening of functional agricultural by-products within specific, defined food manufacturing systems.
How gastrointestinal digestion reshapes the chemical composition of tiger nut and influences its subsequent utilization by fructophilic lactic acid bacteria (FLAB) remains poorly understood. To address this gap, tiger nut was first subjected to simulated gastrointestinal (GI) digestion and subsequently fermented with metabolically specialized FLAB strains with potential probiotic properties. Changes in carbohydrates, organic acids, free amino acids, phenolic compounds, peptides, antinutritional factors, antioxidant activity, and intestinal-cell responses were experimentally evaluated, whereas selected ADME properties, blood–brain barrier permeability, molecular-target interactions, and peptide bioactivities were assessed computationally. Simulated digestion markedly modified the amino acid, peptide, and phenolic profiles. Subsequent incubation with FLAB resulted in strain-associated changes in microbial growth, acidification, organic acids, amino acids, phenolic compounds, peptides, antioxidant activity, and antinutritional factors. Among the fermented matrices, PL34_DT showed high microbial growth and chemical antioxidant activity and was enriched in selected compounds including GABA, gallic acid, gallocatechin, and resveratrol. Several phenolics and peptides showed computationally predicted neuroactive properties, including blood–brain barrier permeability and affinity for neurotransmitter and immunomodulatory targets. PL34_DT was therefore selected for focused intestinal-cell experiments, where it maintained monolayer integrity under the tested conditions and reduced t-BOOH-induced intracellular ROS in Caco-2 cells. Overall, digestion-guided FLAB fermentation reshaped the biochemical composition of tiger nut, while the physiological relevance of the computationally predicted activities requires further experimental validation.
Effective food preservation using biodegradable films depends on the balanced regulation of oxygen and moisture transport rather than the isolated optimization of a single barrier parameter. Here, cotton stalk (CS), an agricultural residue, was incorporated into polylactic acid (PLA) matrices, with PLA-g-MAH used as a reactive compatibilizer to tailor the PLA/CS interface. FTIR and XPS analyses indicated changes in the local chemical environment of hydroxyl-, ester-, and carboxyl-related groups at the PLA/CS phase boundary, supporting possible interfacial reactions and secondary interactions. SEM and three-dimensional surface profilometry demonstrated that the film containing 6% PLA-g-MAH exhibited the most compact fracture morphology and the lowest surface roughness. This configuration minimized both the oxygen transmission coefficient and water vapor transmission rate, indicating that targeted interfacial regulation suppressed defect-driven molecular diffusion pathways. In contrast, excessive PLA-g-MAH induced local phase heterogeneity that partially reopened transport channels. In food storage tests, the optimized film reduced banana weight loss, slowed visible color deterioration, and lowered total viable counts in fresh pork without requiring migratory antimicrobial additives. These findings support a passive preservation strategy in which agricultural-residue-based PLA films modulate oxygen and moisture transport through interfacial design.
Barberry fruit is a valuable source of phenolic compounds and natural antioxidants; however, its susceptibility to quality deterioration and fungal decay limits its storage stability. This study investigated ultrasound as a sustainable, non-thermal, and chemical-free processing technology for preserving the quality of seedless barberry during 28 days of cold storage at 4°C. Seedless fruits were treated at temperatures of 25–45°C for 4–14 min, and the effects of ultrasound treatment on titratable acidity (TA), antioxidant activity (AOA), total phenolic content (TPC), ascorbic acid (AsA), and fungal decay (FD) were systematically evaluated and optimized using response surface methodology. Pareto analysis showed that treatment time and temperature exerted response-dependent effects, with treatment time generally promoting the retention of bioactive compounds, while higher temperatures had a limiting effect. Pearson correlation analysis showed that AOA and TPC were strongly positively associated, whereas both traits were negatively associated with fungal decay. Nonlinear regression models demonstrated excellent predictive performance (R² = 0.971–0.996). Multivariate optimization identified 36.2°C for 14 min as the optimum treatment condition, with a desirability of 81.1% and predicted values of 768.01 mg 100 g-1 AsA, 68.91% AOA, 0.58 mg 100 g-1 TPC, 0.77% TA, and 39.18% FD. Experimental validation showed a maximum deviation of only 2.24% from the model predictions. Overall, ultrasound treatment under optimized conditions effectively preserved nutritional and quality attributes while reducing fungal decay, demonstrating its potential as a sustainable postharvest preservation strategy for barberry fruit.
