Geographical traceability of wheat and its products using multielement light stable isotopes coupled with chemometrics

The present study was aimed to investigate the variation of stable isotopic ratios of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen in wheat kernel along with different processed fractions from three geographical origins across 5 years using isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). Multiway ANOVA revealed significant differences among region, harvest year, processing, and their interactions for all isotopes. The region contributed the major variability in the δ¹³C ‰, δ²H ‰, δ¹⁵N ‰, and δ¹⁸O‰ values of wheat. Variation of δ¹³C ‰, δ¹⁵N ‰, and δ¹⁸O ‰ between wheat whole kernel and its products (break, reduction, noodles, and cooked noodles) were ?0.7‰, and no significant difference was observed, suggesting the reliability of these isotope fingerprints in geographical traceability of wheat‐processed fractions and foods. A significant influence of wheat processing was observed for δ²H values. By applying linear discriminant analysis (LDA) to the whole dataset, the generated model correctly classified over 91% of the samples according to the geographical origin. The application of these parameters will assist in the development of an analytical control procedure that can be utilized to control the mislabeling regarding geographical origin of wheat kernel and its products.     

不同部位矿质元素与红外光谱数据融合对美味牛肝菌产地溯源研究

野生食用菌产地溯源研究中,采用单一有机成分或矿质元素指纹存在一定局限性。利用不同指纹分析技术的互补性与协同性,将不同部位与类型的化学信息进行融合,探讨此方法对野生食用菌产地溯源的可行性,以期为野生食用菌溯源提供新的思路与科学依据。通过测定云南7个产地、124个美味牛肝菌(菌柄、菌盖)中15种矿质元素的含量,以及子实体傅里叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)。标准正态变换(SNV)、二阶导数(2D)等算法对原始光谱进行预处理。基于低级与中级数据融合策略,将预处理后的FTIR光谱与菌柄、菌盖矿质元素数据进行融合,结合支持向量机(SVM)分别建立菌柄、菌盖、FTIR、低级数据融合(菌柄+菌盖,菌柄+菌盖+FTIR)与中级数据融合(菌柄+菌盖+FTIR)判别模型;分析比较模型参数,确定快速甄别美味牛肝菌产地的可靠方法。结果显示：(1)菌盖中Cd,Cr,Cu,Li,Mg,Na,P和Zn元素平均含量高于菌柄,Ba,Ca,Co,Ni,Rb,Sr和V元素在菌柄中平均含量高于菌盖。美味牛肝菌中人体必需矿质元素Ca,Cu,Mg,P和Zn平均含量远高于小麦、水稻干品和新鲜蔬菜,与动物干制品含量相似;(2)FTIR光谱数据最佳预处理方法为3D+SNV,其Q2和R2Y分别为76.64%,88.91%;(3)菌柄、菌盖、FTIR、低级数据融合与中级数据融合SVM模型,c值分别为8 192,4 096,1.414 2,11.313 7,1和0.7071 1,菌柄和菌盖模型c值较大,表明采用单一菌柄或菌盖矿质元素含量数据,SVM训练存在过拟合风险,判别效果较差;(4)FTIR、低级数据融合和中级数据融合SVM模型,样品分类错误总数分别为7,9,7和0,中级数据融合(菌柄+菌盖+FTIR)模型样品分类正确率最高。表明基于中级融合策略将不同部位矿物元素和子实体FTIR光谱数据融合,可作为野生食用菌产地溯源的一种有效方法。     

基于营养元素含量的名茶产地识别——以我国东部地区几种名茶为例

名茶营养元素含量在相当程度上反映了原产地的自然地理环境如母岩、土壤、气候等因素的印迹。基于茶叶的P、K、Ca、Mg、Fe、Cu、Zn、Mn、Se等矿质元素含量,综合应用系统聚类和主成分分析法,探讨了我国东部地区的安溪铁观音、武夷岩茶、庐山云雾茶、西湖龙井、黄山毛峰、太平猴魁、崂山绿茶等几种闻名遐迩的地理标志产品的产地识别问题。结果表明,矿质元素含量可以做为茶叶产地的判别指标之一,用于茶叶流通、销售过程的质量控制依据。     

1H-NMR Metabolic Profiling and Antioxidant Activity of Saffron (Crocus sativus) Cultivated in Lebanon

Despite the beneficial health properties shown by Lebanese saffron, its qualitative and quantitative composition has never been investigated before. In the present study, NMR spectroscopy, together with antioxidant activity assays, were applied to evaluate the chemical composition of saffron samples of different geographical origins (Lebanon, Italy, Iran, and India) and to categorize the Lebanese saffron for the first time. The distinction between Lebanese saffron and that produced in other countries was attributed to its higher linolenic and linoleic fatty acids, glucose and picrocrocin contents. Moreover, spices produced in three different regions of the Lebanese territory have been clearly differentiated. Saffron cultivated in the Qaa region displayed a high glucose, fatty acids and polyphenols content, whereas Hermel saffron exhibited the largest rate of picrocrocin and glycosylated carotenoids. Finally, samples from Baalbeck showed lower rates for the majority of metabolites. Moreover, Lebanese saffron showed a high antioxidant activity in ABTS and DPPH assays. A low dose of saffron extract (10 µg/mL) inhibited the growth of human lung adenocarcinoma cells, probably due to the high polyphenolic content. This study highlights the quality and peculiarity of Lebanese saffron cultivated in Northern Beqaa district and allows for a good discrimination between spices produced in relatively close territory.     

