STUDY OF PROTEOLYSIS DURING THE PROCESSING OF A DRY FERMENTED PORK SAUSAGE

Dry pork sausage was formulated, fermented and dried for 41 days. Gross composition was determined and proteolysis was monitored by assaying the following N fractions: water-soluble nitrogen (WSN), salt-soluble nitrogen (SSN), ultrafiltration (UF) permeates of WSN and SSN, phosphotungstic acid (PTA)-soluble and -insoluble fractions and free amino acids. Meat and sausages, water- and salt-insoluble components, UF-retentates of WSN and SSN were assessed by SDS-PAGE at different stages of ripening. The amount of WSN, WSN permeate, PTA-soluble N and free amino acids increased during processing, while the SSN and PTA-insoluble N decreased. The electrophoretic studies demonstrated that proteolysis of the heavy myosin chain, alpha-actinin and actin was most prominent. The increased insolubility of meat proteins was confirmed by SDS-PAGE.