Safety of chemical components in alimentary products is a leading health concern in the world, getting more and more complicated due to the growing complexity and weight of compounds in modern food substances. This review provides an in-depth evaluation of the historical trends of toxicological testing with a focus on the advancement of traditional in vivo testing to the area of advanced computational techniques. Structure-based toxicity prediction has occurred using fundamental methods, such as Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship (QSAR) models. However, their natural limitation in nonlinear and mechanistic biological interactions has triggered the use of improved techniques. The latest changes in cheminformatics, machine learning, and deep learning have significantly increased accuracy of prediction and scalability. Specifically, large language models (LLMs) and emergent models like Quantitative Knowledge–Activity Relationships (QKAR) combine molecular representations and information about the world retrieved through its scientific literature. The combination of this can be used to discriminate complex toxicity profiles and provide more mechanistic understanding, which both increases the reliability and interpretability of computational toxicology.
The aim of this study was to evaluate how increasing concentrations of spent coffee grounds (SCG) extract (1% to 7.5%) affect the antioxidant activity, optical behavior, moisture characteristics, thickness, mechanical strength, and surface properties of κ‑carrageenan edible films. The incorporation of SCG extract markedly enhanced antioxidant capacity. FRAP values increased from 0 µmol Trolox/g in control films to 138.67 µmol Trolox/g at 7.5%, while CUPRAC rose from 0.8 to 328.4 µmol Trolox/g. Total polyphenol content (TPC) increased from 0.056 mg GAE/g to 34.94 mg GAE/g, showing a strong correlation with extract concentration (r = 0.913, p < 0.01). UV-Vis analysis confirmed improved light-barrier properties in all extract‑containing films, whereas control films exhibited minimal absorbance. Moisture content decreased from 18.8% (control) to 10.8% (7.5%), showing a strong negative correlation with extract level (r = –0.915). Tensile strength showed no consistent trend, ranging between 0.12 and 0.26 MPa, with the highest value observed at 6% extract. Surface properties were affected: stickiness on rough sides increased from 302.6 g to 385.4 g, while friction rose from 256.6 g to 360.0 g. Overall, SCG extract significantly improved antioxidant activity, improved light-barrier properties, and total polyphenol content. These findings indicate its potential as a functional additive from circular economy principles for application in edible biodegradable packaging and film systems.
Background : The balance between arachidonic acid (ARA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in human milk is crucial for infant neurodevelopment and immune programming. However, comprehensive understanding of its global variability across lactation stages, geographic regions, and comparison with infant formulas remains limited. Methods : A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted following PRISMA-P guidelines, including literature published up to April 2025. A total of 88 studies were analyzed, encompassing 6,428 colostrum, 3,136 transitional, and 14,631 mature milk samples worldwide. Random-effects models were applied to estimate pooled mean ARA/DHA ratios and assess eco-geographical gradients relative to coastal distance. Data from 671infant formulas registered in China were further analyzed for comparison. Results The pooled mean ARA/DHA ratios were 1.710 (95% CI: 1.583 - 1.838) for colostrum, 1.543 (95% CI: 1.430 - 1.657) for transitional milk, and 1.778 (95% CI: 1.664 - 1.893) for mature milk. Ratios increased with distance from the coastline, with every 100 km inland corresponding to a rise of 0.03 (95% CI: 0 - 0.06, p = 0.035) in colostrum and 0.06 (95% CI: 0.03 - 0.10, p < 0.001) in mature milk, while transitional milk showed a non-significant upward trend. The mean ratio in Chinese infant formulas (1.37 ± 0.32) was substantially lower than that in human milk, with 74.5% ranging between 1.0 - 1.5. Conclusions This global synthesis highlights three major insights: (1) strong eco-geographical effects on ARA/DHA ratios in human milk, (2) dynamic stage-dependent changes during lactation, and (3) marked compositional gaps between human milk and most infant formulas. The consistently lower ARA/DHA ratio in infant formulas underscores the need for nutritional optimization to better align with human milk composition and support infant neurodevelopment and immune outcomes. Registry This work has been registered at PROSPERO (CRD420251079267). Statement of Significance This study provides the most comprehensive global synthesis to date of the ARA/DHA ratio in human milk, integrating the widest temporal span, largest sample size, and most extensive set of influencing factors ever examined. Moreover, it is the first to identify a clear eco-geographical gradient, showing increasing ARA/DHA ratios with greater distance from coastlines and to systematically compare these findings with Chinese infant formula compositions at a national scale.
