No abstract

This study investigated the effect of ultrafiltration (UF) combined with high-pressure processing (HPP) at 550 MPa, 25 °C for 5 min, ultrasound (US) at 520 W, 40 °C for 10 min and heat treatment (HT) at 90 °C for 3 min on the microbial, physicochemical and sensory properties of a blueberry-grapepineapple-cantaloupe juice blend during 104 days of storage at 4 °C. After UF, the shelf life of the HPPand US-treated clear juice blends were 104 and 72 days during the storage at 4 °C respectively. HPP, US and HT treatment minimally affected the anthocyanin and total phenol contents, while HPP better maintained the ascorbic acid levels and sensory properties in the clear juice blend during the storage. Therefore, HPP combined with UF was identified as a prospective processing technique in the fruit juice industry.

Sea buckthorn pomace is a by-product of sea buckthorn products that is not effectively utilized. This study obtained sea buckthorn polysaccharides (SPs) from the pomace via ultrasound extraction, analyzed its structure, and investigated its regulatory effect on the gut microbiota imbalance induced by cefixime. The results showed that SPs was acid polysaccharides with pyranose rings, composed mainly of galacturonic acid, galactose, and rhamnose. The SPs molecular weight (Mw) was 6.26 × 103 kDa, while further structural analysis revealed an irregular dendritic, fibrous surface morphology. Biochemical analysis showed that SPs increased the concentration of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the gut of mice treated with cefixime. Furthermore, SPs increased the abundance of Proteobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, and Akkermanis. Correlation analysis suggested that various microbiota had a significant (p < 0.05) relationship with SCFAs. Consequently, the underlying mechanism of SPs in restoring cefixime-induced gut microbiota disorder may be due to the promotion of SCFAs and SCFA-producing bacteria in the gut and gut microbiota regulation, benefiting gut health. This study is highly significant for developing and utilizing sea buckthorn pomace.