Electronic nose and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) were used to analyze the effect of star anise on the stewed chicken flavor. Both principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) of the electronic nose data suggested that star anise had effect on the stewed chicken flavor. The electronic nose was able to detect a clearer difference in volatile profile of stewed chicken using LDA than using PCA. GC–MS analysis showed that the composition and proportions of volatile compounds were greatly changed, and a spicy flavor was imparted to the stewed chicken with the addition of star anise. Compared with the control group, the peak area and percentage composition of aldehydes increased with the addition of star anise, whereas that of volatile compounds derived from Maillard reaction decreased. Fourteen and 16 key odor compounds were assigned by relative odor activity value (ROAV) in the control group and the star anise group, respectively, including aldehydes, alcohols, esters and sulfur‐containing compounds. The result of cluster analysis showed that ROAV was practicable to assign the key odor compounds of stewed chicken. Practical Applications Pot‐stewed meat products are well‐accepted because of their unique flavors. Spices have significant contributions to the formation of the flavors. Star anise is one of the most widely used spices in traditional Chinese pot‐stewed meat products. However, the effect of spice on meat flavor has not been widely studied, and the mechanism by which spice affects the flavor development is unclear, which limits the modernization of traditional meat products. This study suggested that the addition of star anise just changed the composition and proportions of volatile compounds and imparted a spicy flavor to the stewed chicken. The key odor compounds of meat products have made significant contributions to the overall flavor and determine the overall flavor. In this study, the key odor compounds of stewed chicken were assigned. These results may be helpful for further study of the mechanism whereby spices affect the flavors of traditional Chinese pot‐stewed meat products.

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Emotion is widely agreed to have two dimensions, valence and arousal. Few studies have explored the effect of emotion on conflict adaptation by considering both of these, which could have dissociate influence. The present study aimed to fill the gap as to whether emotional valence and arousal would exert dissociable influence on conflict adaptation. In the experiments, we included positive, neutral, and negative conditions, with comparable arousal between positive and negative conditions. Both positive and negative conditions have higher arousal than neutral ones. In Experiment 1, by using a two-colour-word Flanker task, we found that conflict adaptation was enhanced in both positive and negative contexts compared to a neutral context. Furthermore, this effect still existed when controlling stimulus-response repetitions in Experiment 2, which used a four-colour-word Flanker task. The findings suggest emotional arousal enhances conflict adaptation, regardless of emotional valence. Thus, future studies should consider emotional arousal when studying the effect of emotion on conflict adaptation. Moreover, the unique role of the emotional context in conflict-driven cognitive control is emphasised.

To evaluate the role of Maillard reactions in the generation of flavor compounds in Jinhua ham, the reactions of glucose and ethanal with histidine and lysine, respectively, were studied by simulating the ripening conditions of Jinhua ham. The volatile products produced were analyzed using solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The results showed that 8 volatile compounds were generated by the reaction of glucose and histidine and 10 volatile compounds were generated by the reaction of glucose and lysine. Reactions of ethanal with lysine and with histidine both generated 31 volatile compounds that contributed to the flavor of Jinhua ham. This indicates that histidine and lysine related to Maillard reactions possibly play important roles in the generation of the unique flavor compounds in Jinhua ham. This research demonstrates that free amino acids participate in the generation of volatile compounds from Jinhua ham via the Maillard reaction and provides a basic mechanism to explain flavor formation in Jinhua ham.

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