Cultured meat may require fewer resources and is less polluting than animal meat, but it remains costly to produce. One of the critical challenges in cultivated meat science is to identify/develop fetal bovine serum (FBS) alternatives as growth supplements. Among numerous molecules present in FBS, albumin is the most abundant component, which is crucial for transporting fatty acids and the antioxidant activity of serum. Significant efforts are being invested in finding albumin alternatives due to its functional importance. This study explored the potential of phycocyanins from cyanobacteria (C-Phycocyanin) and red macroalgae (R-Phycocyanin) as albumin alternatives in media for cultivating Japanese quail myoblasts. We examined their fatty acid-binding potential using fluorescence spectroscopy, molecular docking, and dynamics. Both C-Phycocyanin and R-Phycocyanin bind stronger unsaturated FAs than saturated ones, while the α-linolenic acid exhibits the highest affinity, with multiple stable binding sites confirmed. Notably, the antioxidant activity of phycocyanins surpassed that of albumin. Cell viability assays and live-dead staining revealed enhanced cell growth in the presence of C-Phycocyanin and R-Phycocyanin. These results suggest that C-Phycocyanin and R-Phycocyanin effectively bind fatty acids and support cell proliferation, highlighting their potential as functional albumin substitutes, an essential prerequisite for the sustainable production of cultured meat.
In this study, an active packaging film with sustained release of active components was developed using nanoencapsulation. Apigenin (Ap)-loaded zein-chia seed gum nanoparticles (CSG/Zein@Ap NPs) were prepared via antisolvent precipitation. When CSG to zein mass ratio was 2:1, nanoparticles exhibited optimal encapsulation efficiency of 52.79%. Moreover, these nanoparticles exhibited favorable preliminary in vitro biocompatibility under the tested conditions. An active food packaging was prepared by CSG/Zein@Ap NPs into chitosan/dialdehyde starch film (CS/DSA). SEM and FTIR illustrated that the formation of Schiff base bonds and hydrogen bonds enhanced film’s compactness. Compared to chitosan film, when CSG/Zein@Ap NPs content reached 3 wt% (CS/DSA-3%NPs), tensile strength increased by 45.15%, while water vapor permeability decreased by 77.41%. The film exhibited excellent antibacterial and antioxidant properties (DPPH: 83.82%; ABTS: 94.19%), along with good biodegradability and soil microbial community regulation capabilities. Nanoencapsulation enabled Ap to exhibit sustained-release properties from film. Moreover, CS/DSA-3%NPs can extend the shelf life of strawberries by 6 days.
