Impact of Sulfur Fumigation on the Chemistry of Dioscoreae Rhizoma (Chinese Yam)

Abstract

Dioscoreae Rhizoma (Chinese yam; derived from the rhizome of Dioscorea opposita Thunb.) (DR), commonly consumed as a food or supplement, is often sulfur-fumigated during post-harvest handling, but it remains largely unknown if and how sulfur fumigation impacts the chemistry of DR. In this study, we report the impact of sulfur fumigation on the chemical profile of DR and then the molecular and cellular mechanisms potentially involved in the chemical variations induced by sulfur fumigation. The results show that sulfur fumigation significantly and specifically changed the small metabolites (molecular weight lower than 1000 Da) and polysaccharides of DR at both qualitative and quantitative levels. Multifaceted molecular and cellular mechanisms involving chemical transformations (e.g., acidic hydrolysis, sulfonation, and esterification) and histological damage were found to be responsible for the chemical variations in sulfur-fumigated DR (S-DR). The research outcomes provide a chemical basis for further comprehensive and in-depth safety and functional evaluations of sulfur-fumigated DR.

Untargeted metabolomics combined with vitro antioxidant to comprehensively evaluate the effect of sodium sulfite immersion on the holistic quality of mung bean sprouts

“…It has been reported that sulfites may also react with meat ingredients, or else biomolecules (sugars, proteins, lipids, vitamins, coenzymes factors, prosthetic groups, and nucleotides) and other small organic molecules (aldehydes, ketones, alkanes, and aromatic molecules) and cause some ingredient loss, such as thiamine cleavage, ultimately leading to vitamin deficiency (D'Amore et al, 2020). Recent studies have demonstrated that sulfur treatment substantially alters the chemical profile of yam, particularly affecting small molecule metabolites and polysaccharides, and influencing the physicochemical properties of starch and the overall content of aromatic compounds (Chan et al, 2023). Therefore, sulfite may impact the chemical composition of mung bean sprouts, yet previous research has not explored the effects of sulfite treatment on mung bean sprouts.…”