Unveiling key constituents of a functional food: A dual-perspective on aroma and anti-aging bioactive components in steamed Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua.

The traditional simultaneous distillation-extraction (SDE) method was innovatively employed to co-extract both volatile aroma compounds and water-soluble polysaccharides from steamed Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua (SPCH). Key aroma-active compounds were identified through molecular sensory science, revealing six components with OAV > 1, among which 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline and furfural were particularly crucial to the distinctive aroma profile. Through sequential ethanol precipitation, twelve polysaccharide fractions were obtained. Among them, a glycoprotein (95-C2) was selected for further investigation due to its relatively uniform molecular weight (Mw: 8.5 kDa; Mw/Mn = 1.5) and exceptional free radical scavenging activity (IC₅₀ = 0.1050 ± 0.0445 mg/mL for DPPH; 0.2323 ± 0.0264 mg/mL for ABTS). Consequently, 95-C2 was evaluated in a D-gal-induced senescence model using PC12 cells, where it significantly reduced SA-β-gal-positive staining, ameliorated cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, and suppressed intracellular ROS generation while restoring mitochondrial membrane potential. The senescence-associated secretory phenotype was mitigated through reduced secretion of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6. Mechanistic studies at both gene and protein levels indicated that these anti-aging effects were potentially mediated through suppression of the p53-p21-p16 signaling pathway. This work represents the first attempt at simultaneous flavor-polysaccharide analysis using SDE, discusses their potential relationships, provides a referable framework for future research, and offers new insights into SPCH's potential in functional food applications.