Sustainable human consumption of insects has been recognized as a potentially significant innovation. However, the acceptance of insect-based foods in Western countries was influenced by several socio-demographic, cultural, and psychological factors.To disentangle the complex non-linear interactions among attitudes and barriers toward novel foods, we collected demographic data, disgust propensity and sensitivity, neophobia, interest in nutrition-related health, beliefs, attitudes, prior experience and motivation about insect-based foods. Both inference and prediction analysis using machine learning algorithms were performed on a dataset of 400 participants.Statistical comparisons showed that females showed higher disgust and interest in healthy food scores compared to males, and they were less motivated across novel foods in terms of curiosity, taste, nutritional and environmental benefits. In addition, improbable consumers of insect-based food showed higher levels of food neophobia, risk perception and beliefs compared to possible consumers.The prediction model suggested features guiding the willingness to taste insect-based foods: disgust and food neophobia were associated with low acceptance, while curiosity, expected taste, and perceived nutritional benefits were linked to high acceptance. Among the main features, 'eating insects is disgusting' -item 1 of Beliefs and Attitudes about Insects questionnaire- was the strongest barrier, whereas curiosity emerged as the primary motivating bridge.In conclusion, our findings showed that disgust and neophobia could represent barriers to the acceptance of insect-based foods; curiosity, expected taste, and nutritional benefits could be used as a bridge to approach possible consumers
This study comprehensively explores, for the first time, the effects of proteolysis and subsequent in vitro gastrointestinal system digestion on bioactive peptide dynamics in plant-based cheese alternatives (PCAs). EU PDO Malatya apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) kernels, non-bitter taste and free of cyanogenic glycosides, were used as the protein source in the PCA production and water kefir was used to ferment the product. SDS-PAGE and RP-HPLC peptide fractionation results showed that the large-molecule peptides were successfully digested, with an increase in the number of small-molecule peptides. Furthermore, fermentation promoted an increase in the counts of bioactive peptides in the PCAs, with 71 and 95 identified in control and fermented samples, respectively. Consistently, ACE-i and antioxidant activities also showed a marked increase following digestion. ACE-i activity increased from 43.98-45.49% to 90.79-92.76%, antioxidant capacities increased from 417.24-445.96 to 774.14-806.68 mg TEAC/kg for DPPH and from 0.76-1.05 to 2.79-3.10 mMol Trolox/g for CUPRAC in undigested and digested PCAs, respectively. In conclusion, the digestive capacity of apricot kernel proteins was found to be quite high, and the use of water kefir in PCA production improved the digestibility of apricot kernel proteins and increased the number of bioactive peptides.
Cultivated meat is often presented as a sustainable future food, but its low-emission potential depends on how production systems are engineered and operated. This study asks whether deployment-relevant enabling conditions are becoming visible in cultivated-meat innovation. We develop a patent-derived signal framework and apply it to a final search-derived corpus of 267 granted patent records screened for potential cultivated-meat production relevance. Records were coded by relevance grade, enabling pathway, specific signal type and Low-Emission Deployment Signal (LEDS) score; 87 review-sensitive records were adjudicated, and 36 high-risk records underwent full-text and related-family-document checks. In the final record-level analysis, 133 records (49.81%) provide Direct signals. An exact-title-deduplicated sensitivity check retains 232 records, of which 106 (45.69%) are Direct, showing that the directional result is robust but its magnitude is count-sensitive. Process-efficiency is the largest pathway (125 records), whereas the smaller Mixed pathway has the highest descriptive mean LEDS score (2.11; 19 records). Granted-record publications are concentrated in 2023–2025 (201 records versus 66 before 2023), but the Direct-signal share changes only from 48.48% to 50.25%, indicating volume growth rather than proportional signal strengthening. Stronger signals cluster in scale-up bioreactors, media transition and process integration. Patent-derived signals identify where deployment bottlenecks are receiving inventive attention; they do not establish realized emissions performance.
