Extractibility of the protein and peptide fraction for different types of dry fermented sausages in relation to GPC-analysis.

The use of GPC (gel filtration chromatography) for investigating the proteolysis during fermentation and ripening of dry fermented sausages (Northern and Mediterranean type) and the choice of a suitable extraction solvent for this technique was evaluated. Solvents in a wide range of acidity were used in this experiment (pH 0.5-13). A calculation of the percentage extracted nitrogencompounds for each solvent and a comparison of the GPC-profile for each extract select the HCl-dilutions with a pH 1 to 3 as the most suitable extraction solvent. Although very basic solvents extract most of the protein and peptide fraction, they lead to some degradation of the proteins and peptides and are not reliable. Clear differences between the GPC-profiles for both types of sausages were not observed.