Effect of cold storage on composition and properties of grass carp muscle proteins

Abstract

The aim of present study was to evaluate the influence of cold storage on composition and properties of grass carp protein. The results show that muscle proteins of grass carp were degraded and underwent conformational changes when stored at 4 °C, and significant changes of the proteins content, as shown by the SDS-PAGE fingerprint, was observed after 6 days of storage. Protein’s surface hydrophobicity and total SH content increased during the first 4 days and then decreased gradually up to 10 days. The Ca 2+ -ATPase activity of protein decreased gradually during the storage period. The high MW proteins easily degraded during the cold storage, and the proteins with low MW were relatively stable but still gradually degraded. So the key time point for cold storage of grass carp is approximately 4-6 days.