Off-flavor remains a persistent problem for pea protein isolate (PPI), a major sustainable alternative protein source, limiting its commercial applications and consumer acceptance. This study aimed to develop a novel approach to improving PPI flavor by systematically investigating a process-integrated strategy in which the defatted pea slurry was heated during alkaline extraction (60, 80, or 90 °C for 5–30 min) to mitigate beany off-notes without compromising PPI functionalities (solubility, foaming capacity, emulsifying capacity, and water-holding capacity). The volatile compounds were profiled by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and functional properties were assessed alongside sensory evaluation. High-temperature heating (90 °C, 30 min) of defatted pea slurry resulted in a significant reduction in key off-flavor compounds particularly hexanal (−97.65%), 1-hexanol (−92.82%), and 2-pentyl-furan (−96.53%). Sensory analysis indicated an overall improvement in aroma quality without loss of desirable nutty/cereal-like notes. Importantly, major functional attributes were largely retained, indicating that high temperature heating can improve flavor quality without compromising technological performance (foaming capacity improved by 85%). Unlike post-precipitation heat treatment that remediates already-formed off-flavors, our pre-precipitation heating strategy proactively prevents flavor deterioration at its source while simultaneously retaining or even improving protein functionality. Overall, our study would offer a practical approach to producing plant-based proteins with superior consumer acceptability for diverse food applications, including plant-based beverages, meat alternatives, and bakery products.
Brewer’s spent grain (BSG) is an abundant, protein‑rich byproduct, yet conventional alkaline extraction suffers from poor selectivity and generates substantial chemical waste. This study developed a mild pretreatment coupled with pH-stat enzymatic hydrolysis for the recovery of maltooligosaccharides and protein from BSG. The pretreatment effectively recovered maltooligosaccharides (93% of total starch content) and facilitated subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis. Hydrolysis pH was the key factor affecting BSG protein solubilization. The pH-stat hydrolysis at pH 8 enhanced solubilization and increasing the temperature from 50 to 60°C resulted in yields of 82% after 1 h and 93% at completion, with purities of 67.3–70.5%. Neutral pH-stat hydrolysis (pH 7) proceeded relatively slowly, reaching a maximum yield of 80% and producing higher-purity hydrolysates (78.8%) at 60°C with a hydrolysis time of 3 h. Protease‑mediated treatment produced protein hydrolysates and facilitated partial phenolic release, both contributing to the observed bioactivities. The resulting hydrolysates exhibited reducing (electron-donating) capacity (25–35 mg GAE g-1 hydrolysate dw) and antioxidant properties (DPPH: 63–178 µmol TE g-1 hydrolysate dw; FRAP: 33–102 µmol TE g-1 hydrolysate dw). Overall, the approach improved protein recovery from BSG while producing bioactive hydrolysates and maltooligosaccharides for efficient biomass valorization.
Traditional fermented foods offer significant economic value and health benefits, yet wide regional varieties remain unexplored. This study examines Northeast China paocai connections with geographic origin, microbial succession, and metabolites, enhancing its functional potential. The results showed that pH and microbial counts of regional paocai samples from Shenyang (KS), Changchun (KC), Harbin (KH), Dandong (KD), and Yanbian (KY) ranged from 4.1 to 4.5 and 3.1 × 10⁹ to 4.3 × 10⁹ CFU/g respectively. Microbial composition varied significantly, with Lactobacillus at 53% and 75% in KS and KD, respectively, whereas Leuconostoc was 80% in KY. Furthermore, probiotic modeling in uric acid (UA) enriched media showed that lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were dominant in KH and KY, whereas KC was unique, featuring non-LAB genera such as Pseudomonas and Ralstonia. In addition, 1.68g/L UA was completely degraded, resulting in allantoin concentrations of 32.9 µg/mL, 25.75 µg/mL, and 19.47 µg/mL in KC, KH, and KS, respectively, while urea reached 277.42 µg/mL in KD. The predicted pathway revealed that UA is converted to 5‑hydroxyisourate (HIU) by urate oxidoreductases (EC 1.7.3.3, EC 1.2.1.3, EC 1.1.1.60) and subsequently to allantoin and urea via hydrolytic enzymes. Region-specific paocai is a unique microbial source for degrading metabolic compounds, supporting functional food security.