软玉中结构水类型和近红外光谱解析

利用傅里叶变换近红外光谱分析技术, 对源自国内外不同产地的软玉进行了测试与分析。结果表明在7 000～7 400 cm-1波数范围内,部分产地的软玉中出现四个由羟基倍频振动致近红外吸收谱带,分别归属OH(Mg MgMg),OH(MgMgFe2+),OH(MgFe2+Fe2+),OH(Fe2+Fe2+Fe2+)的倍频振动所致, 并与软玉中透闪石矿物晶体结构中M1和M3位置的Mg2+,Fe2+占位有关。随着透闪石中Fe2+/(Fe2++ Mg2+)比值的增大,亦可导致软玉中羟基NIR谱带的进一步分裂,谱带数目和强度增加,并向低波数方向位移。文中对软玉中羟基NIR光谱的产地鉴别意义一并给予了讨论。     

Microfluidic Production of Pyrophosphate Catalyzed by Mineral Membranes with Steep pH Gradients

Pyrophosphate might have functioned as an energy storage/currency molecule on early Earth, essential for the emergence of life. Here we synthesized mineral membranes involving iron(II), iron(III), and other divalent metal cations (calcium, manganese, cobalt, copper, zinc, and nickel) and tested their ability to catalyze the formation of pyrophosphate from phosphate and acetyl phosphate across steep pH gradients in microfluidic devices. We studied the chemical compositions of the precipitate membranes (which included vivianite, goethite, and green rust) using in situ and ex situ micro-Raman spectroscopy. The yields of pyrophosphate were determined by aqueous ³¹P NMR spectroscopy. We found that Fe²⁺ and Ca²⁺ were the best catalysts for pyrophosphate synthesis among investigated ions; Fe³⁺ and mixed-valence iron membranes were also able to promote pyrophosphate formation. In addition, the pH gradients across the membranes affected the pyrophosphate yields and the smallest pH gradient resulted in the highest yield. These results suggest a possible route of substrate phosphorylation in prebiotic hydrothermal systems.     

Systematic selection of ancestry informative SNPs for differentiating Han,Japanese, Dai,and Kinh populations

Biogeographical origin inferences of different populations can provide valuable clues in the forensic investigation by narrowing down the detection scope. However, much research mainly focuses on forensic ancestral origin analyses of major continental populations, which may provide limited information in forensic practice. To improve the ancestral resolution of East Asian populations, we systematically selected ancestry informative single-nucleotide polymorphisms (AISNPs) for differentiating Han, Dai, Japanese, and Kinh populations. In addition, we evaluated the performance of the selected AISNPs to differentiate these populations via multiple methods. Totally 116 AISNPs were selected from the genome-wide data to infer the population origins of these four populations. Results of principle component analysis and population genetic structure of these populations indicated that the selected 116 AISNPs could achieve ancestral resolution of most individuals. Furthermore, the machine learning model built by 116 AISNPs unveiled that most individuals from these four populations could be assigned to correct population origins. To sum up, the selected 116 SNPs could be available for ancestral origin predictions of Han, Dai, Japanese, and Kinh populations, which could provide valuable information for forensic research and genome-wide association study in East Asian populations to some extent.     

Investigation of chemical diversity in different parts and origins of ethnomedicine Gentiana rigescens Franch using targeted metabolite profiling and multivariate statistical analysis

Gentiana rigescens, an ethnomedicine, is widely cultivated in Yunnan province of China. Although a wide range of metabolites including iridoid glycosides, flavonoids and triterpenoids have been reported in this ethnomedicine, the data on accumulation and distribution of metabolites in certain parts are limited. In this study, targeted metabolic fingerprinting of iridoid glycosides based on liquid chromatography–ultraviolet detection–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐UV‐MS/MS) was developed to investigate the metabolic similarities and differences in different parts and origins. Thirty‐one compounds, including iridoid glycosides and flavonoids, were detected from targeted metabolite profiling and plausibly assigned to the different parts of G. rigescens. Multivariate statistical analysis was designed to reveal close chemical similarities between all the selected samples and to identify key metabolites characteristic of the standard. The results suggested that accumulation and distribution of metabolites in aerial and underground parts were different. Moreover, root samples tended to be grouped on the basis of the geographical closeness of region. Five metabolites can be considered as potential markers for the classification of underground parts from different regions. These results provided chemical information on the potential pharmaceutical value for further research, making G. rigescens ideal for the rational usage of different parts and exploitation of the source. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Template-Directed Copying of RNA by Non-enzymatic Ligation

The non-enzymatic replication of the primordial genetic material is thought to have enabled the evolution of early forms of RNA-based life. However, the replication of oligonucleotides long enough to encode catalytic functions is problematic due to the low efficiency of template copying with mononucleotides. We show that template-directed ligation can assemble long RNAs from shorter oligonucleotides, which would be easier to replicate. The rate of ligation can be greatly enhanced by employing a 3′-amino group at the 3′-end of each oligonucleotide, in combination with an N-alkyl imidazole organocatalyst. These modifications enable the copying of RNA templates by the multistep ligation of tetranucleotide building blocks, as well as the assembly of long oligonucleotides using short splint oligonucleotides. We also demonstrate the formation of long oligonucleotides inside model prebiotic vesicles, which suggests a potential route to the assembly of artificial cells capable of evolution.