Metabolic disruption of flavor substance in aquatic animals: a review of POPs and heavy metal effects

In recent years, with the accelerated development of science, technology and industry, aquatic ecosystems have been severely damaged, which not only profoundly affects the survival and metabolic stability of aquatic animals, but also has a certain impact on the flavor of aquatic products. The key flavor substances affecting the flavor of aquatic products include free amino acids (FAA), nucleotides and organic acids, which form the basis of the key taste of aquatic products. This review focuses on the research on main flavor substances in aquatic animals, as well as the physiological and metabolic changes of flavor substances under the action of typical marine pollutants (including persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and heavy metal stress). However, there are relatively few studies on the molecular mechanisms of taste substance metabolism, and most of them are conducted in the field setting. This review aims to provide a reference for in-depth exploration of the metabolic mechanism of aquatic organisms’ taste substances in response to marine pollution.