VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPIC MONITORING OF STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN RAW SEAFOOD MEAT DURING COLD STORAGE

Raw seafood meats are perishable and, therefore, cold storage is necessary to prolong shelf-life. However, structural changes of meat components, ex. protein, possibly take place leading to loss of functional and modification of physical properties. This study aimed to monitor structural changes of different raw seafood meats (fish, mollusks and prawn) during storage at low temperature using attenuated-total-reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) and Raman spectroscopies. The ATR-FTIR revealed major bands of amide I (1575-1750 cm(-1)) and amide II (1480-1570 cm(-1)) mainly associated with C=O stretching and N-H bending vibration, respectively. Modification of band intensity was observed during cold storage. Raman spectra showed intensity changes of various bands such as amide I, III of protein backbone and their residues which indicated the modification of protein conformation. The complementary of FTIR and Raman spectroscopies potentially revealed mechanism and changes of protein conformation during low-temperature storage of raw seafood meat.