Metabolic pathway analysis and potential biomarker identification of beef spoilage based on untargeted metabolomics

BACKGROUND: Chilled beef is valued for its nutrition and tenderness but is vulnerable to contamination and spoilage during refrigeration. This study applied non-targeted metabolomics (ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS)) to track metabolite changes and their impact on beef quality across storage days 0, 3, 5, 7, and 10. RESULTS: A total of 63 potential marker compounds were identified, with amino acid, carbohydrate, and nucleotide degradation as the main drivers of spoilage and flavor change. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment revealed purine, pentose, and amino acid metabolism as key pathways. Pearson correlation analysis highlighted hypoxanthine, citric acid, xanthosine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, xanthine, d-glucose-6-phosphate, and inosine 5'-monophosphate as strongly associated with quality decline, suggesting their potential as biomarkers of spoilage. CONCLUSION: Metabolomics effectively captured biochemical dynamics during beef refrigeration. Identified pathways and metabolites provide valuable insights into spoilage mechanisms, with several compounds serving as promising biomarkers for monitoring quality changes. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry.