Ying Ying

Based on ancient records of “Marching tea” and the flavonoid-rich properties of Lespedeza juncea, this study optimized green tea processing parameters for Lespedeza juncea tea. By adjusting leaf loading, roasting temperature, and time and employing precise methods such as gas chromatography–olfactory–mass spectrometry (GC-O-MS), liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS), and electronic tongues to determine key indicators, including metabolites, volatile compounds, and flavor profiles, the optimal processing conditions were determined through comprehensive analysis as 150 g, 200 °C, and 180 s. These conditions resulted in superior sensory quality (score: 90.9), the highest flavonoid content (4.11%), strong antioxidant activity (DPPH: 66.0% at 20 mg/mL; ABTS: >95% at 2.5 mg/mL), and key aroma compounds 1-octen-3-ol and β-ionone. This work revives an ancient tea tradition and provides a scientific basis for developing novel functional teas from grassland resources.

Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) residues represent a promising and sustainable category of silage additives, with the potential to modulate fermentation and enhance nutrient preservation. This study investigated the effects of two CHMs, Astragalus membranaceus L. (Astragali Radix, AR) and Inula helenium L. (Inulae Radix, IR), on the fermentation profile, nutritional composition, and bacterial community structure in barley silage. The forage was ensiled without additive (control, CK), or with 1% or 2% (w/w) of AR or IR for 75 days. The results showed that all additive treatments significantly improved fermentation quality, as evidenced by lower pH and reduced ammonia-nitrogen (NH₃-N) content compared to CK. The 2% IR treatment was most effective in promoting homolactic fermentation, yielding the highest lactic acid content and lactic acid-to-acetic acid ratio. Nutritionally, additives significantly increased dry matter, starch, and water-soluble carbohydrates, while decreasing neutral and acid detergent fiber contents. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene revealed that both herbal additives profoundly reshaped the microbial community. They suppressed undesirable bacteria and significantly enriched beneficial Lactobacillus species. Principal component analysis confirmed a distinct separation in microbial community structure between control and treated silages. These findings underscore the potential of these herbal residues as natural modulators of the silage microbiome for improved forage conservation.

Halosulfuron-methyl (HM) is widely used for the removal of noxious weeds in corn, sugarcane, wheat, rice, and tomato fields. Despite its high efficiency and low toxicity, drift to nontarget crops and leaching of its metabolites to groundwater pose potential risks. Considering the instability of HM, the pyrazole sulfonamide of HM was used to generate a hapten and antigen to raise a high-quality monoclonal antibody (Mab, designated 1A91H11) against HM. A direct competitive immunoassay (dcELISA) using Mab 1A91H11 achieved a half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 1.5 × 10⁻³ mg/kg and a linear range of 0.7 × 10⁻³ mg/kg–10.7 × 10⁻³ mg/kg, which was 10 times more sensitive than a comparable indirect competitive ELISA (icELISA) and more simple to operate. A spiking recovery experiment performed in tomato and maize matrices with 0.01, 0.05, and 0.1 mg/kg HM had average recoveries within 78.9–87.9% and 103.0–107.4% and coefficients of variation from 1.1–6.8% and 2.7–6.4% in tomato and maize, respectively. In addition, a magnetic lateral flow immunoassay (MLFIA) was developed for quantitative detection of low concentrations of HM in paddy water. Compared with dcELISA, the MLFIA exhibited 3.3- to 50-fold higher sensitivity (IC50 0.21 × 10⁻³ mg/kg). The average recovery and RSD of the developed MLFIA ranged from 81.5 to 92.5% and 5.4 to 9.7%. The results of this study demonstrated that the developed dcELISA and MLFIA are suitable for rapid detection of HM residues in tomato and maize matrices and paddy water, respectively, with acceptable accuracy and precision.

In this study, a novel neutral non-starch polysaccharide (GP1A) was extracted using hot water from ginseng roots. Chemical characteristics, monosaccharide compositions and structure of GP1A were investigated using scanning electron microscopy, gel permeation chromatography, X-ray diffraction,...