β₂-agonists are a class of synthetic sympathomimetic drugs with acute poisoning effects if consumed as residues in foods. To improve the efficiency of sample preparation and to overcome matrix-dependent signal suppression in the quantitative analysis of four β₂-agonists (clenbuterol, ractopamine, salbutamol, and terbutaline) residues in fermented ham, an enzyme digestion coupled cation exchange purification method for sample preparation was established using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Enzymatic digests were subject to cleanup treatment on three different solid phase extraction (SPE) columns and a polymer-based strong cation resin (SCR) cartridge containing sulfonic resin was found to be optimal compared with silica-based sulfonic acid and polymer sulfonic acid resins based SPEs. The analytes were investigated over the linear range of 0.5 to 10.0 μg/kg with recovery rates of 76.0–102.0%, and a relative standard deviation of 1.8–13.3% (n = 6). The limit of detection (LOD) and the limit of quantification (LOQ) were 0.1 μg/kg and 0.3 μg/kg, respectively. This newly developed method was applied to the detection of β₂-agonist residues in 50 commercial ham products and only one sample was found to contain β₂-agonist residues (clenbuterol at 15.2 µg/kg).

The content of differentially abundant metabolites in the fermentation broth of grapefruit peels fermented by Cordyceps militaris at different fermentation times was analyzed via LC–MS/MS. Small molecule metabolites and differential metabolic pathways were analyzed via multivariate analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment. A total of 423 metabolites were identified at 0, 2, 6, and 10 days after fermentation. Among them, 169 metabolites showed differential abundance, with significant differences observed between the fermentation liquids of every two experimental groups, and the metabolite composition in the fermentation liquid changed over the fermentation time. In summary, the upregulation and downregulation of metabolites in cancer metabolic pathways collectively promote the remodeling of cancer cell metabolism, facilitating increased glycolysis, alterations in TCA cycle flux, and enhanced biosynthesis of the macromolecules required for rapid proliferation and survival. This study provides new perspectives on the development of high-value-added agricultural and forestry byproducts and the development and research of functional foods.

Background/Objectives: Camellia bee pollen refers to pollen pellets collected by bees from plant stamens and mixed with salivary secretions. Alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD), as the initial phase within the spectrum of alcohol-induced liver diseases, has resulted in a rising global incidence rate and treatment burden of such liver ailments. Methods: This study employs acute zebrafish juvenile and adult zebrafish chronic alcoholic liver models to explore the protective effects of camellia bee pollen as well as its ethanol and water extracts on zebrafish alcoholic fatty liver. Results: The research findings indicate that the intervention group treated with camellia bee pollen significantly mitigated the accumulation of lipid droplets in zebrafish larvae and notably improved the liver lobule structure of adult zebrafish, bringing it close to normal conditions. The camellia pollen intervention group could significantly decrease the levels of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (T-CHO), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and malondialdehyde (MDA), while increasing the levels of glutathione (GSH) and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD). Conclusions: This experiment indicates that the pollen of tea flowers has a significant protective effect against alcoholic liver damage.