Sorghum Prolamin Scaffolds-Based Hybrid Cultured Meat\nwith Enriched Sensory Properties

Cultured\nmeat (CM) has been hailed as a sustainable future meat\nproduction technology that requires scaffolds to support cell growth.\nPlant proteins are the most promising raw materials for edible scaffolds\nbut remain underutilized. In this study, kafirin, an abundant, readily\navailable, and nonallergenic prolamin extracted from red sorghum,\nwas explored to fabricate 3D porous sponge-like scaffolds via a simple\ntemplate-leaching method. The scaffolds featured fully interconnected\npores with a high porosity of approximately 84% and mechanical properties\nof 1.0–1.9 kPa. Porcine skeletal muscle cells (PSCs) and adipose-derived\nstem cells (ADSCs) could adhere, proliferate, and differentiate on\nprotein scaffolds. Thereafter, a hybrid CM was produced by culturing\nporcine ADSCs on kafirin scaffolds for 12 days, integrating plant\nprotein-based and cell-based alternatives. The anthocyanins found\nin red sorghum contributed to the hybrid CM with meat-like color and\nantioxidative benefits. Moreover, the hybrid CM prototype demonstrated\npromising potential in providing higher protein content (22.9%) and\nunique mouthfeel and appearance characteristics, highlighting the\nviability of sorghum prolamin in promoting CM production.