Prospects for the next generation of artificial enzymes for ensuring the quality of chilled meat: Opportunities and challenges

Abstract

As living standards rise, the demand for high-quality chilled meat among consumers also grows. Researchers and enterprises have been interested in ensuring the quality of chilled meat in all links of the downstream industry. Nanozyme has shown the potential to address the aforementioned requirements. Reasons and approaches for the application of nanozymes in the freshness assessment or shelf life extension of chilled meat were discussed. The challenges for applying these nanozymes to ensure the quality of chilled meat were also summarized. Finally, this review examined the safety, regulatory status, and consumer attitudes toward nanozymes. This review revealed that the freshness assessment of chilled meat is closely related to mimicking the enzyme activities of nanozymes, whereas the shelf life changes of chilled meat are mostly dependent on the photothermal activities and pseudophotodynamic activities of nanozymes. In contrast, studies regarding the shelf life of chilled meat are more challenging to develop, as excessive heat or reactive oxygen species impair its quality. Notably, meat contains a complex matrix composition that may interact with the nanozyme, reducing its effectiveness. Nanopollution and mass manufacturing are additional obstacles that must be overcome. Therefore, it is vital to choose suitable approaches to ensure meat quality. Furthermore, the safety of nanozymes in meat applications still needs careful consideration owing to their widespread usage.

Keywords:

• Meat quality
• nanozymes
• food packaging nanomaterials
• meat freshness
• food safety
• COVID-19

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31972097), the National Key Research Program of China (2021YFD2100805), the Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (KYCX22_0718), and the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institution (PAPD).